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stope support
ABSTRACT
The use of cemented rockfill (CRF) for support of open stope walls has increased in the Australian
underground mines operations over the last 5 years due in part to its low capital cost. In open stoping
the exposed CRF masses require adequate strength and stiffness, in order to resist the forces and to
limit the displacement associated with movements in the rock mass surrounding the excavations. The
CRF material preparation often involves the use of large particles, either from crushed rock or from
development mining waste sometimes up to 400mm in diameter. However, the use of waste rock,
which has a poorly graded particle size distribution may not achieve the required minimum target
strength due to segregation and large air voids within the fill mass. This paper describes the optimisation
of CRF strength by either crushing of the waste rock or the addition of sand to the mix. Both methods
increase the level of fines in the mix design. Cylindrical samples having 400 mm diameter and 800 mm
heights were prepared for Uniaxial Compressive Strength (UCS) testing. The UCS test was determined
using the Western Australian School of Mines (WASM) large-scale static test frame. The laboratory
results were compared with a database of large-scale CRF strength mixed without sand from a number
of mine sites. The comparison shows a significant strength development in the CRF mixing with addition
of sand. This has the potential to improve the overall economics of open stope mining, due to less
dilution at the exposed fill mass.
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INTRODUCTION
The use of cemented rockfill (CRF) for support of open stope walls has increased in the Australian
underground mines operations over the last 5 years due to its low capital cost (Villaescusa, 2014). The
mixing and delivery of the CRF into a stope can be achieved using an underground Load-Haul-Dump
(LHD). The exposed CRF masses require adequate strength and stiffness, in order to resist the forces and
limit the displacement associated with movements in the rock mass surrounding the excavations. The
CRF strength optimization usually includes:
Stone (1993) developed stability charts using the pseudo-3D formulations of Mitchell and Roettger
(1989). A Safety Factor of two was considered due to the effects of segregation and the potential for an
occasional improper mixing by underground operators. A typical minimum required UCS for different
loading mechanisms is shown in Table 1.
Waste rock : The CRF material preparation often involves the use of large particles, either from
crushed rock (crushed to sub 150mm) or from development mining waste having up to 400 mm
diameter in size. Figure 1 shows typical particle size distribution curves for the waste rock used for
mixing CRF. The specific gravity and bulk density ranges from 2.77 to 3.02 and 2 to 2.16 g/cm3,
respectively. The weight – volume relationship of CRF is determined by its porosity, void ratio and
relative density. In some cases, the use of waste rock, which has a poorly graded particle size
distribution may not achieve the required minimum target strength due to segregation and large air
voids in the fill mass (Cordova et al., 2016).
100
Mine A (Uncrushed waste rock)
90 Mine B (Crushed waste rock)
Mine C (Crushed waste rock)
80
Mine D (Crused waste rock)
Mine D (Uncrushed waste rock with addition of 2.5 % coarse sand)
70
Comulative passing (%)
50
40
30
20
10
0
0.01 0.1 1 10 100
Particle size (mm)
Figure 1. Typical particle size distribution curves for waste rock (Crushed, Uncrushed and Uncrushed
with addition of sand) used for CRF.
Binders: Binder such as cement or natural pozzolans is the main substance for strength
development in any type of mine fill. It is also the most expensive item of the fill mix. A choice of binder
depends upon on the required strength and durability requirements of a particular mine fill operation. A
cost effective, optimum strength mix design can be achieved by selecting or blending the right binder for
a given fill material (waste rock, aggregate, tailings sand, etc.) and mixing water (Saw & Villaescusa,
2011).
Mixing water: The mixing water has three main functions: (1) it reacts with the cement powder,
thus producing hydration; (2) it acts as a lubricant, contributing to the workability the fresh mixture and
3
(3) it secures the necessary space in the cement paste for the development of hydration (Popovics,
1992). The impurities in the mixing water can cause a strength reduction in any type of mine fill (Wang &
Villaescusa, 2001). The impurities can either be dissolved or suspended in the water. In certain cases,
the contaminated water can be used for mine fill purposes by mixing it with fresh water. However, it is
important to determine whether the impurities may lead a strength reduction (Saw & Villaescusa, 2011).
Cement 2-4%
4
(a) (b)
The uniaxial compressive strength of the (400 x 800) mm samples was determined using the WASM
large scale static test machine, Morton et al., (2007). The loading rate was approximately 2mm/minute.
The axial displacement was measured with four potentiometers, which were attached to the base plate
of the specimen. The test machines automatically acquire load and displacement using a Signal Express
data logging system. A top cap was prepared using a dental plaster before setting up the sample for
testing to ensure the load was evenly applied. The WASM large scale static test machine set up for large
CRF UCS test is shown in Figure 4. Figure 5 shows UCS test results for the CRF mixed in laboratory using
crushed and uncrushed waste rock with a 5% cement dosage. It shows that the UCS of the CRF
significantly increase for the CRF mixed with crushed waste rock, which had well graded particles size
distribution and a larger percentage of fine particles (Figure 6-a). On the other hands, the CRF mixed
with uncrushed CRF contained larger particles with poorly graded size distribution which caused
segregation and large air voids in the CRF samples (Figure 6-b).
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Figure 3. WASM static test machine set up for large scale (400 x 800) mm CRF UCS test.
5.0
CRF mixed with crushed waste rock, 5% cement
4.5
CRF mix with uncrushed waste rock, 5% cement
4.0
Uniacial Compressive Strength (MPa)
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
0 7 14 21 28 35
Curing (days)
Figure 4. UCS test results for the CRF mixed in the WASM laboratory.
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(a) CRF with high fine particles (b) CRF with low fine particle
and well graded PSD and poorly graded PSD
The main steps for underground CRF filling process include construction of waste rock bund and LHD
stop, batch up cement slurry, tram waste rock and cement slurry, mixing CRF with LHD and filling into
the stope. A schematic of a cemented rock filled stope is shown in Figure 7. An example of mixing and
filling of the CRF with LHD in an underground mine is presented in Figures 8a to 8d.
Any changes to the mix design are completed during the cement slurry batching process at the
surface batch plant. Any variations to cement content, water or sand addition is computer controlled
and then delivered to the mixing sump via the Agitator truck. At the mixing sump the waste rock is
combined with the slurry; no additional water or material is added underground.
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LHD Stop
Cross Cut
Unmined ore
Cemented 20 m
Slot rise holes rock fill
Figure 6. Schematic of a cemented rock filled stope (Van Der Merwe, 2009).
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Quality assurance and quality control
• Sampling of the crushed and screened waste rock from stockpile for regular PSD analysis;
• Task observations of the CRF mixing process to ensure the fill note and operational
procedures is being followed and additional water is not being used.
• Collecting CRF samples for UCS test to check compliance with target strength (Figure 8);
• Conducting survey with Cavity Monitoring System (CMS) on the stope before and after CRF
placement.
The standard process to collect the large diameter UCS samples is to:
1. Prepare the cylinders by coating in form oil to prevent the cement binding to the cylinder.
2. Prepare the CRF mix as per mine procedures.
3. Collect the sample mid-way through the delivery of the mix to the stope i.e. if a batch
normally uses 6 loader buckets then collect the samples on the 3rd or 4th bucket.
4. Clean up the cylinders and cover the top with plastic to reduce moisture loss.
5. Leave underground for a minimum of 4 days before moving to surface for transport to the
WASM laboratory.
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Figure 8. Sampling CRF for QA/QC test.
A correlation of Uniaxial Compressive Strength (UCS) at 28 days curing with different cement
content using crushed waste rock is presented in Figure 9. Generally UCS increased with increasing
cement content. However, the test results show a wide range of strength distribution. The lower
strength for a given cement percentage was mainly due to the segregation and large air voids in the
samples. An example showing the variation in segregation quality for two samples taken from the same
mix is shown in Figure 10.
10
5.0
Crushed waste rock - 2.5 % cement
4.5
Crushed waste rock - 3 % cement
Uniaxial Compressive Strength (MPa) 4.0 Crushed waste rock - 4 % cement
3.5 Crushed waste rock - 5 % cement
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0 4.5 5.0 5.5 6.0
Cement content (%)
Figure 10. Samples collected from the same mixed (paired samples). The sample on the left
reached a UCS of 0.46MPa and the sample on the right 1.67MPa.
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A comparison of UCS for CRF mixed with crushed waste rock, uncrushed waste rock and uncrushed
waste rock with addition sand using 3% general purpose cement is shown in Figure 11. Its shows that
the UCS of CRF mixed with crushed waste rock were much higher than that of CRF mixed with uncrushed
waste rock. The UCS of CRF increased significantly with the addition of 2.5% sand into the uncrushed
waste rock for the same 3% cement percentage. (Figure 1 showed the particle size distribution that
applies for each type of crushed and uncrushed fill type.) Figure 12 shows a typical sample for uncrushed
without sand and uncrushed with sand.
The addition of sand to the mix increases the level of fines which has the dual benefit of reducing
the amount of voids in the mix but also helping reduce segregation in the stope by creating a more even
material flow.
5.0
Crushed waste rock and
4.5
3% cement (14 Samples)
Uniaxial Compressive Strength (MPa)
4.0
Uncrushed waste rock and
3.5 3% cement (6 Samples)
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
0 7 14 21 28 35 42 49
Curing (days)
Figure 11. A comparison of UCS for CRF mixed with crushed waste rock, uncrushed waste rock and
uncrushed waste rock with addition sand using 3% general purpose cement.
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Figure 12. Uncrushed sample showing voids which reduces strength, UCS 0.24MPa (left).
Uncrushed and sand with less voids, UCS 2.02MPa (right).
Crushing waste material or the addition of sand to the mix increases the level of fines. This has the
dual benefit of reducing the amount of voids in the mix thus increasing strength but also helping reduce
segregation in the stope by creating a more even material flow. This benefit does come with higher
operational costs; however, this can be countered by a reduction in the cement content to achieve the
required strength. Cement is often the largest single consumable costs for open stoping underground
mines and even small reductions in the usage can provide large cost savings.
Operational costs including waste haulage, agitator truck and loader are expected to be similar for
uncrushed CRF and uncrushed with sand CRF. Crushed CRF may have an additional haulage component
to haul to and from the crusher but this is not considered here. Using a typical CRF mix design a simple
cost model for each CRF type by cement content has been developed and is shown in Figure 13.
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$30
Crushed waste rock (<150mm)
Uncrushed waste rock
Unrushed waste rock with 2.5% Sand
$25
$15
$10
$5
$-
2 3 4 5 6 7
Mix Cement Content (%)
The required cement content for each CRF type to achieve the minimum UCS for free standing
vertical exposures and undercut sills is shown in Table 3 combined with the cost per tonne of CRF. These
cement contents have been derived from the results shown in Figure 9 and 10 and from work
completed by Stone (1993). Due to the higher strengths achieved by the addition of sand and the
crushing of the waste material these CRF types require less cement to achieve the same strength.
Using sand in the CRF mix provides a saving of 11% per tonne for a 0.5 MPa mix and a 26% saving for
2.5MPa mix. Crushing by contrast costs 22% more at 0.5 MPa but when higher strengths are required is
10% cheaper than uncrushed. It is clear that the addition of sand is the most cost effective CRF type.
While the savings on a per tonne basis are small this saving is amplified by the considerable volume of
backfill tonnes most open stoping mines place back into the mine each year.
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CONCLUSIONS
Testing of large diameter UCS cylinders of CRF has shown higher strengths can be achieved for the
same cement content by providing more fine material to the mix. This can be achieved through either
the addition of sand during the cement slurry batching process or by crushing of the waste rock. It is
noted that the results for the uncrushed CRF with sand come from a small data set. A simple cost model
has shown the cost of the sand is less than the saving from the cement reduction it achieves. Due to the
large volume of backfill placed at most open stoping operations any reduction in cement usage can
provide large cost savings.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors wish to express their appreciation to MMG Limited, Xstrata Nickel Australia, Ramelius
Resources and Northern Star Resources Limited for their financial sponsorship to undertake this
research.
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