Document Type : Original Research Paper
Authors
1 mining
2 Mining
Abstract
Near-wall waste dumping can reduce overburden haulage, but the shortest route is limited by slope stability. This study formulates a geomechanically allowable haul distance (GAHD) as a time-dependent lower bound in a discounted haulage optimization problem. The framework combines two-dimensional limit-equilibrium analysis, an effective affine fuel relation, an empirical cycle-time model, integer fleet sizing, an active-set finite-difference trajectory solution, and uncertainty propagation. The contribution is methodological and integrative - a geomechanically constrained planning layer added to haulage optimization - rather than a new mine-planning algorithm. The Kalmakyr copper mine (Almalyk MMC, Uzbekistan) is the primary application; a Muruntau wall section provides a second, structural application of the multi-tier dump concept. Across the four Kalmakyr walls, GAHD is 1.894-1.965 km, with a production-weighted value of 1.909 km. For a 2.0-km operating case, relative to 4.5 km, the model estimates fuel reduction from 86.0 to 51.2 L per trip, cycle-time reduction from 36.5 to 31.1 min, and fleet reduction from 60 to 51 trucks. The boundary advances by approximately 7.2 m yr−1, corresponding to a drift number of 0.02; a static constraint is therefore adequate for this seven-year case, and the moving-boundary formulation becomes relevant for faster-deepening or longer-horizon operations. A 50,000-draw Monte Carlo analysis gives a median net present value of 20.0 M USD and a 5th-95th percentile interval of 6.7-34.0 M USD. The findings support a reproducible decision-support workflow but remain conditional on two-dimensional stability analysis, aggregate fuel data, and site-specific calibration; independent operational validation is required before industrial implementation.
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