In order to make the excavation of hard rocks possible by mechanical excavators except the tunnel boring machines (TBM) or to increase cutting rate and decrease wear rate during cutting very hard rocks, recently, the research on some innovative methods such as microwave assisted (MWA) rock cutting have been drawing attention. However, there is no currently MWA cutting machine used in the laboratory or in the field. In this study, the cuttability of carbonate rocks by an integrated MWA linear cutting machine will be investigated.
Carbonate rocks are excavated by drilling and blasting that is a challenging method compared to the mechanical excavation. However, the mechanical excavation of carbonate rocks is generally impossible or inefficient. The objective of this proposal is to reveal the cuttability of carbonate rocks by MWA-continuous miners (CMs). The linear cutting tests without and with microwave assistance will be carried out on the samples from Turkey and Romania and the specific energy values will be determined. The performances of CMs will be estimated using the specific energy and discontinuity properties for without and with microwave assisted cutting conditions, and the results will be compared. Finally, the excavation cost will be calculated for CM without and with microwave assistance and compared to the current drilling and blasting method.
The partners of the proposal consist of one corporation and four engineering disciplines such as Mining Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Geological Engineering, and Electrical and Electronic Engineering.
After completing successfully the project, the suitability and the eco-efficiency of the MWA-CMs will be proven for the excavation of carbonate rocks. Using the MWA-CMs for the excavation of carbonate rocks will increase the efficiency and decrease the crushing and grinding costs. The environmental problems of blasting will disappear when using the MWA-CMs.
Year | Budget |
---|---|
2019 | 74.702 lei (15.760€) |
2020 | 85.984 lei (18.140€) |
2021 | 42.186 lei (8.900€) |
2022 | 49.296 lei (10.400€) |
TOTAL | 252.168 lei (53.200€) |
STAGE 1 (Oct - Dec 2019)
During this Stage, the following activities were performed:
- The kick-off meeting of the Consortium in Petrosani (7-8 nov 2019);
- Project scope and description was presented to mass media, scientists and companies in the field of carbonatic rocks exploitation;
- Identification of the rock sample collection sites;
- Sample collection and transportation to the University of Petrosani;
- Specimen preparation by coring from a part of the samples;
- Another part of samples prepared for transportation to Turkey for microwave assisted cutting, based on partner requirements;
- Testing (Brazilian, UCS etc.) in the Geomechanics laboratory at UPet has started;
- Discontinuity assessment of the rock massif has started;
- Mineralogical analysis was also started by staff involved in the project.
STAGE 2 (Jan - Dec 2020)
During the second Stage, the following activities were performed:
- Online consortium meeting on progress report;
- Specimen preparation from collected samples continued;
- Geomechanical testing was completed, results were disseminated with Consortium partners;
- Rock mass discontinuity of massif was done for all three locations;
- Mineralogic analysis completed, results shared with partners;
- First batch of cylindric cores shipped to Turkey for Brazilian and UCS tests;
- Larger rectangular samples prepared for LCT at Ankara;
- Due to pandemic situation samples were not sent and LCT visit to Haccetepe University was postponed.
STAGE 3 (Jan - Dec 2021)
During this Stage, the following activities were performed:
- Online consortium meeting on progress report;
- Preparation of linear cutting test machine at University of Petrosani;
- Setup and preparation of 1D load cell measurement tool;
- Preparation of point attack bits;
- LCT performed without MW assistance for all samples;
- Measurements verified, parameters (Specific cutting energy and force) calculated for all tested depths of cut;
- Partial results disseminated through 3 online conferences and 1 journal article;
- Results will be compared with LCT performed by partner with MW assistance.
STAGE 4 (Jan - September 2022)
The last stage of the project is still ongoing. During this Stage, the following activities were performed so far:
- Online consortium meeting on progress report;
- Larger rectangular samples were shipped to Ankara;
- FDEM model preparation for all locations of the samples, based on determined rock characteristics;
- Simulation of Geomechanical tests using Goemechanica Irazu FEM/DEM software and results compared to experimental ones;
- All results disseminated with Consortium partners;
- Partial results disseminated in one journal article;
- Another two papers are under work, one to be presented at a Conference and another to be sent to a Joural;
- A joint research paper is under evaluation at Q1 WoS journal;
- Final report is under development.