Coming of Age for Low-Density Explosives

摘要

Low-density explosives have been developed with trials being conductedrnfor over 20 years and yet have still only gained limited market acceptancerndespite producing some very promising results. The biggest concern withrnindustry acceptance has been disbelief that a product with lower densityrnthan the ANFO benchmark could fragment anything but the weakest ofrnstrata. Trials have been carried out with products such as diluted ANFO,rnlow-density ammonium nitrate (AN) and various other mixes, although itrnhas been only recently that low-density explosives have been accepted asrna serious alternative to traditional products such as ANFO and heavyrnANFO.rnThe recent uptake of low-density products has been the result of severalrnkey factors:rn?the current resources boom forcing AN supply issues,rn?the development of new handling techniques, andrn?a far better understanding of the utilisation of such products.rnThis paper highlights the benefits of low-density products available inrnthe market and focuses on the situations where low-density explosivesrncan provide the end user with benefits that would otherwise be achievedrnthrough more time consuming methods.rnThrough correct implementation, low-density explosives can providernthe blast designer with another option when looking at the optimumrnmethod of breaking the rock. This while still controlling the otherrnlimiting factors such as cost, environmental impacts (noise, vibration,rndust and fumes), coal damage and safety (stable walls).