Applicability of Geophysical and Non-Destructive Investigation Methods in Modern Industrial Deep Mining Environment

摘要

The worlds' industries continuing demand for minerals require the mining activities to look deeper into the earth, in the future. This stipulates an intelligent planning and preparation of the entire mining operations, including a raising priority on efficiency, safety and environmental impact. In consequence, adequate high accuracy information about the deposit and its entire underground environment is obligatory, which can be derived from geophysical, geotechnical and other non-destructive investigations.The presented work summarizes the capabilities of modern investigation methods for mine specific applications. Application tasks involve assessment of deposit size for productivity estimations as well as structural assessment of the mineral deposits and the surrounding rock materials to secure the exploitation and tunnelling operations against severe damage from geological fault movements. Ultimately, the article postulates a recommended role of such investigation methods as an integrative element within the entire life-cycle of a modern mine.