Single pass bolting approach for the stabilisation of rock masses in high stress conditions

2011

Michael Hill,

Francois Charette, Dynamic Rock Support NA Michael Hill, Dynamic Rock Support NA Abstract High stresses conditions in underground mines push the performance envelope of support system to their limit. In weak rock masses those conditions lead to large deformation and breakdown of the rock material, while stress release events in hard rock mines can lead to sudden and usually violent rock and support failure. In most typical support systems, different reinforcement and support mechanisms to provide the required convergence control and retainement, and this approach usually leads to a multi-pass support operation. The advantages of a single pass support system are investigated and several bolting combinations are compared. Criteria for design are also reviewed and new criteria are proposed to incorporate costs and effectiveness to commonly used engineering concepts. Field observation and testing is used to illustrate the difference between the proposed approach and more conventional systems.

Keywords: Mining, high stress, Stability, Support, Rockbolt