Blasting practices in a quarry with karstic cavities

Abstract

The blasting practices in a limestone quarry with karstic cavities have been presented. The existence of karstic cavities in the quarry has reduced blasting efficiency significantly. In order to improve blasting efficiency different blasting strategies (loading holes with ANFO in plastic bag, recording cavity location along the holes and charging the holes according to this information, and modifying blasting pattern according to karstic cavities) had been implemented and the results were evaluated on per ton cost basis. It was concluded that efficient blasting in such aquarries requires determining the size and shape of karstic cavities and based on this information, to modify the blast pattern and charge the holes. The suggested method is to record the cavity along the drill hole and to generate 3D model of cavities. By doing this, the production cost in the limestone quarry has decreased from 0.407 $/t to 0.354 $/t.