This study presents the results of probabilistic modeling of plane and wedge types of slope failures, based on the &rdquo / Advance First Order Second Moment (AFOSM)&rdquo / reliability method. In both of those failure types, two different failure criteria namely, Coulomb linear and Barton Bandis non-linear failure criteria are utilized in the development of the probabilistic models. Due to the iterative nature of the AFOSM method, analyzing spreadsheets have been developed in order to carry out the computations. The developed spreadsheets are called &ldquo / Plane Slope Analyzer (PSA)&rdquo / and &ldquo / Wedge Slope Analyzer (WSA)&rdquo / . The developed probabilistic models and their spreadsheets are verified by investigating the affect of rock and slope parameters such as, ground water level, slope height, cohesion, friction angle, and joint wall compressive strength (JCS) and their distribution types on the reliability index (&amp / #946 / ), and probability of slope failure (PF). In this study, different probability distributions are used and the inverse transformation formulas of their non-normal variates to their equivalent normal ones are developed as well. In addition, the wedge failure case is also modeled by using system reliability approach and then the results of conventional probability of failure and the system reliability approach are compared.

The expenditures resulting from work accidents is increasing every year. Among the other work accidents, mine accidents result important loss of time, money and lives. From the point of view of mine accidents, studies about cost of mine accidents need some contributions. In this thesis, cost of mine accidents to worker, employer, and total economy of country will be analysed in the light of data from Ministry of Labour, Social Security and Social Insurance Institution, and T&uuml / rkiye Coal Enterprises. General Analysis is carried out within all industrial sectors, Mining sector, and Coal Mining sector. Detailed analysis is carried out within Western Lignite Company (GLi). Occupational accidents have vital importance for the mines from legal, human and economic aspects. The goal of every mine should be to minimize occupational accidents. The top management of every mine should prove their commitments to the occupational health and safety policy to carry out this goal by means of preparing and implementing an accident preventing program.

ABSTRACT MONITORING AND STATISTICAL MODELLING OF DUST CONCENTRATION OF SOME TURKISH LIGNITES UNDER LABORATORY CONDITIONS Karakas, Ahmet Ph.D., Department of Mining Engineering Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Tevfik G&uuml / yag&uuml / ler September 2010, 171 pages Although technological developments enable maximum safety, high dust formation is still a crucial problem in coal mining sector. This study is aimed to investigate the relationship between amount of coal dust produced during cutting operation and some important coal properties together with cutting parameters for different particle size ranges in laboratory conditions. For this purpose, six Turkish lignite samples were used in the experiments. Two experiment sets were designed to generate coal dust by using cutting action of the saw. First group of experiments were conducted in large scale saw system by using saws having three different diameters and dust concentration measurements were done for three group of particle size namely: 0-2.5 &mu / m, 0-5 &mu / m and 0-10 &mu / m. Second group of experiments were done in small scale saw system by changing the table advancing speed and tip speed of the system. For this group of experiments, only one type of lignite samples were used. These measurements were carried out only 0-10 &mu / m particle size range by using a saw with 30 cm in diamater. In this study, to characterize the lignite samples / proximate, petrographic and grindability analysis (HGI) were made. During the experiments, dust concentrations were measured by using Microdust Pro real time dust monitoring equipment. At the end of the study, the relationship between coal dust concentration and some coal properties and cutting operating parameters were expressed by using four different regression equations. Also it has been found that tip speed of saw, fixed carbon, ash and huminite content, vitrinite reflectance and hardgrove grindability index are very important parameters in coal dust generation. Keywords: Respirable Coal Dust, Dust Generation, Real Time Dust Sampler, Coal Dust Diseases, Coal Cutting Operation.

Bentonite is the most preferred silicate-based binder in iron ore pelletizing. However, it is considered as an impurity due to its high SiO2 and Al2O3 content. The iron-making economy is adversely affected by the addition of bentonite or other silicate-based binders. In recent years, impurity-free alternative binders have been tested in order to replace bentonite or to lower the bentonite dosage. Organic binders yield good quality green and dry pellets. However, they fail to impart enough mechanical strength to the preheated and fired pellets as a result of insufficient slag bonding. Thus, they have not found widespread application in the industry. The addition of boron compounds into pellet mix is proposed as a potential solution to overcome the insufficient compressive strengths of preheated and fired pellets produced with organic binders. During the experiments, some organic binders and boron compounds were tested as alternative binders to bentonite either alone or in combination, for both magnetite and hematite pellets. The performances of the tested binders on pellet qualities: balling, wet pellet moisture content, drop number, pellet compressive strengths (wet - dry - preheated - fired), dustiness, porosity, mineralogy, morphology, chemical contents, reducibility and swelling index have been compared with the performances of reference bentonite binder. The results of the tests showed that, the quality of pellets are insufficient when organic binders or calcined colemanite used as binder alone. The former failed to provide sufficient preheated and fired pellet strengths, the latter failed in terms of wet and dry pellet quality. However, good quality wet, dry, preheated and fired pellets could be produced with combination of these two binders. Calcined colemanite addition into pellets made with organic binders was tested in different dosages (0.25-1.00%). Results showed that with increasing dosage of calcined colemanite both strengths of preheated and fired pellets increased linearly. It was found that as low as 0.50% calcined colemanite addition equally-performed on magnetite fired magnetite pellets at 1300oC when compared with the performance of the reference bentonite binder. However, its performance was better on hematite pellets in order to improve the pellet compressive strengths. In addition, stronger pellets could be produced at lower firing temperatures like 1100oC with the addition of calcined colemanite. The reason of the improved preheated and fired compressive strengths of pellets bonded with calcined colemanite was due to the physical melting of calcined colemanite at the contact point of iron oxide grains during thermal treatment. It was found that bentonite bonded pellets fired at 1300oC were more reducible than those of produced with calcined colemanite addition. Swelling indices of these pellets were determined in the industrially acceptable limits. The chemical and mineralogical analyses results showed that the combined binders did not contaminate the pellet composition since the organic binders burnt-out without residue and colemanite does not contain much impurity.

One of the most important properties of an explosive is its velocity of detonation (VOD). It is essential that the explosive should detonate at its optimum rate and release sufficient detonation pressure to get good fragmentation under the existing field conditions. The main objectives of this research study are to investigate the effects of explosive type, blast hole diameter, and degree of confinement on the VOD of bulk ANFO and bulk emulsion in Kumtor Open Pit Gold Mine. In this study, the continuous resistance wire method is employed to measure in-situ VOD of both bulk ANFO and bulk emulsion. The VOD values are measured for different hole diameters and under different confinements for both explosives. The ideality of bulk ANFO and bulk emulsion is calculated by comparing the in-situ measured VOD&rsquo / s and their ideal detonation values. It is found that the VOD of both explosives increases as the blast hole diameter and the degree of confinement increases. In addition to this, VOD of bulk ANFO decreases when it gets wet in the blast hole. Another finding is that, proportion of bulk emulsion ingredients has influence on its VOD. This research study provides a good understanding to use suitable explosive in existing rock conditions in Kumtor Open Pit Gold Mine.

Labor protection, that is prevention of occupational disease and reducing the frequency of accident, has always been a matter of major concern of mining industry. Management and the government should promote and maintain high safety standards through some measures and tools to reduce frequency of accidents and occupational diseases. This thesis describes the development of a national occupational health and safety management tool that is composed of educational, statistical and database interfaces for mine safety and health administration. The detailed analysis of an accident requires knowledge of many parameters such as location, time, type, cost of the accident, victim information, nature of injury, result of the accident etc. that can be obtained from a standard coded accident report form. So, database interface of the management tool is developed with this sense to realize collecting accident data in a nationally used format to produce a common safety reporting system. Prepared database maintains user-friendly environment on Internet to submit accident information. Dynamic structure and ease of use of the developed database allow administered user to expand it without detailed computer programming knowledge. This was achieved by prepared modules to change or register new data fields within the database. Created database is also secure since only gives data input access rights to registered users. Database administrator is able to create registered users. Registered users could be safety engineer or manager of a mine who is responsible from the submission of data to the ministry of labor. So, standard and secure accident data collected rapidly through Internet connection. The other feature of the database is that, it is open to all people to query accidents with many aspects. Prepared management tool also includes educational interface, content of which can also be enlarged, as the new ideas, information or solutions for accidents are improved. This information is also open to all people since educating workers and managers about accidents and prevention techniques can improve working conditions and increase awareness. Knowing the fact that submitted accident data is still collected in hard copies in folders, the need for a kind of management tool, which is completed in this study, is obvious. Application of this kind of management tool will be able to prevent the collection of accident data in dusty shelves and share the accident data information with all people who are interested in with this subject.

Accurate determination of the pressure losses at the bit is very important for drilling practices in petroleum industry. In the literature, there are several studies on determination of the pressure losses. Major focus is concentrated on single phase drilling fluids, which is far from accurate estimation of pressure losses for multiphase fluids, i.e., fluids including a liquid and a gas phase, at the bit. Some of these models are valid for multiphase fluids, however, they are either valid for very high gas flow rates, or developed using very strong assumptions. This study presents a mathematical model for calculating bit hydraulics for gasified drilling fluids. The theory, which is valid for both sonic (critical) and subsonic (sub-critical) regimes, is based on the solution of the general energy equation for compressible fluid flow. The model is sensitive to changes in internal energy, temperature and compressibility. In addition, the model uses &ldquo / mixture sound velocity&rdquo / approach. A computer program is developed based on the proposed mathematical model. The program calculates pressure drop through a nozzle in subsonic flow region, and suggest flow rate if the calculated pressure drop values is in the sonic flow pressure ranges. The program has been run at reasonable field data. The results of the models have been compared with the results of existing models in the literature. The results show that the pressure losses through the bit can be estimated with a variation less than 9%. Also, it has been observed that bottom hole pressure, velocity of the liquid phase and nozzle size have a strong influence on bit pressure drop.

The aim of this study, which was carried out in two main parts, is to investigate the glass forming ability of Fe-based systems. The first part involves the theoretical modeling to cover the requirement of a predictive model to identify the Fe-based alloy families that have high glass forming ability in the frame of atomistic and thermodynamic approach. The second part involves the experimental investigations to prove the results of the conducted theoretical modeling studies. For this purpose, in the first part, theoretical investigations were performed to identify the third alloying elements that will lead to an increase in the glass forming ability on the base of electronic theory of alloys in pseudopotential approximation for selected Fe- based systems, Fe - (B, Zr, Nb, C, W). In the experimental part, in the frame of the theoretical investigation results, one of the theoretically modeled binary system, and the third alloying elements that were predicted to lead an increase in the glass forming ability of the selected binary system, were determined. As a first step, designated compositions were synthesized by using low grade conventional Fe-B alloy as a raw material by using centrifugal casting technique and copper mold casting method. To compare the results, same compositions were also cast from the high purity elements by using the same technique and method. For the characterization of these cast specimens, DSC, XRD, SEM, EDS and metallographic examination techniques were used. Amorphous structure was successfully obtained in the thin sections of the wedge-cast samples for Fe-B-Nb and Fe-B-W ternary systems.

This thesis is aimed at studying the open pit truck- shovel haulage systems using computer simulation approach. The main goal of the study is to enhance the analysis and comparison of heuristic truck dispatching policies currently available and search for an adaptive rule applicable to open pit mines. For this purpose, a stochastic truck dispatching and production simulation program is developed for a medium size open pit mine consisting of several production faces and a single dump site using GPSS/H software. Eight basic rules are modeled in separate program files. The program considers all components of truck cycle and normal distribution is used to model all these variables. The program asks the user to enter the number of trucks initially assigned to each shovel site. Full-factorial simulation experiments are made to investigate the effects of several factors including the dispatching rules, the number of trucks operating, the number of shovels operating, the variability in truck loading, hauling and return times, the distance between shovels and dump site, and availability of shovel and truck resources. The breakdown of shovel and trucks are modeled using exponential distribution. Three performance measures are selected as truck production, overall shovel utilization and overall truck utilizations. Statistical analysis of the simulation experiments is done using ANOVA method with Minitab software. Regression analysis gives coefficient of determination values, R2, of 56.7 %, 84.1 %, and 79.6 % for the three performance measures, respectively. Also, Tukey&rsquo / s method of mean comparison test is carried out to compare the basic dispatching rules. From the results of statistical analysis, it is concluded that the effects of basic truck dispatching rules on the system performance are not significant. But, the main factors affecting the performances are the number of trucks, the number of shovels, the distance between the shovels and dump site, finally the availability of shovel and truck resources. Also, there are significant interaction effects between these main factors. Finally, an adaptive rule using the standardized utilization of shovels and trucks is developed.

Ventilation problems raised with the beginning of underground mining. In underground mining, to provide safe and healthy working conditions, ventilation should be designed properly. Especially in the planning stage of the project, to design ventilation properly is very important. The latest upgrade of the popular ventilation simulation program, known as VnetPC 2000, has been applied for the ventilation design. In this study simulation is conducted to both auxiliary and main ventilation at &Ccedil / ayirhan G Field. Information describing the geometry of a ventilation network, airway characteristics and locations, characteristics of different fans were prepared as an input. The output includes predicted airflows, frictional pressure drops, air power, losses in airway and fan operating points for different trials. After different trials it has been found that for auxiliary ventilation, where minimum required amount of air is 6 m3/s, ENGART, 30A 40SCV/60HR model fan which is the most economical one was selected. For main ventilation system, 5 fans which provide airflow more than minimum requirement were chosen. Among them the most economical one, that is ALPHAIR-5400VAX2100 HB, was selected for the mine.