INTRODUCCION A LOS METODOS DE EXPLOTACION

Los mtodos de explotacin se definen como: la forma geomtrica usada para explotar un yacimiento determinado. En buena cuenta: Es la manera de dividir el cuerpo mineralizado, en sectores, aptos para la extraccin. La explotacin de una mina es un conjunto de operaciones para arrancar, cargar y extraer el mineral, que requiere un funcionamiento ptimo de varios servicios anexos como: Ventilacin Fortificacin Drenaje Suministro de Energa, Aire, Agua. El objetivo de la explotacin de un yacimiento es la extraccin de menas y sustancias minerales sistemticamente, de manera que la comercializacin de la sustancia mineral proporcione la utilidad esperada. La explotacin de una mina se compone de tres operaciones mineras bsicas : Accesos y desarrollos de aperturas mineras Preparacin o infraestructura de la mina Arranque o explotacin de la mina.

Excavacin de Corte y Relleno

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Aplicaciones La minera de corte y relleno se aplica para explotacin de yacimientos muy inclinados, en estratos de estabilidad entre buena y moderada, y un alto grado comparativo de mineralizacin. La explotacin de corte y relleno presenta mejor selectividad que las alternativas de explotacin SLOS y VCR. Por lo tanto, se `prefiere el corte y relleno para yacimientos de forma irregular y mineralizacin diseminada. El corte y relleno permite la explotacin selectiva, a fin de recuperar separadamente secciones de alta ley, y dejar la roca de baja ley atrs en gradas.

Descripcin La explotacin de corte y relleno excava el mineral en trozos horizontales, comenzando desde un punto de extraccin inferior, y avanzando hacia arriba. El mineral se perfora, vuela y se

carga la marina eliminndola de las gradas. Cuando la zona total escalonada ha sido explotada, los vacos se rellenan con relave de arena o desechos de rocas. El relleno sirve tanto para soportar los muros de las gradas y plataforma de trabajo para el equipo cuando se explota el siguiente trozo. El relleno a menudo consiste del relave de arena desenlodada de la planta de preparacin de la mina, a veces complementada por rocas de desecho producidas por las excavaciones de desarrollo, apiladas en gradas vacas por cargadores LHD. El relleno de arena hidrulica se utiliza con la explotacin de corte y relleno. El relleno de partculas de desechos de grano grueso de la planta de preparacin de la mina, se mezcla con agua con 60 a 70% de slidos, y distribuidos a las gradas a travs de una red de tubera plstica. Antes de rellenar, se sellan las entradas de los caserones y en el fondo de stos se instalan los tubos de drenaje. La arena rellena la grada casi hasta la altura total, como se requiere un relleno ms duro en la superficie, el cemento se mezcla cuando el agua se ha drenado en la ltima vaciada, quedando la superficie de relleno suave y compacta, y como una buena base para las mquinas mviles mientras se explota el siguiente trozo de mineral. Desarrollo El desarrollo de explotacin de corte y relleno incluye: 1. Galera de tansporte a lo largo del criadero en el nivel principal. 2. Socavacin de la zona de gradas con drenaje para agua. 3. Rampa espiral en el muro yacente, con acceso al punto de extraccin. 4. Conexin de chimenea al nivel superior para ventilacin y relleno de material.

Explotacin de Vetas Angostas

Las dimensiones de los depsitos de minerales son muy variables. Un yacimiento puede ser desde una formacin grande, masiva, con un rea de varios kilmetros cuadrados de superficie, hasta una vena de cuarzo con una anchura de medio metro que contenga unos 20 g/ton de oro. Los mineros apuntan a recuperar valiosos minerales pero prefieren dejar el estril de rocas colgantes - y el muro yacente en su lugar. En los depsitos mayores las mquinas mecanizadas operan en el interior de las galeras sin problemas. Cuando la explotacin se angosta a slo unos pocos metros, las mquinas quedan demasiado anchas como para calzar dentro de los lmites del mineral. Para excavar ms espacio a fin de introducir una mquina ms grande produce estril que diluye el mineral. La alternativa es adoptar tcnicas manuales, y usar mano de obra para recuperar la veta de alta ley. Pero la mano de obra es cara y las tcnicas son poco eficientes. Adems, es difcil encontrar personas que acepten trabajar con perforadoras de roca manuales y usar fuerza muscular. Maquinas de tamao reducido para explotacin angosta Hoy en da, hay una seleccin de mquinas estndar de "tamao reducido" disponibles, permitiendo la explotacin mecanizada en galeras con una anchura de 2,0 m. La gama de mquinas de tamao reducido incluye el equipo de perforacin de avance para perforaciones angostas, hermanadas con equipo de perforacin de barrenos largos del mismo tamao. El pequeo jumbo para explotacin de galeras y el equipo de barrenos largos, complementado con el cargador LHD de 2 m3, es lo nico que se requiere para la explotacin mecanizada de la veta con una anchura de 2,0 m.

Explotacin de una vena angosta con inclinacin pronunciada Tome nota de la distribucin del trabajo en la Figura 25, donde la explotacin de galeras, perforacin de barrenos largos, cargas y voladuras y cargio se ejecutan en subniveles separados.

Cut and Fill Stoping

Large near-vertical orebodies are frequently mined by the cut and fill method. The ore is excavated in horizontal slices of about four metres thickness starting at the bottom of the orebody and working upwards. After blasting the ore is removed from the stope by whatever method is appropriate. As each slice is mined the void is filled with waste material to help support the walls and provide a base from which to work in removing the next slice. The fill maybe crushed rock from underground development or tailings from the ore processing plant or a mixture of both. In the case of tailings they are usually mixed with cement and water and are pumped or gravitate to the stopes as a slurry, which when drained provides excellent support. Broken ore is removed by load-haul-dump trucks or winch operated scrapers to ore passes then railed or trucked to the shaft or an underground crushing station. Alternatively it can be loaded directly into trucks for haulage to the surface. Cut and fill stoping allows a good recovery of ore, provides good support and permits close control of the boundaries of the stope, thus reducing dilution of the ore from the barren surrounding rock. Cut and fill stopes can be highly mechanised and hence become quite productive in terms of tonnes of ore per man-shift.

2.1.2 CUT AND FILL STOPING This type of mining method is used in ore zones where the strength of the wall rocks is such that the ground will not stand unsupported over long dip intervals. (FIGURE 5). The method is also used in ore zones where the hanging wall and footwall ore contacts are quite irregular, or have erratically mineralized lenses in the walls that only make ore grade on an intermittent basis. The method is also applicable for use in wide ore zones that would not stand unsupported if opened up over their full width. Wide ore zones can

be recovered by mining across the width of wide zones. A pillar is left beside the just mined out stope, and a second stope is mined across the zone parallel to the first. When the cemented backfill in both stopes has cured, it is possible to extract the remaining pillar ore between the two stopes. This assures that 100% of the ore is recovered. With such a method, it is essential that the fill used in the initial stopes contains sufficient cement to ensure that they will not fail when the pillar between them is mined. Fill material can consist of waste rock, sand and gravel, or, more commonly, mill tailings. The coarse fraction of the mill tailings are usually delivered to the stope from the mill in a mixture containing up to 25 -30% water which, after placed in the stope, drains off, leaving the tailings in place. It is common practice to add cement to the top portion of the fill in a stope in order to provide a solid roadbed for equipment in the stope, and to keep the fill from diluting the ore from the next cut. In transverse cut and fill stopes it is necessary to add cement to the total volume of fill, eliminating the need to leave pillars between the stopes. Relatively narrow and short cut and fill stopes are mined in a similar manner to shrinkage stopes by using hand held machines and blasting the muck down in 2.3 to 3.0 meter lifts, filling the void and repeating the process. If the stope is relatively long, both mining and filling operations can occur simultaneously. FIGURE 5 represents a typical cut and fill stope that illustrates the method and shows the associated services required for access and ventilation. Broken ore is normally removed from the stope through a steel lined mill hole that is carried up through the fill each lift. If the ore zone is in the order of 4.0 to 9.0 meters wide, productivity improvements can be gained by utilizing rubber-tired equipment rather than electric or pneumatic scrapers or slushers to transfer the broken ore to the mill holes. In addition, drilling operations can be conducted utilizing mobile drilling rigs rather than hand held machines. It is possible to modify the method from that shown in Figure 5 so that access can be gained to each stope lift through a drift driven off a ramp located in the footwall of the ore. The advantage of such an arrangement is that it eliminates the need to carry a mill hole through the fill and permits mobile equipment, which would be captive in the stope during its life, to be utilized elsewhere in the mine. One of the advantages of cut and fill mining is that it permits the selective mining of irregular shaped ore lenses with a minimum of dilution. It is often possible to separate a waste section occurring within the ore and leave it behind in the stope for fill. Cut and fill mining has an advantage over shrinkage methods in that there is very little time lag in getting the broken ore to the mill once it is mined. For ore zones that are characterized by heavy or slaby ground, cut and fill mining is often the only choice available to the mine planner. The disadvantage of this method is that stope productivity is often cyclical due to the need to delay mining operations while the stope is being filled. To overcome this, it is necessary to have a number of extra stopes developed to rotate the mining crews into while waiting for fill. In addition, fill material must be available upon demand. Any breakdown in the mill affecting the production of fill material or any major breakdown in the fill distribution system, will result in reduced production.

Productivities for cut and fill stopes can range from 15 to 30 tonnes per manshift for conventional stopes, and from 35 to 50 tonnes per manshift if the stope is mechanized. Operating mines utilizing cut and fill methods as their only mining method would typically produce at a rate between 500 to 1000 tonne per day. Mining costs range from $30 to $40/tonne and are quite variable from mine to mine, depending on conditions.