Surface miner

Prepared by:
Gaurav kumar
IIT (ISM) DHANBAD
 Introduction
✓Surface miner was first developed in 1970s owing
the design concept of road milling machines,
which cuts the old road surface for road
construction. Since then, surface miners have
gained in popularity with improved design of
cutting drum and higher machine power.
✓ Presently, more than 300 surface miners are
working over the world with competitive cost and
eco friendliness .
✓In india, gujrat ambuja cement ltd. Was the first to
introduce this technology in one of their limestone
mine in 1995 by deploying a SM-1900 machine.
✓ The reason behind this deployment was strategic. Due
to the depletion of near surface deposits, the surface
mines are becoming deeper and thus, the requirement
of operating surface area is becoming larger.
✓ India is a densely populated country and the available
land for mining is less as compared to country’s
mineral demand. Thus, the operating surface mines
are becoming closer to the inhabitancy and
conventional drilling and blasting technique is
prohibited due to threat of the inhabitant from fly
rock and ground vibration. This makes surface miner a
popular mining excavation technique and presently,
around 105 surface miners are working in indian
surface mines.
 Construction….
The surface miner mainly consists of 5 units:
(1) : it consists of operators cabin,
supporting frame, boom counter weight, slewing ring
etc.
(2) : it consists of two stage conveyors,
one carries the materials from the cutting drum and
discharges on the boom conveyor. This conveyor in
turn conveys it on to the trucks.
(3) it consists of a diesel operated engine
whose power is transmitted to the cutting drum via
roboustic belt drives and it consists of hydraulic
system to operate other units.
 Construction
(4) : based on the design it may be
single pair crawler or double pair crawler.
(5)
➢ The most important parameter is the cutting tool.
➢ The selection of right cutting tool is essential for
good cutting performance and high life, since, it
constitutes a major portion of operating cost of the
machine.
➢ The cutting depth can be regulated by automatic
leveling system mounted on the machine, the pre-
selected cutting depth is maintained either
automatically or manually.
Machine with double drum configuration
Classification of surface miner:
✓ Based on the cutting principle and position of the
drum, the surface miner is classified in three types.
➢
In this type of machines the cutting drum is
positioned below the machine in between the front
and rear crawlers, cutting picks are fitted on a drum
having the depth of cut 500-600 mm.
➢
in this type of machines cutter drum fitted with picks
is mounted on a boom, like road headers. Due to
longer boom the cutting force of the drum is limited.
Classification of surface miner:
➢
In this types of m/c several bucket wheels are arranged
in tandem & cutter picks are fitted on lip of each
bucket to form the cutting drum, which is positioned
in front of the machine.
The machine can exert huge force in cutting both hard
rocks and coal as the bucket wheel drum is close to the
m/c and the reaction of cutting force is directly
transferred to the ground through a hydraulic loaded
dozer blade behind the bucket wheels.
 SELECTION OF SURFACE MINER…
➢Initially, the surface miners were being deployed
largely on trial and error basis or on the basis of in-
field experimental runs.
➢ At later stage the Manufacturers evaluated the
applicability of surface miners based on
compressive strength of rock. Recently, a
cuttability index has been developed to predict the
applicability and performance of surface miners
for different application condition. This enables
the user to select a suitable machine as per their
requirement.
SELECTION OF SURFACE MINER…
➢ Selection of proper surface miner is crucial for project
economics. For economical rock excavation, therefore,
using surface miners, there are two basic elements to be
considered – the machine and the rock mass.
➢ A machine is the product of human ingenuity
(creativity/innovation)and can be modified to suit a
specific requirement. However rock mass is a natural
component in the earth’s crust and is thus immutable
(unable to be changed/rigid/fixed/unyielding). It is
imperative (crucial), therefore, to understand the rock to
be excavated prior to selection of the machine and based
on that a suitable excavating machine should be adopted.
SELECTION OF SURFACE MINER

➢ For the selection of suitable surface miner in India, a rock mass

classification system (called rock mass cuttability classification)
has been developed. This classification considers three rock
mass parameters, one machine parameter and one application
parameter. The suitable weightage is given for each
parameters and the sum of the rating gives the cuttability
classification.
Rating of the parameters of rock mass cuttability
classification
Assessment of excavatability of surface miner based on
cuttability index
Productivity calculation of a surface miner
Surface miner vs. conventional system of mining
Working principle of surface miner
The surface miner is a crawler mounted machine having
a cutting drum located b/w two sets of crawlers and
positioned at the centre of the machine. The drum is
lowered and raised by hydraulic system with powerful
hydraulic motors thereby varying the depth of cut. The
material cut is loaded on to the primary and secondary
discharge conveyors for loading the same on to the
loading/ transporting equipment. The rear crawler
travel at lower level then the front crawlers to adjust
the required depth.
 Methods of work using CSM
In Wirtgen Surface Miner, a type of CSM, a cutting drum, with
specified number of replaceable picks mounted on it arranged
in form of helix, is fitted below the machine body in between
the front and rear crawlers.
When the machine works, the hydraulically controlled drum
rotates in up-cutting direction. The cutting drum is generally
kept in horizontal position during cutting, but can be inclined
to some degree by controlling the hydraulic rams to facilitate
cutting of inclined seams.
During its working, the cutting drum rotates in an up-cutting
direction and a layer of predetermined thickness (maximum
thickness depends on the machine model) of the deposit is cut
and crushed in between the picks. The “Electronic Depth
Controller System” fitted in the machine controls the thickness
of cut slice/slices. The width of the cut slice is same as the
length of the cutting drum.
 Methods of work using CSM
The methods of workings of surface miner can be classified based on-
➢ sequence of extraction of strips
➢ Mode of travel
➢ Mode of loading
Based on sequence of extraction of strips
(1) wide bench method
(2) Block mining method
(3) Stepped cut method
Based on mode of travel
(1) Empty travel method
(2) Turn back method
(3) Continuous mining method
Based on loading
(1) Direct loading
(2) Indirect loading
 Methods of working based on the sequence of
extraction of strips
Wide bench method:
The wide bench method is generally used when the width of
the mineral bench is not very high. In this method, first the
uppermost layer of the whole width of the bench is
extracted in number of slices followed by the extraction of
the next layer and so on till the full height of the mineral
bench is extracted.
 Block mining method
➢ The block mining method is adopted when the mineral
bench is so wide that the extraction by wide bench method
is not suitable.
➢ In this method the bench width is suitably divided into
number of blocks, and then the block from the edge side of
the bench is extracted first for the full height of the bench
in number of slices following a sequence similar to that of
wide bench method. After completion of one block the
next adjacent block is extracted and the process continues
till the whole bench is extracted.
 Stepped cut method
➢ The stepped cut method is used when excess
moisture/water is present in the mineral bench that
creates problem in extracting the slices.
➢ In this method also the bench is first divided into
suitable number of blocks and then the individual
slices are so extracted that it forms a number of small
steps on the mineral bench. The formation of steps
facilitates the drainage from the mineral bench
thereby improving the machine efficiency.
Methods of working based on the travel method
Empty Travel Back Method
➢ In the empty travel back method, the surface miner
starts excavating a slice from one end of the bench and
moves up to the other end of the bench covering the
full length of the bench available for extraction. After
completion of one full cut, the cutting drum is raised
and the machine travels back empty to the starting
end. After coming back to the starting end, the
machine sets for a new cut in the adjacent parallel
slice, and the process continues till all the designated
slices in that layer are extracted.
➢The process is generally adopted under one or more of the
following conditions.
❖Available length of the bench is small (not more than
200m).
❖Turning time of the machine is more than the empty travel
time.
❖The machine turning is difficult at the cut ends due to
unavailability of required turning space.
 Turn back method
➢ In the turn back method, the surface miner starts
cutting a slice from one end of the bench and moves to
the other end covering the available length of cut.
After the cut is complete the cutting drum is raised
and the machine turns back there to start a fresh cut
adjacent and parallel to the previous cut. In this way
the required number of slices are extracted.
➢ The method is most widely accepted and used
provided the following conditions exist.
 Available length of the bench is more than 200m.
 Turning time is less than the empty travel time for the
machine.
 Required turning space is available at the cut ends.
 Continuous mining method
➢ Continuous mining method ensures continuous cutting
operation by the machine. In this method, the machine
moves with cutting the material and near the pit ends it
takes turn with a gentle angle while still cutting the
material. Thus there is no discontinuity in cutting
operation. This results in a round shape of the cut area
particularly at the cut ends. The process continues till the
circular/elliptical turnings become so sharp that the
machine cannot take turn while continuing the cutting
operation.
➢ Then the machine follows the turn back method for
mining the rest of the material at the central portion.
Overlapping circular or elliptical movement of the machine
may be adopted to avoid this situation, but this creates
problem like reduced productivity, difficulty in controlling
the pit slope and floor gradient.
Methods of working on the mode of loading
❖ Whilst Vermeer surface miners discharge material via
windrows behind the machine, the Wirtgen surface miner
can discharge the mined material via three different
methods:
 Direct Loading/conveyor loading - The discharge
conveyor can be slewed to either side of the machine,
enabling the operator to adjust loading of the cut material
to the position of the truck or it may directly load the cut
material on to the shiftable bench conveyor.
 Side-casting - The discharge conveyor can also be slewed
to create a large windrow by loading material along the
same strip over several different cuts. The conveyor is
slewed incrementally to pile material on top of itself
creating a more substantial windrow for loaders to engage.
➢ Windrowing
• In windrowing mode, the machine cuts the material
and the cut material is allowed to heap behind the
machine in form of windrows. The cut material from
the windrow or the side-casted heap can be loaded
later conveniently to dumper/tipper by some loading
equipment like FEL.
Front loading
Direct loading
Side casting
Windrowing
windrowing
Major specifications of some commercially
available surface miner
Major specifications of some commercially
available surface miner
 Applicability
❖ Surface miner has wide applicability in projects where drilling
and blasting is prohibited or in blasting sensitive area.
❖ It can be conveniently used for mining of coal and O/B Presently,
surface miner is also experimented for excavation of different
deposits, namely, bauxite, hematite, sandstone, shale etc.
❖ As this machine can cut slices up to 2.5 cm thickness, it has wide
applicability in extracting coal seams having numerous of
intermittent dirt bands.
❖ The machine can be worked in coal seam having gradient up to 1
in 4.
❖ This can also be worked in coal seams having geological
disturbances like faults, folds etc.( the minimum area required
for convenient operation of this machine is 200 m * 60 m).
 Applicability…

❖Mining of residual mineral.

❖Road construction and maintenance.
❖Removal of partings.
❖Mining of harder minerals (e.g. limestone, dolomite,
gypsum etc).
➢ Surface miner is a compact equipment, which cuts, crushes and load
the material simultaneously and thus, achieves the advantages of
continuous mining system.
➢ Surface miner completely eliminates drilling, blasting and primary
crushing unit and thus reduces their associated cost and environmental
hazards.
➢ the sized excavated material increases the transport/conveying
efficiency and thus saves the energy requirement in transportation.
➢ Surface miners have a unique conveying system by which the mined
material is directly loaded on to the truck/dumper.
➢ Less stress and strain on trucks/dumpers due to minimum impact of
the excavated material.
➢ Primary crushing and fragmentation of coal reduces the capacity
requirements for coal washing/ preparation plants.
➢ Produce clean and high quality material.
➢ Deposit can be exploited fully.
➢ Reduction in transportation cost and production process.
 ..

➢ Till date material with an uniaxial compressive

strength of 150Mpa can be economically mined by the
latest developed continuous surface miner.
➢ Since the installation cost is very low and it is a mobile
machine, the capital investment is lower.
➢ More efficient energy utilization is possible by the
machine.
 :
❖The machine has limited application in seam steeper
than 1 in 4.
❖The machine can’t serve the purpose of selective
mining in seams having thickness of dirt bands less
than 2.5 cm.
❖The performance of the machine in terms of coal
production get reduced with the increase in no. of
such dirt bands.
❖The performance of this machine also reduced with
the presence of geological disturbances in coal seams
i.e. presence of faults, particularly in strike direction
which limits the dimension of the working bench for
surface miner.
Comparison of cost
 Conclusion
 Surface miner is a versatile and useful equipment
capable of mining quality coal in highly inter-banded
coal seams of geological blocks located at ecologically
sensitive areas.