Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675

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Computers and Geotechnics

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/compgeo

Research Paper

New computational framework for modeling the gravity flow behavior of T

sublevel caving material
⁎
Liancheng Wanga, Anlin Shaoa, Xiaobo Liua, Lei Yangb, , Hangxing Dingc
a
Intelligent Mine Research Center, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110004, China
b
School of Civil Engineering, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
c
School of Resources and Civil Engineering, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110004, China

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: A better understanding of the gravity flow mechanism of caved material is required to increase ore recovery in
Sublevel caving caving mining. This study presents a novel computational framework PRF3D (3D particle random flow) capable
Gravity flow of simulating the flow behavior of caved ore and rock in sublevel caving mining. The PRF3D framework com-
Isolated draw bines the advantages of the discrete element method and stochastic medium theory and uses the billboard
Discrete element method
technique of OpenGL to render and visualize particles. The new framework can automatically record the ore
Stochastic medium
recovery indicators, display the shape of the draw zone in real time and capture the fines percolation. An isolated
Numerical draw simulation
physical draw experiment is conducted to validate the accuracy and efficiency of the PRF3D from both quali-
tative and quantitative perspectives. After validation, various numerical tests are conducted to investigate the
influence of the sublevel height, drawpoint spacing, drawpoint size and particle size of overlaying rock on the
multidraw behavior of caved ore and rock in sublevel caving mining. The performance of PRF3D is also de-
monstrated by benchmarking with the reported simulations.

1. Introduction
Underground mining plays a dominant role in removing and ex-
cavating valuable resources from the Earth’s crust because of the ex-
haustion of surface mining reserves (Zhang et al., 2020). As mining
migrates to deeper ground, the number of low-grade, steeply inclined
thick and medium-thick ore bodies increases significantly. In addition,
the in situ ground pressure grows drastically with the increase in mining
depth, resulting in an increase in the likelihood of rock burst. Rock
bursts could lead to geological disasters and project delays, causing
severe casualties and huge economic losses. Due to the flexibility in
addressing high ground pressure, caving methods, such as block caving,
sublevel caving and panel caving, are commonly used in underground
mining around the world (Sánchez et al., 2019). Additionally, the
caving method has the advantages of low operation cost, breadth of
geological application, high efficiency, safe mechanization and high
flexibility with production rates. To date, nearly 26% of the extracted
ore from underground mines is produced by using caving methods
(Leonardi, 2009).
The main disadvantage of caving methods is the relatively high ore
loss and dilution resulting from caved waste rock mixing with blasted
ore during the drawing process. Generally, the stronger ore body is
surrounded by weaker overlaying and wall rock masses in the caving
method used by mines. The ore body is fragmented by blasting, while
the surrounding rock is caved by mine-induced stress and gravity. The
caved rock could fill the void generated by ore removal and then move
downward to the drawing point together with the extracted ore, re-
sulting in ore loss and dilution. It is noteworthy that inappropriate
drawing control practices and unreasonable geometric design con-
siderations could drastically deteriorate the ore dilution and then lead
to resource wasting and profit decrease. In general, the ore dilution rate
is approximately 15 ~ 30% in some mines in China; however, it could
reach 40 ~ 50% with poor drawing practices. The gravity flow rule of
ore and rock fragments is the key factor influencing the degree of di-
lution in drawn ore, while the work on the investigation of the change
trends of the isolated extraction zone (IEZ, the original locus of ex-
tracted ore) and isolated movement zone (IMZ, the original location of
waste rock that flows to the extraction zone) are the foundation for
exploring such rules (Wang et al., 2016; Melo et al., 2008, 2007).
To date, many efforts have been devoted to understanding the un-
derlying mechanism of the gravity flow of blasted ore and caved rock.
Several mathematical models have been proposed to model the gravity
flow in caving methods. For example, Čssr (1965) proposed an analog
model by assuming an ellipsoidal draw shape for granular materials.

⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: lei.yang@sydney.edu.au (L. Yang).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compgeo.2020.103675
Received 4 November 2019; Received in revised form 23 May 2020; Accepted 25 May 2020
0266-352X/ © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
L. Wang, et al.
The model has been widely used in caving mine design and draw vo-
lume prediction due to its simplicity (Coates, 1966; Just, 1981;
Hartman, 1992). Later, Gang (1997) developed a stochastic model to
describe the flow pattern of fragmented rock under gravity. Kuchta
(2002) improved the Bergmark-Roos equation to better describe the IEZ
shape with the consideration of a nonzero opening width. More re-
cently, Melo et al. (2009) used kinematic and plasticity models to cal-
culate the IEZ and IMZ, and good agreements between their results with
scaled physical models were obtained. Evidently, these methods have
provided critical insights into the flow behavior of caved materials;
however, the parameters used in these formulations are usually difficult
to determine due to the lack of reliable infield data.
Other approaches based on full-scale (Brunton et al., 2010; Power,
2004), large-scale (Mcnearny and Abel, 1993; Castro et al., 2007;
Trueman et al., 2008; Halim, 2004) and small-scale (Tao et al., 2019;
Zhang et al., 2018; Castro et al., 2014; Jin et al., 2017; Shuai et al.,
2017) experiments are also used to mimic the gravity flow of frag-
mented rock. These studies have discussed the factors (e.g., particle
size, dip and ore width, drawpoint geometry, blasting parameters and
boundary conditions) that influence the flow mechanism of caved ore
and rock in isolated or multiple drawpoints. The significant influence of
these factors on the experimental results has been well demonstrated in
the literature (Sharrock, 2008). Compared with other experimental
approaches, the full-scale trail could help to elucidate the gravity flow
behavior of broken rock, it is clearly more time-consuming and costly
due to the practical difficulties in handling and recording the flow of
caved rock in situ. Additionally, it is worth noting that the behavior of
fines percolation and the cross-sectional geometry of the draw zone are
difficult to extrapolate in infield and scaled physical experiments
(Leonardi et al., 2012).
Recently, with the development of computation power, numerical
simulation techniques based on the discrete element method (DEM)
(Cundall and Strack, 1979; Wang et al., 2017a,b, 2018), stochastic
medium theory (Castro, 2006) and cellular automata (Castro et al.,
2009) have been widely used in simulating the gravity flow behavior of
blasted ore and caved rock due to their superior maneuverability and
repeatability. Based on these numerical approaches, the effects of
fragmented material properties (e.g., size, shape, and friction effi-
ciency), geometric design conditions (e.g., drawpoint size, drawpoint
spacing and sublevel height) and drawing modes (e.g., simultaneous
and sequential) on the flow pattern of caved ore and rock have been
extensively and systematically investigated (Jin et al., 2016; Song et al.,
2018; Wang et al., 2015; Liu et al., 2004; Sánchez et al., 2018; Yang
et al., 2016; Wang et al., 2019; Sun et al., 2019). The DEM can analyze
the gravity flow behavior of particles from a mesoscopic point of view
and clearly record particle movement, particle interaction, residual ore
and waste. However, the number of particles and the simulated time of
the DEM are still computationally uncontrollable for large- and full-
scale simulations (Leonardi et al., 2012). To reduce the computation
time, numerical simulations in 2D are often carried out (Song et al.,
2018, 2019; Xu et al., 2017). However, it is worth mentioning that the
2D simulation can only reflect the IEZ shape in selected cross-sections,
whereas the IEZ in the sublevel caving method is a 3D problem in
practical applications and is influenced by the coupled effect of geo-
metric design conditions (Song et al., 2018). The cellular automata
approach is computationally economical and can analyze large geo-
metries for long time scales; however, it does not model real physical
parameters, such as gravity, particle size and friction directly (Leonardi
et al., 2012). The negligence of real particle size distribution would lead
to the poor observation of fines percolation. The stochastic technique
usually presents unreliable simulated results due to the discrete dis-
tortion resulting from the lack of restrictions of mechanic laws (i.e.,
Newton’s laws of particle motion). Therefore, several improved nu-
merical techniques, including the REBOP (rapid emulator based on
particle flow code) (Pierce, 2010) and non-Newtonian lattice Boltz-
mann method-DEM (Leonardi et al., 2012), have been developed to
2
Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675
address the limitations in modeling the gravity flow of caved ore and
rock. Evidently, these improvements have helped to characterize the
gravity flow in caving mines, especially on fines percolation. However,
there is still considerable room for improvement in developing flexible
numerical tools to describe the gravity flow pattern of caved ore and
rock under different drawing conditions.
This paper aims to propose a new three-dimensional particle
random flow (PRF3D) simulation model that combines the advantages
of the DEM and stochastic medium model to further understand the
gravity flow mechanism of granular media. The proposed simulation
model is then developed as a PRF3D framework based on the C++
programming language and OpenGL technique, which can demonstrate
the real-time packing and flow process of caved ore and rock under
gravity in sublevel caving. The PRF3D framework also has the ad-
vantages of automatically recording the ore recovery indicators,
showing the shape of the draw zone in real time and properly capturing
fines percolation. Subsequently, isolated draw experiments are con-
ducted to verify the validity and accuracy of the PRF3D framework
from qualitative and quantitative views. Finally, the PRF3D framework
is used to investigate the influence of sublevel height, drawpoint spa-
cing, drawpoint size and particle size of overlaying rock on the multi-
draw behavior of caved ore and rock.
2. Three-dimensional particle random flow (PRF3D) simulation
model
The caved rock and ore are often irregularly shaped in nature.
Polyhedrons or other irregularly shaped meshes are often used to si-
mulate engineering scenarios relating to tunnel excavation (Do et al.,
2017; Nalini et al., 2012; Wu et al., 2018; Do and Wu, 2020a,b, 2018).
However, it is difficult to use irregularly shaped particles to represent
each rock fragment in 3D gravity flow modeling where a large number
of particles are required, as it is very time-consuming and complex to
largely characterize the particle morphology and to calculate the con-
tact condition between irregular particles. Therefore, similar to many
reported simulations (Jin et al., 2016; Chen et al., 2017); spherical
particles are used in this study.
In this study, spherical particles with different diameters are used to
represent the difference between rock and ore. Additionally, the grades
of ore are characterized by utilizing spheres with different colors.
Before establishing the PRF3D simulation model, the following as-
sumptions are made: (a) the initial position of particles is randomly
generated; (b) particles are considered rigid bodies; (c) inelastic colli-
sion occurs between particle-particle and particle-boundary, and energy
dissipation theory is introduced to maintain the energy balance and to
account for the effect of friction and damping; (d) the motion sequence
of a particle is random, and the movement of the particle meets the
kinetic energy theorem; and (e) the movement between particles is
sliding. The following subsections discuss how to establish a PRF3D
simulation model, including the random generation of particles, par-
ticle motion principles and randomness in 3D space.
2.1. Random generation of particles in 3D space
The random generation of spherical particles in 3D space in this
study is detailed as follows. First, the Monte Carlo random number
generation technique (Niederreiter, 1992) is used to generate a series of
3D points (xi; yi, zi), i = 1, 2, … n in a given spatial region. These points
are then selected as spherical centers to generate spherical particles
with a radius of input value R. It is worth noting that these spheres
cannot be placed beyond the given boundary, and the intersection of
particles is avoided. For example, the length, width and height of a
cuboid boundary are parallel to the x, y, and z axes in the coordinate
system, respectively. The cuboid boundary has a dimension of a × b × c
(length × width × height) and its vertex coordinate closest to the
origin is (x0, y0, z0). The particles generated in the cuboid region need
L. Wang, et al.
Fig. 1. Generation of spherical particles at (a) loose and (b) compacted states.
Fig. 2. Free-fall motion of a particle (a) without interface and (b) with interface above.
to meet the following conditions (Eqs. 1 and 2).
xi − r ≥ x 0, xi + r ≤ x 0 + a
yi − r ≥ y0 , yi + r ≤ y0 + b
zi − r ≥ z 0, zi + r ≤ z 0 + c
where Eq. 1 relates to the condition that the coordinates of particles
cannot be beyond the cuboid boundary.
d (si, sj ) ⩾ Ri + Rj , 0 < i, j < n, i≠j
d (si, sj ) = (x i − x j )2 + (yi − yj )2 + (z i − zj )2
where Eq. 2 relates to the condition that the particles cannot intersect
with each other.
It is noteworthy that the initial generated particle assembly presents
a high void ratio in which further compaction is required (see Fig. 1(a)).
Particle compaction is achieved by moving particles under gravity to
predetermined positions according to the particle motion rule discussed
in Section 2.2. If the particle’s new position meets the requirement of
Eqs. 1 and 2, the new position is valid; if not, the particle remains at the
original position. When the particle assembly is compacted, new space
will occur in the top of the cuboid region. The generation and com-
paction steps are repeated until no new particles can be generated and
placed. In this case, the particle assembly in the cuboid region is
Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675
considered fully compacted, and the process of particle generation is
(1a) completely finished, as shown in Fig. 1(b). In this study, red and yellow
particles represent ore and waste rock, respectively. The particle size
(1b) can be adjusted based on scaled experiments or field practices.
(1c)
2.2. Particle motion in 3D space
As discussed in Section 2.1, particle motion results from gravity and
collision. Three kinds of particle motion need to be considered: (a) the
(2a)
immobile particle will undergo free-fall movement if there is no particle
or boundary impediment below; (b) the immobile particle will undergo
(2b)
circular motion around the impeditive particle before disengaging
under gravity and reaction force from the impeditive particle; and (c)
inelastic collision will occur between the moving particle and boundary
or particle impediment. The following is a detailed analysis of the above
situation.
2.2.1. Particle motion without initial velocity
When the particle is only subjected to the effect of gravity, as shown
in Fig. 2, it moves in a free-fall way, and its velocity and displacement
at time t can be calculated by
1
x (̇ t + Δt /2) = x (̇ t ) + g Δt
2 (3a)
3
L. Wang, et al.
Fig. 3. Particle is hindered by an immobile particle in (a) 3D and (b) 2D conditions.
1 should pay more attention to the impediment from bottom particles in a
x (̇ t + Δt ) = x (̇ t + Δt /2) + g Δt
2 (3b)
x (t + Δt ) = x (t ) + x (̇ t + Δt /2) Δt
where ẋ(t ) is the velocity of the particle at time t; x (t ) is the position of
the particle at time t; g is the acceleration of gravity; and Δt is the time
step.
Another situation is that the particle is impeded by an immobile
particle below, as shown in Fig. 3. Particle 1 is moving under gravity
and hindered by particle 2. It is evident that the trajectory of particle 1
is always in a fixed plane (i.e., the green plane in Fig. 3(a)). The plane is
parallel to the Z axis and vertical with respect to the XOY plane.
Therefore, one can analyze the particle motion from the perspective of
the 2D plane, as shown in Fig. 3(b). The centripetal force of particle 1 is
provided by the component force of gravity Fn . When Fn is lower than
the critical value required for circular motion, particle 1 moves away
from particle 2 in a parabolic way. The following equations can be
derived for particle 1 during circular motion:
Fn = mgsinθ
υ12
Fs = m
r (4b)
1 1
mgh + mv0 2 = mv12 + Q1
2 2
Q1 = λ1 mv12
where Fn is centripetal force provided by gravity; Fs is tangential com-
ponent force provided by gravity; θ is the angle between the centerline
of two particles and the vertical direction; m is the mass of particle 1;
υ0 = 0 is the initial velocity of particle 1; h is the vertical displacement
height of particle 1; υ1 is the velocity of particle 1 at vertical dis-
placement h ; r is the radius of particle 1; Q1 is the friction energy
consumed by the friction between the particle and boundary/particle;
λ1 is the energy dissipation coefficient of particle-boundary/particle
friction. When υ1 increases to some value, particle 1 begins to perform a
parabolic motion.
In addition, the particle may be subjected to impediment from
several particles. For example, (see Fig. 4) due to the trend of down-
ward motion under gravity, particle 3 is subjected to a supporting force
provided by particles 1 and 2. Hence, the direction of the resultant force
acting on particle 3 (i.e., the arrow on particle 3 in Fig. 4) is not similar
to that of gravity. In fact, the force and motion of particle 3 result from
the vector superposition of particles 1 and 2. Particle 3 will make a
circular motion around the line that connects the spherical center of
particle 1 with that of particle 2. It should be noted that in Fig. 4(b),
particle 3 would make a free-fall motion if particle 2 did not exist and
particle 1 no longer provided lateral force to particle 3. Therefore, one
Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675
numerical simulation. For the particle subjected to the supporting
forces from more than two particles, its force and motion are also the
(3c)
vector superposition from each impediment.
Moreover, the particle may be subjected to a coupled impediment
from the boundary and an inferior particle, as shown in Fig. 5. The
resultant force acting on particle 2 is contributed by gravity and the
supporting forces from the boundary and inferior particles, and its di-
rection is presented in Fig. 5. In this case, particle 2 will make a circular
motion around the line that crosses the spherical center of particle 1
with a direction parallel to the X axis.
2.2.2. Particle colliding motion with initial velocity
The particle is drawn under gravity in caving methods, and its ve-
locity increases with higher vertical displacement. Once the moving
particle contacts other particles, collision will inevitably occur.
Generally, collision types include colliding with immobile particles,
colliding with boundaries and colliding with moving particles, as shown
(4a) in Fig. 6(a), (b) and (c), respectively.
As shown in Fig. 6(a), a moving particle with a speed of υ1 collides
with an immobile particle, and its normal and tangent velocities are υ1n
and υ1t , respectively. According to the conservation of energy during
collision, υ1t remains unchanged when colliding with an immobile
particle, but υ1n will change in the opposite direction with a smaller
(4c)
value due to energy loss. The velocity of the moving particle after
(4d) collision can be obtained by using the velocity synthesis theorem,
which is given as υ2 in Fig. 6(a). The situation in which the moving
particle collides with a boundary is similar, as demonstrated in
Fig. 6(b).
As illustrated in Fig. 6(c), when two moving particles collide with
each other, their tangent velocities υa1t and υb1t remain unchanged during
collision without the consideration of sliding. Based on the momentum
and energy conservation laws, their component velocities in the normal
direction need to meet the following formulas:
ma υa1n + mb υb1n = ma υa2n + mb υb2n (5a)
1 1 1 1
ma (υa1n )2 + mb (υb1n )2 = ma (υa2n )2 + mb (υb2n )2 + Q2
2 2 2 2 (5b)
where ma and mb are the masses of particles a and b, respectively; υa1n
and υb1n are the normal velocities of particle a and particle b before
colliding, respectively; υa2n and υb2n are the normal velocities of particle a
and particle b after colliding, respectively; Q2 is the collision energy
consumed by particle collision; and λ2 is the energy dissipation coeffi-
cient of particle collision.
By solving Eq. 5, the normal velocity of particle a and particle b
after collision can be derived as
4
L. Wang, et al.
Fig. 4. Particle is impeded by several inferior particles.
Fig. 5. Particle is impeded by the boundary and an inferior particle.
(ma − mb) × υa1n + 2mb × υb1n
υa2n = × λ2
ma + mb
(mb − ma) × υb1n + 2ma × υa1n
υb2n = × λ2
ma + mb
Finally, the updated velocities, including the magnitudes and di-
rections of particle a and particle b, can be calculated based on the
velocity synthesis theorem. It should be noted that when a particle
collides with several moving particles simultaneously, its final velocity
is the vector superposition from each collision. Generally, collisions
between moving particles continually occur until they arrive at the
drawing point.
2.3. Randomness of particle motion
For spheres that meet the conditions of motion at the same time,
their movements must be sequential. In this study, the randomness for
the sequence of particle motion is considered, that is, the velocity for
the first moving particle is higher than that for the later moving par-
ticle. For example, (see Fig. 7) both particle 1 and particle 2 meet the
motion condition, and the motion sequence is random. If particle 1
moves to the position of the red dashed line first, it will hinder the
movement of particle 2 and then arrive at the drawpoint first. Other-
wise, particle 2 will be drawn first.
When simulating the drawing process, we need to find all particles
Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675
that meet the motion condition and then assign probabilities to them by
using a random seed (Gentle, 2006) according to the following two
rules: (a) a higher probability should be assigned to a particle with a
smaller radius; and (b) the probability for inferior particles is higher
than that for upper particles. Subsequently, these particles are sorted
according to the probability magnitude to determine the order of their
movement. To this end, the combination of discrete motion and sto-
chastic theory is realized. In addition, since smaller particles show a
higher motion probability, compared with that of the larger particles,
they would arrive at the drawpoint first. This characteristic makes it
possible to investigate the mechanism for gravity flow of small caved
rock causing premature ore dilution.
3. Three-dimensional particle random flow (PRF3D) framework
The particle motion characteristics are coded via the C++ pro-
gramming language to develop the PRF3D framework. This section
presents two key technologies for developing the PRF3D framework,
including particle rendering and visualization and the division of
functional modules. The billboard technique in OpenGL (Open Graphics
Library) is utilized to render and visualize spherical particles. The
functional module of the PRF3D framework is divided into four sub-
modules: human-computer interaction, key computation, real-time
(6a) display and data statistic modules.
3.1. 3D rendering and visualization of spherical particles
(6b)
After generating the random positions of particles by using the
Monte Carlo method, the 3D rendering technique needs to be used to
draw the 3D spherical particles. Generally, 3D models are rendered
using basic triangles (Lin and Miller, 2005). For example, the sphere is
segmented along parallels and meridians first to generate a series of
parallelograms. Later, triangulation is used to connect the vertex co-
ordinates of these parallelograms to render and visualize the sphere.
The vertex coordinates of each parallelogram can be determined by
using the dual loop algorithm since they only relate to radius, zenith
angle, and azimuth angle in the spherical coordinate system. Usually,
more than 200 vertices need to be created when rendering one sphere.
However, such a method is not efficient and practical in drawing
simulations since more than ten thousand particles (i.e., at least 2
million vertices need to be connected by triangulation) must be created
to mimic the gravity flow behavior of caved rock and ore. In this study,
the Billboard technique in OpenGL is utilized to render and visualize
the particles due to its high rendering speed and outstanding visual
effect in spherical particle rendering (Shreiner D, Group BTKOAW,
2009). OpenGL is an application programming interface that has been
widely used in rendering 2D and 3D graphics. Various video cards and
5
L. Wang, et al.
(b)
(c)
a position of the billboard with vector Right, a quadrangle that is always
b particle creation in the PRF3D framework, one only needs to deliver the
Fig. 6. Moving particle collides with (a) immobile particles, (b) boundary and
(c) other moving particles.
integrated GPUs have been optimized for OpenGL, making it more ef-
ficient than other graphics development techniques. Billboards are 2D
elements coated in a 3D world, and their orientation can be computed
automatically such that they always face the camera, as shown in Fig. 8.
The key issue to be addressed in the billboard technique is ensuring
6
Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675
Fig. 7. Randomness of particle motion.
Fig. 8. Billboard technique in OpenGL.
that the vector from the billboard to the camera is always perpendicular
to the billboard surface. In this study, a vector named toCamera, which
orients from the billboard to the camera, is first created, as shown in
Fig. 8. Later, vector Up (0, 0, 1) is generated at the camera position. By
cross-multiplying vector toCamera with vector Up, vector Right can be
obtained, which is always perpendicular to the plane produced by
vector to Camera and vector Up (see Fig. 8). By extending the center
perpendicular to the camera can be generated.
Since the billboard is always perpendicular to the moving camera,
3D visualization could be achieved by texturing the image on the 2D
billboard. It is noteworthy that creating one 2D billboard only requires
four vertices, making it render more quickly compared with the com-
monly used creation method of the 3D model, as discussed earlier. For
spherical center and radius to the GPU from the CPU. Then, the geo-
metry shader in the OpenGL will correspondingly generate the four
vertices of the billboard. Once sphere texture is attached on the bill-
board, 3D visualization of spherical particles is realized.
3.2. Functional module of the PRF3D framework
Given the above particle generation technique and particle motion
characteristics, a PRF3D framework is developed by using the C++
programming language and OpenGL technique in this study. The aim of
this framework is to model the gravity flow pattern of caved rock and
ore more efficiently, and to characterize the IEZ shape and calculate the
mass drawn and ore recovery indicators automatically. It is worth
mentioning that the framework design should be from top to bottom,
that is, the overall structure is defined first, and by drilling down to the
levels, each module is designed. Four functional modules, including
L. Wang, et al.
Fig. 9. PRF3D framework structure.
human–computer interaction, core computing, real-time display and
data statistic modules, are designed in the PRF3D framework, as shown
in Fig. 9.
The human-computer interaction module aims to collect and deliver
required parameters for modelling and to feed the statistical results to
the user. The input parameters include sublevel height, crosscut spa-
cing, caving interval, crosscut dimension, particle size of caved rock
and ore, thickness of overlaying rock, cut-off grade, numbers of sublevel
and crosscut. The output includes the mass drawn ore recovery in-
dicators for each crosscut and the entire model. The core computing
module is used to generate the initial state of particle packing, model
the flow behavior of particles under gravity, and continuously update
the particle velocity, displacement and coordinates. The process of
particle packing is realized by using a mesh-based method. The core
computing module is the inner core part of the whole framework and
mainly runs on the CPU. Additionally, contact searching and collision
detection are included in this module, which are optimized by using the
mesh-based (Jiménez et al., 2001) and Octree methods (Wang et al.,
2017c); respectively.
The real-time display module is the display of the entire framework.
This module is realized by using the OpenGL technique and mainly runs
on the GPU. The main function of the module is to display the real-time
flow behavior of particles in 3D space and the final IEZ shape after the
drawing process. Additionally, it can be used to explore the drawn-
funnel shape, ridge hangover of ore and rock-ore jumbling from dif-
ferent visual angles during the drawing process.
The data statistic module is utilized to record the real-time mass
drawn of caved ore and rock for each crosscut. The mass drawn is then
used to calculate the ore recovery indicators for each crosscut after
drawing. Finally, the overall ore recovery and dilution rates for the
entire drawing model can be obtained. By comparing the ore recovery
indicators obtained from this module, the evaluation of different
drawing modes can be realized.
Overall, by using the C++ programming language and OpenGL
technique, the developed PRF3D framework can be used to explore the
gravity packing and drawing behavior of caved rock and ore in sublevel
mining with different geometric design conditions and particle sizes.
The framework displays the gravity flow behavior of caved rock and ore
in real time, statistics of the ore recovery and dilution rates, and reveals
the IEZ shape.
7
Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675
4. Numerical and scaled physical models of draw experiments
4.1. Scaled physical model of isolated draw experiment
4.1.1. Experimental model and materials
It is worth mentioning that the scale of the isolated draw model
should be reasonable and practicable, as an overly large or overly small
model usually causes a negative effect on the operation or flow ability.
Additionally, Castro noticed that the effect of the geometrical scale on
the IEZ shape was insignificant in his large 3D physical model test
(Castro et al., 2007). Therefore, a self-designed physical model with a
geometrical scale of 1:100 was used in this study to conduct an isolated
draw experiment, as shown in Fig. 10. The physical model has a di-
mension of 400mm × 400mm × 1000mm (length × width × height).
The isolated drawpoint with a dimension of 40mm × 40mm
(length × width) is located in the model’s bottom center to avoid the
intersection between the flow zone and the sidewalls of the model.
The experimental material was granular dolomite, which was first
broken into small particles with a diameter of approximately 10 mm
and then polished to improve its roundness and to make the surface
smoother, as shown in Fig. 10. The dolomite had a solid density of
2.9 g/cm3 and a natural response of 35°, as determined by the funnel
test, as shown in Fig. 11.
4.1.2. Experimental processes
A vertical drop hanging hammer pendant was first used to ensure
that the bottom of the physical model was horizontal, and then the top
of the drawpoint was sealed with an iron platen to simulate the initial
condition before blasting. The ore particles were placed into the model
layer by layer, and each layer had a thickness of 50 mm. A total of 8 ore
layers were placed with an overall height of 400 mm.
To characterize the mass drawn and IEZ shape, labeled makers were
radially distributed every 50 mm in the height direction (i.e., between
every two adjacent ore layers) by using a position plate, as shown in
Fig. 10. The spacing of two adjacent makers in the same row was
10 mm, and 45° was selected as the angle between two adjacent rows.
The markers were directly selected from the prepared experimental
material to ensure their similarity in flow characteristics. The surface of
the labeled markers was washed with water first, and then a label with
a unique symbol in red font was pasted on the markers’ surfaces to
L. Wang, et al. Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675

Fig. 10. Physical scaled model for the isolated draw experiment.

distinguish them from each other. Different labeled makers corre-
sponded to different coordinates in the model. An extra overlaying layer
with a thickness of 200 mm was placed above the uppermost layer of
the labeled makers to avoid rolling towards the crater (Castro et al.,
2007). Finally, the particle column had a height of 600 mm.
When the entire physical model was filled with particles, the iron
platen that sealed the drawpoint was extracted, and then particles were
drawn out from the drawpoint. During the drawing process, the number
of makers drawn and their corresponding mass drawn were recorded. It
is noteworthy that the particle flow speed during the drawing process
should remain as consistent as possible, and each mass drawn should
not be too large. The drawing process was terminated when the first
appearance of the labeled maker located in the uppermost layer was
observed.
4.1.3. Analysis of experimental results
As mentioned above, each labeled maker corresponds to a co-
ordinate in the physical model. Therefore, the relation between the
coordinate of each maker and its corresponding mass drawn could be
found by using interpolation methods such as the least squares method.
In addition, the field of mass drawn could be acquired. Later, the IEZ
shape at different draw heights can be determined by connecting those
points that present the same mass drawn with the smooth curve. Last,
the functional relationship between the drawn mass and the IEZ height
can be developed.

Fig. 11. (a) Setup for the funnel test and (b) natural response angle of dolomite.

8
L. Wang, et al.
Fig. 12. Simulation of funnel test for (a) initial and (b) final states.
4.2. Numerical model of draw experiments
4.2.1. Calibration of micromechanical parameters of dolomite
A physical funnel test was first conducted to determine the natural
response angle of dolomite (Xia et al., 2019). The top and bottom of the
funnel were 250 mm and 50 mm in diameter; respectively, and the
overall funnel length was approximately 175 mm, as shown in
Fig. 11(a). A total of 11 kg of dolomite was placed in the funnel, and
then the dolomite flowed out from the bottom under gravity. The de-
termined natural response angle of dolomite was 35°, as shown in
Fig. 11(b). Later, a corresponding numerical funnel test is carried out in
PRF3D to determine the required dissipation coefficients (λ1 and λ2 ), as
shown in Fig. 12(a). A total of 600 particles are used in the simulation.
The values of these coefficients are iteratively selected until the simu-
lated natural response angle is similar to that obtained from the phy-
sical test. The determined values for λ1 and λ2 are 0.2 and 0.1, respec-
tively, which gives a natural response angle of 35° for simulated
particles, as given in Fig. 12(b).
4.2.2. Numerical model for isolated draw test
To validate the reliability and accuracy of the developed PRF3D
framework in modeling the gravity flow behavior of caved rock and ore,
a numerical model corresponding to the physical scaled model men-
tioned above was established, as shown in Fig. 13(a). Similar to the
physical test, the numerical model has a dimension of
400mm × 400mm × 600mm (length × width × height). A drawpoint
(wall 1 in Fig. 13) with dimensions of 40mm × 40mm (length × width)
was placed at the model bottom. The particle diameter was set to
10 mm. Red particles represent experimental material, while yellow
particles represent labeled makers and overlaying particles. After gen-
erating and packing the particles, the corresponding gravity accelera-
tion (g = −9.8m/ s−2 ) and density (2900 kg/m3) are assigned. Later,
Fig. 13. Numerical model for the (a) isolated draw and (b) multidraw experiments.
9
Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675
wall 1 was deleted to start the drawing process. Particles were con-
tinuously drawn from the drawpoint under gravity until the height of
the IEZ reached 400 mm. The mass drawn and IEZ widths at different
IEZ heights were automatically recorded by the PRF3D framework
during the drawing process.
4.2.3. Numerical model for the multidraw test
It is worth noting that multiple drawing conditions are more
common and practical in practice than isolated drawing conditions.
However, physical multidrawing experiments are usually time-con-
suming, costly, burdensome and lack reproducibility. In this study,
another numerical model with two sublevels and five drawpoints was
established to investigate the gravity flow behavior of caved rock and
ore under multidrawing conditions (see Fig. 13(b)), in which DP re-
presents the drawpoint. This model is similar to that adopted in (Jin
et al., 2016). As discussed earlier, geometric design conditions and
overlaying rock properties have important effects on the IEZ shape and
ore recovery indicators under multidrawing conditions. To examine the
above effects, a series of numerical tests with various sublevel heights,
drawpoint spacings, drawpoint sizes and particle sizes of overlaying
rock were designed, as shown in Table 1. Each numerical test was
conducted in sequential drawing mode, which means the blasted ore
draws from DP1 to DP5 in sequence. The thickness of the overlaying
waste rock remains at 5 m, and the particle size distribution of the
caved ore obeys the Gaussian rule, as listed in Table 2. A low dilution
drawing technique is employed in this study, and the draw at the cur-
rent drawpoint is terminated after reaching a cut-off grade of 0.33 and
then moves to the next drawpoint. Overall, 20 numerical tests were
conducted, the corresponding mass drawn, and the IEZ width and ore
recovery indicators were recorded.
L. Wang, et al. Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675

Table 1
Summary of numerical tests.
Group Sublevel height (m) Drawpoint spacing (m) Drawpoint sizes (m × m) Particle size of overlaying rock (m) Draw modes

Effect of sublevel height

Group A 12 16 4 × 4 1 Sequential
14 16 4 × 4 1
16 16 4 × 4 1
18 16 4 × 4 1
20 16 4 × 4 1

Effect of drawpoint spacing

Group B
16 12 4 × 4 1 Sequential
16 14 4 × 4 1
16 16 4 × 4 1
16 18 4 × 4 1
16 20 4 × 4 1

Effect of drawpoint sizes

Group C
16 16 3 × 3 1 Sequential
16 16 4 × 4 1
16 16 5 × 5 1
16 16 6 × 6 1
16 16 7 × 7 1

Effect of particle size of overlaying rock

Group D 16 16 4 × 4 0.6 Sequential
16 16 4 × 4 0.8
16 16 4 × 4 1
16 16 4 × 4 1.2
16 16 4 × 4 1.4

Table 2
Particle size distribution of caved ore.
Particle diameter (m) < 0.5 0.5 ~ 0.6 0.6 ~ 0.8 0.8 ~ 1.0
Frequency of particles (%) 20 30 30 20

5. Results and discussion

5.1. Comparison between the isolated draw numerical and physical results

To verify the validity of the developed PRF3D framework, a com-

parison between experimental and numerical isolated draw experi-
ments was conducted, as given in Table 3 and Fig. 14. Fig. 14 compares
the IEZ obtained from the numerical and physical tests, corresponding
to the 0° longitudinal profile of the physical model. It can be seen from
the figure that the geometry of both physical and numerical IEZs is
ellipsoidal, and the IEZ width first increases and then decreases with the
increases in IEZ height. Table 3 lists the recorded mass drawn and IEZ
width at different IEZ heights during the numerical and physical
drawing process together with relative errors. It is evident that the
numerical results agree well with the physical results, and the average
Fig. 14. Vertical section of the IEZ in isolated (a) physical and (b) numerical
draw tests at a height of 400 mm.
Table 3
Comparison of isolated draw physical and numerical tests.
relative errors are only 5.04% and 4.27% for the mass drawn and IEZ
IEZ Mass drawn (g) Width at 0° longitudinal profile(cm)
height
width, respectively. Such an insignificant difference may be due to the
(cm) Physical Numerical Relative Physical Numerical Relative effect of particle shape. From a qualitative perspective, the validity of
error (%) error (%) the PRF3D framework is verified.
Later, the validity of the PRF3D framework is verified in a quanti-
0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
tative way. Castro et al. (2007) proposed a formulation to describe the
5 232 205 11.64 6.7 7.7 14.93
10 812 752 7.39 9.1 9.4 3.30 relationship between the mass drawn and the IEZ height as follows:
15 1283 1241 3.27 10.6 10.2 3.77 m
20
25
1845
3187
1763
2893
4.44
9.22
11.2
11.5
11.0
11.5
1.79
0.00
( )
hIEZ (m) = h 0 1 − e− mh + cm (7)
30 5480 5326 2.81 10.4 11.0 5.77 where hIEZ is the height of the IEZ; h 0 and mh denote the height and
35 8591 8051 6.29 9.0 8.2 8.89
mass drawn, respectively, at which the IEZ height grows exponentially
40 12,130 12,089 0.34 0.0 0.0 0.0
Average 5.04 4.27 with the mass drawn; and c is the final rate of increase when the IEZ
height increases linearly with the mass drawn.

10
L. Wang, et al.
Table 4
Eq. (7) parameters in isolated draw tests.
Test type h0(mm) mh(kg) c(mm kg−1) R2
Physical 234.415 1.455 13.870 0.995
Numerical 240.935 1.438 13.225 0.994
Fig. 15. Comparison of the relationship between the mass drawn and the IEZ’s
height in the physical and numerical tests.
By curve-fitting the IEZ height and the corresponding mass drawn
given in Table 3 with Eq. (7) via the nonlinear Levenberg-Marquard
algorithm (Hansen et al., 2004), the values of h 0 , mh , c and the corre-
lation coefficient (R2) for the isolated draw physical and numerical tests
are determined as given in Table 4. As seen, the correlation coefficients
R2 for both physical and numerical tests are close to 1, denoting that Eq.
(7) could be used to characterize the relationship between IEZ height
and mass drawn efficiently and accurately. Additionally, the fitted va-
lues for the numerical model are very close to those for the physical
model. This finding indicates that the numerical model is an efficient
approach in representing realistic drawing conditions. Therefore, from
the quantitative point, the validity of the developed PRF3D framework
is verified.
Fig. 15 illustrates a comparison of the relation between the mass
drawn and the IEZ height for both physical and numerical isolated draw
tests together with the corresponding fitting curves. The fitting curves
agree well with the experimental and numerical data. Additionally, the
change in IEZ height with mass drawn can be divided into two stages. In
the initial stage, the IEZ height increases exponentially with higher
mass drawn, and its rate of increase gradually decreases. For the second
stage, the IEZ height grows linearly with the increase in mass drawn.
Overall, the efficiency and accuracy of the developed PRF3D fra-
mework in modeling the gravity flow behavior of caved rock and ore
has been validated against the physical and empirical results from
qualitative and quantitative views. It is therefore practical and feasible
to use the PRF3D framework to investigate the gravity flow behavior of
caved rock and ore under multidrawing conditions.
5.2. Effect of sublevel height on gravity flow behavior of caved ore and rock
Group A was simulated to investigate the influence of sublevel
height on the gravity flow behavior of caved ore and rock under mul-
tidrawing conditions. For group A, the sublevel height ranges from
12 m to 20 m, while the corresponding drawpoint spacing and size are
fixed at 16 m and 4 m × 4 m, respectively. The particle size for
overlaying rock is 1 m in diameter, while that for caved ore obeys a
11
Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675
Gaussian distribution, as given in Table 2. The influence of sublevel
height on the draw process and the maximum width of the IEZ and ore
recovery indicators are illustrated in Figs. 16 and 17, respectively.
It is clear from Fig. 16 that the sublevel height has a clear influence
on the draw behavior, including ridge residual, ore-rock interface and
IEZ shape. As seen, the area of ridge residual between DP4 and DP5 is
decreased when increasing sublevel height, indicating a reduced ore
loss. The height of the ridge residual is always lower than that of the
sublevel. In addition, it is found that the ore-rock interface becomes
more distinct and smoother with higher sublevel heights. The final
shape of the IEZ is approximately an ellipsoid, regardless of the sublevel
height. However, the IEZ width and height increase with increasing
sublevel height, resulting from the increased vertical flow rate of caved
ore. For example, the average maximum width of the final IEZs in-
creases from 11.6 m to 14.6 m, corresponding to the sublevel heights
from 12 m to 20 m (see Fig. 17(a)). The growth rate of the IEZ width
decreases when the sublevel height exceeding 16 m.
As seen in Fig. 17(b), the sublevel height has a positive effect on ore
recovery. For example, when the sublevel height increases from 12 m to
20 m. The ore recovery rate increases from 48.83% to 53.03%, while
the ore dilution rate varies slightly. This is mainly because the gravity
flow speed of caved ore increases with a higher sublevel height, leading
to an increased draw body and therefore a higher ore recovery rate. In
addition, the decreased residual ridge partially contributes to the in-
creased ore recovery rate. However, it is noteworthy that increasing the
sublevel height means increasing the depth of the blast hole in the
sublevel caving. When the hole depth exceeds a critical value, the
drilling speed will decrease significantly, and the deflection rate of the
deep hole will increase, leading to a lower drill efficiency. In addition, it
has been shown in practice that a higher hole depth usually results in
blast accidents on the hanging arch and trench, causing severe ore loss
and dilution. On site, the sublevel height is commonly determined
based on the capacity of the drilling equipment.
5.3. Effect of drawpoint spacing on gravity flow behavior of caved ore and
rock
Group B was simulated to investigate the effect of drawpoint spa-
cing on the gravity flow behavior of sublevel caving material under
multidrawing conditions. The drawpoint size and sublevel height are
determined as 4 m × 4 m and 16 m, respectively, while the drawpoint
spacing varies from 12 m to 20 m. The overlaying rock has a diameter
of 1 m, while the particle size distribution of caved ore obeys the
Gaussian rule, as given in Table 2. Figs. 18 and 19 illustrate the influ-
ence of drawpoint spacing on the draw behavior, maximum width of
the IEZ and ore recovery and dilution rates.
As shown in Fig. 18, the top surface of the overlaying rock and the
rock-ore interface present more bending during drawing with the in-
crease in drawpoint spacing. The bend ore-rock interface resulting from
the inhomogeneous flow speed of the ore could lead to premature di-
lution due to the earlier arrival at the drawpoint of upper waste rock. In
addition, the ridge residual increases with higher drawpoint spacing,
which is mainly due to the increased distance between two adjacent
IEZs. It has been reported in many mines that mutually disjoint IEZs are
the main reason for high ridge residual (Wang et al., 2014). Drawpoint
spacing is a key factor in determining the IEZ shape by influencing its
eccentricity. As the drawpoint spacing increases, the IEZ shape shifts
from vase-like to approximately ellipsoid, and the distance between two
adjacent IEZs increases (see Fig. 18). For example, IEZ overlap is ob-
served for a drawpoint spacing of 12 m, but a significant distance be-
tween two adjacent IEZs is observed when the drawpoint spacing
reaches 20 m. In addition, the average maximum width of the two IEZs
increases from 11.6 m to 13.4 m when the drawpoint spacing increases
from 12 m to 20 m, but the growth rate decreases, as shown in
Fig. 19(a).
It is evident from Fig. 19(b) that the ore recovery rate decreases
L. Wang, et al. Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675

Fig. 16. Drawing process and IEZ shape for different sublevel heights: (a) 12 m, (b) 14 m, (c) 16 m, (d) 18 m and (e) 20 m.

substantially with increasing drawpoint spacing. For example, the ore between 16 m and 20 m, which is mainly because the upper part of the
recovery rate decreases from 66.28% to 45.56% with a drawpoint IEZ with smaller a drawpoint spacing intersects more severely with the
spacing between 12 m and 20 m. This finding is mainly attributed to the drawn funnel (Tao et al., 2010).
increased ridge residual resulting from the larger distance between two
adjacent IEZs, leading to higher ore loss. Therefore, a lower drawpoint
5.4. Effect of drawpoint size on the gravity flow behavior of caved ore and
spacing is always desirable in practice. According to draw theory, the
rock
ore recovery indicator reaches the optimal value when the drawpoint
spacing is equal to the drawpoint width. However, such geometrical
Group C was prepared to investigate the effect of drawpoint size on
conditions are not practical because decreasing drawpoint spacing re-
the draw behavior of sublevel caving materials under multidrawing
sults in higher ground pressure and difficulties in crosscut maintenance
conditions. The side length of the square drawpoint ranges from 3 m to
(Wang et al., 2014). On the other hand, there is no significant difference
7 m, while the sublevel height of 16 m and the drawpoint spacing of
in the ore dilution rate for the range of drawpoint spacing under study,
16 m are invariable. The overlaying rock has a particle size of 1 m,
as shown in Fig. 19(b). The ore dilution rate fluctuates between 1.9%
while the caved ore presents a Gaussian particle size distribution, as
and 2.4%. The dilution rates for a drawpoint spacing between 12 m and
listed in Table 2. The effect of drawpoint size on the draw process,
14 m are slightly higher compared with that for a drawpoint spacing
maximum width of final IEZ and ore recovery and dilution rates are

12
L. Wang, et al. Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675

Fig. 17. Relationship between sublevel height with (a) maximum width of IEZ and (b) ore recovery indicators.

shown in Figs. 20 and 21, respectively.
As shown in Fig. 20, the ore-rock interface is easier to bend for
smaller drawpoint sizes (e.g., 3 m × 3 m). The bend rock-ore interface
usually causes the upper waste rock to flow to the drawpoint in ad-
vance, leading to premature dilution. The rock-ore interface at the draw
ending of sublevel 2 moves more downward with a larger drawpoint
size, which leads to the decrease in ridge residuals between DP4 and
DP5 and the increased weight of drawn ore. The height of the ridge
residual is always lower than the height of the sublevel. For the final
IEZ, its shape shifts from a standard ellipsoid to vase-like with in-
creasing drawpoint size. The upper width of the IEZ decreases with a
larger drawpoint size, while the inferior width of the IEZ increases. It
was also found by Peters (1984) that the drawpoint size has a major role
in determining the geometry of the IEZ. The maximum width of the IEZ
increases from 11.6 m to 16.1 m as the drawpoint size increases from
3 m × 3 m to 7 m × 7 m, as shown in Fig. 21(a). It is worth noting that
the adjacent IEZs are tangent at their maximum widths when the
drawpoint size reaches 7 m × 7 m.
Fig. 21(b) illustrates the relationship between ore recovery in-
dicators and drawpoint size. It can be seen that the difference in ore
dilution rate is not significant for the range of drawpoint sizes under
study. The recovery rate increases significantly with increasing draw-
point size, but the rate of increase gradually decreases. The ore recovery
rate increases from 44.83% to 62.32%, corresponding to drawpoint
sizes from 3 m × 3 m to 7 m × 7 m. The reason can be explained by the
improved fluidity condition of caved ore resulting from the larger

Fig. 18. Drawing process and IEZ shape for different drawpoint spacings: (a) 12 m, (b) 14 m, (c) 16 m, (d) 18 m and (e) 20 m.

13
L. Wang, et al. Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675

Fig. 19. Relationship between drawpoint spacing with (a) maximum width of IEZ and (b) ore recovery indicators.

Fig. 20. Drawing process and IEZ shape for different drawpoint sizes: (a) 3 m × 3 m, (b) 4 m × 4 m, (c) 5 m × 5 m, (d) 6 m × 6 m and (e) 7 m × 7 m.

drawpoint size. Based on the stochastic medium theory, for a given
height, the vertical velocity of caved ore is highest on the flow axis of
the drawn zone. In the probability field of gravity flow, the caved ore
located at the flow axis has a higher probability of flowing. As the
drawpoint size increases, the flow probability of caved ore around the
flow axis decreases, while that of caved ore away from the flow axis
increases. It will increase the curvature radius of the curve close to the
flow axis, making the caved rock and ore fall steady. Hence, the contact
area between caved material and overlaying waste rock is reduced,
leading to a higher ore recovery rate (Tao et al., 2010). However, it is
worth mentioning that increasing the drawpoint size would increase the
drilling cost and cause unstable crosscuts.
5.5. Effect of the particle size of overlaying rock on gravity flow behavior of
caved ore and rock
Loose overburden plays an important role in sublevel caving
mining, since it provides compensation space for tight blasting and
prevents surrounding rock from being severely caved. However, loo-
sened overburden is also the main reason responsible for ore dilution
due to its mixing with ore drawn. The ore dilution resulting from loo-
sened overburden can be divided into the following two mechanisms:
(i) dilution on the ore-rock interface caused by interface rupture and (ii)
premature dilution caused by preferential arrival at the drawpoint of
overburden fines. Fines percolation is mainly attributed to the higher
velocity of fines compared with larger rock and ore during drawing.
When starting to draw, particles in the loosened zone begin to separate
based on their sizes corresponding to different velocities. The larger the

14
L. Wang, et al. Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675

Fig. 21. Relationship between drawpoint size with (a) maximum width of IEZ and (b) ore recovery indicators.

particle is, the smaller the flow velocity is. Therefore, the closer to the
drawpoint, the smaller the particle size. A fines motion form can be
divided into three categories: moving together with coarse particles,
rolling inside coarse particles and free falling between coarse particles.
Considering the ore dilution mechanism, it is always desirable for a
computational framework of sublevel caving allowing fines percolation
to be modeled.
In this study, Group D was simulated to verify the feasibility of the
PRF3D framework in modeling fines percolation and to investigate the
influence of the particle size of overlaying rock on the gravity flow
behavior of sublevel caving material. Variable particle diameters for
overlaying rock were set to 0.6 m, 0.8 m, 1.0 m, 1.2 m and 1.4 m. The
particle size distribution for ore was set following the Gaussian rule as
listed in Table 2. The sublevel height, drawpoint size and spacing were
fixed at 16 m, 4 m × 4 m and 16 m, respectively. Figs. 22 and 23
present the draw behavior, maximum width of the IEZ and ore recovery
indicators for different overlaying rock sizes.
As seen in Fig. 22, when the draw finishes, the ore-rock interface
becomes fuzzier and more indistinct as the particle size of the overlying
rock decreases. The intermixing of ore with rock is only noticed around
the drawpoint when the rock size is higher than 1 m; however, nu-
merous rock particles intermix ore around the drawpoint and the ridge
residual when the rock size decreases to 0.8 m and 0.6 m, respectively.
This finding means that waste rock with a smaller size mixes with ore
earlier due to its faster percolation speed, which also proves that fines
percolation is successfully modeled. In addition, the earlier intermixing
of ore with rock causes an increase in unrecoverable ridge residual.
According to the final shape of the IEZ. It can be said that the particle
size of the overlying rock influences the draw body in terms of the rock
drawn. As the overlying rock size decreases, the mass drawn of caved

Fig. 22. Drawing process and IEZ shape for different particle sizes of overlaying rock: (a) 0.6 m, (b) 0.8 m, (c) 1.0 m, (d) 1.2 m and (e) 1.4 m.

15
L. Wang, et al. Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675

Fig. 23. Relationship between particle size of overlying rock with (a) maximum width of IEZ and (b) ore recovery indicators.

Table 5 Fig. 23(b).

Parameters used in the multiple-sublevel draw model.
Test number Drawpoint Drawpoint spacing Height of ore 5.6. Discussion
size(m × m) (m) layer m
To date, several DEM software packages, such as PFC, Yade, EDEM
1 4.0 × 4.0 12 12
2 4.0 × 4.0 16 15 and ESyS-particle, have been developed and are widely used in mod-
3 4.0 × 4.0 20 18 eling the flow behavior of sublevel caving materials (Jin et al., 2017,
4 5.0 × 5.0 12 15 2016; Chen et al., 2017; Tao et al., 2009; Zhu et al., 2018; Zhang et al.,
5 5.0 × 5.0 16 18
2019; Song and Konietzky, 2019; Hancock and Weatherley, 2008). To
6 5.0 × 5.0 20 12
7 6.0 × 6.0 12 18 compare their performance with PRF3D, a reported simulation on a
8 6.0 × 6.0 16 12 multiple-sublevel draw model via PFC3D in (Jin et al., 2016) is also
9 6.0 × 6.0 20 15 conducted in this study. The model included two layers and a total of 7
drawpoints, where both consecutive and simultaneous drawing modes
were considered. A number of 18 numerical tests (9 tests for each
rock increases. This finding is observed because a higher motion drawing mode) were carried out to investigate the influence of draw-
probability is assigned to the smaller particles, as mentioned in Section point size, drawpoint spacing and ore layer height under different
2.3. When overlying rock has a smaller particle size than that of the ore, drawing modes, as shown in Table 5. The wall size in process 1 was
it will percolate between the gaps of the ore particles and arrive at the 60 m × 12 m × 50 m (length × width × height), while the wall height
drawpoint more quickly due to its higher speed. Therefore, a larger in process 2 was varied based on the designed ore layer height. The
number of rock particles will be drawn out before the termination of initial porosity was 0.34, and the particle radius was 0.45 m.
drawing. However, the maximum width of the IEZ for the range of rock The comparison for the vertical cross sections of the multiple-sub-
sizes under study shows no distinct difference and remains at ap- level draw model at the draw end between PFC3D and PRF3D is shown
proximately 12.5 m, as shown in Fig. 23(a). in Fig. 24, where test 1 with the simultaneous draw mode and test 6
As shown in Fig. 23(b), it is clear that the increase in particle size with the consecutive draw mode are selected as examples. It is worth
decreases the ore dilution rate, as expected. For example, when the rock mentioning that the yellow and red particles are rock and the green
size increases from 0.6 m to 1.2 m, the ore dilution rate decreases from particles are ores in PFC3D, while yellow and red particles are rock and
3.25% to 1.87%. According to the draw behavior illustrated in Fig. 22, ore, respectively, in PRF3D. As shown in Fig. 24, the shape of the final
the rupture of the ore-rock interface is the main reason responsible for residual ore simulated by PRF3D is very similar to that obtained from
ore dilution when the rock size equals 1.2 m and 1.4 m. When the rock PFC3D, which denotes that PRF3D is feasible and acceptable in quali-
size equals 0.6 m and 0.8 m, premature ore dilution is mainly due to the tatively modeling the flow behavior of sublevel materials under gravity.
rock particles percolation and preferential arrival at the drawpoint. In Furthermore, the numerical simulations obtained from PRF3D and
the case of premature dilution, further drawing will cause higher di- PFC3D are compared quantitatively via the relationship between the
lution; however, massive ore will be lost if drawing stops. In addition, ore loss rate and various influencing factors listed in Fig. 25. The pre-
the influence of rock size on the ore recovery rate is illustrated in dicted ore loss rate by PRF3D is very close to that predicted by PFC3D.
Fig. 23(b). It is found that the ore recovery rate increases with larger Another issue to be concerned is the computational efficiency of
rock size, but the increase rate gradually decreases. For example, the PRF3D. Since the computational time in (Jin et al., 2016) is not re-
ore recovery rate increases from 45.86% to 52.68%, corresponding to ported, a new model (Fig. 26) is established in both PRF3D and PFC3D
rock sizes between 0.6 m and 1.4 m. The lower recovery rate for ore to compare their computation time under the same drawing condition.
with smaller overlying rock is mainly attributed to the larger amount of The geometry parameters of the model are given in Table 6, and a total
ridge residual, as shown in Fig. 22. Drawing is terminated in advance of 18,300 particles are used in both PRF3D and PFC3D. All the simu-
due to the percolation and preferential arrival of rock fines, and lations are run on a desktop with a CPU of Intel core i5, GPU of
therefore, a large amount of ore is residual between adjacent IEZs. It is GTX1060 and RAM of 8 G. As seen from Fig. 26, the final residual ore
worth mentioning that the maximum ore recovery rate that can be simulated by PRF3D is similar to that simulated by PFC3D; however,
reached in this scenario is approximately 52.50%, as shown in the computational time for PRF3D is only 3.1 h, which is far faster than

16
L. Wang, et al.
Fig. 24. Comparison of the multiple-sublevel draw mode between PFC3D and PRF3D.
that of PFC3D (30.2 h).
It is noteworthy that PRF3D is mainly developed to simulate the
flow behavior of sublevel caving material (unbonded granular assem-
blies) under gravity efficiently and rapidly. Compared with general-
developed DEM codes, PRF3D cannot be used to mimic the intact rock,
jointed rock or cemented assembly of which the particles are connected
by a contact- or parallel-bond model. In addition, the effects of the
particle shape are not considered in the current version of PRF3D, while
different particle shapes can be achieved in PFC3D via clump genera-
tion. On the other hand, the energy conservation equation rather than
the force-transmission equation is used in PRF3D, which may somehow
reduce the effects of particle stiffness in simulation; however, it can
improve the computational efficiency significantly in modeling the
gravity-driven behavior of caved material and without influencing the
accuracy obviously based on the simulations conducted in this study.
6. Conclusions
In this study, a new computational framework, PRF3D, is developed
for modeling the gravity flow behavior of caved ore and rock in sub-
level caving mining. Later, an isolated draw experiment is conducted to
verify the validity of the developed framework. Finally, PRF3D is used
to investigate the effect of sublevel height, drawpoint size, drawpoint
spacing and particle size of the overlying rock on the gravity flow be-
havior of caved ore and rock under multidrawing conditions. The fol-
lowing conclusions can be drawn.
(1) The developed computational framework has shown great potential
17
Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675
in modeling the flow behavior of sublevel caving material under
gravity, which is capable of modeling particle packing and gravity
flow behaviors, displaying the IEZ shape in real-time, calculating
the ore recovery indicators automatically and capturing fines per-
colation.
(2) Based on the comparison between isolated physical and numerical
draw experiments, the efficiency and accuracy of PRF3D is verified
from both qualitative (i.e., IEZ shape) and quantitative (i.e., re-
lationship between IEZ height and mass drawn) perspectives.
(3) The investigated factors (i.e., sublevel height, drawpoint size and
spacing) influence the flow behavior of caved rock and ore in terms
of ore-rock interface, IEZ and ridge residual. These three factors
have a positive effect on the maximum width of the IEZ. The ore
recovery rate increases with higher sublevel height and increased
drawpoint size but decreases with larger drawpoint spacing.
However, there is no distinct difference in the ore dilution rate for
the range of these three factors under study.
(4) The rupture of the ore-rock interface is responsible for the ore di-
lution when the particle size of the overlying rock is larger than that
of the caved ore, while fines percolation is the main factor when the
overlaying rock size is smaller than the caved ore size. As the
overlying rock size increases, the ore recovery rate increases, but
the dilution rate decreases.
(5) The performance of PRF3D is also demonstrated by benchmarking
with the reported simulations carried out by PFC3D, and satisfac-
tory agreement in both qualitative and quantitative perspectives is
noticed. The PRF3D presents a higher computation speed compared
with that of the PFC3D for the case simulated here.
L. Wang, et al. Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675

mechanism.

7. Abbreviations

PRF3D 3D particle random flow

OpenGL Open Graphics Library
IEZ Isolated extraction zone (the original locus of extracted ore)
IMZ Isolated movement zone (the original locus of waste rock that flows to
the extraction zone)
DEM Discrete element method
REBOP Rapid emulator based on particle flow code
DP Drawpoint
(xi, yi, zi) Coordinate of point i in three-dimensional space
si, sj Points i and j in three-dimensional space
d (si, sj ) The distance between si and sj
r Particle radius
Δt Time step
ẋ(t + Δt /2) Velocity of the particle at time t + Δt /2
ẋ(t ) Velocity of the particle at t
ẋ(t + Δt ) Velocity of the particle at time t + Δt
x (t + Δt ) Position of the particle at time t + Δt
x (t ) Position of the particle at time t
m Mass of particle
g Acceleration of gravity
h Vertical displacement height
v0 Initial speed of the particle
v1 Velocity of the particle at time t
Fn Centripetal force provided by gravity
Fs Tangential component force provided by gravity
θ Angle between the center line of two particles and the vertical
direction
Q1 Friction energy consumed by the friction between particle and
boundary/particle
λ1 Energy dissipation coefficient of particle-boundary/particle friction
ma Mass of particle a
mb Mass of particle b
υa1n Normal velocity of particle a before collision
υb1n Normal velocity of particle b before collision
υa1n Normal velocity of particle a after collision
υb1n Normal velocity of particle b after collision
Q2 Collision energy consumed by particle collision
λ2 Energy dissipation coefficient of particle collision
hIEZ Height of IEZ
h0 Height drawn where the IEZ height grows exponentially with the
mass drawn
mh Mass drawn where the IEZ height grows exponentially with the mass
drawn
c Growth rate when the IEZ height increases linearly with the mass
drawn

CRediT authorship contribution statement

Liancheng Wang: Conceptualization, Software, Validation, Writing

- original draft. Anlin Shao: Supervision, Funding acquisition. Xiaobo
Liu: Supervision, Funding acquisition. Lei Yang: Visualization,
Investigation, Validation, Writing - review & editing. Hangxing Ding:
Data curation, Methodology.

Declaration of Competing Interest

The authors declare that the work described has not been published
Fig. 25. Comparison between PFC3D and PRF3D on (a) the effect of ore layer before; that it is not under consideration for publication anywhere else;
height, (b) the effect of drawpoint spacing and (c) the effect of drawpoint width that its publication has been approved by all co-authors; that there is no
on ore loss rate. conflict of interest regarding the publication of this article.

This study attempts to develop a reliable and computationally
economic framework to model the 3D draw behavior of sublevel caving
material in a fast way, and some desirable results have been achieved.
However, further work on incorporating the contact model and irre-
gular particle shape is necessary to further characterize the draw
Acknowledgments
The comparison of computation time between PRF3D and PFC3D
(Section 5.6) is carried out by A/Prof. Peitao Wang from the University
of Science and Technology Beijing, and his contribution is highly ap-
preciated. This work is financially funded by the Research Fund of

18
L. Wang, et al. Computers and Geotechnics 125 (2020) 103675

Fig. 26. Numerical model used for comparison of computational time between (a) PRF3D and (b) PFC3D.

Table 6
Parameters for computation time comparison between PRF3D and PFC3D.
Code Sublevel height (m) Drawpoint spacing (m) Drawpoint size (m × m) Height of overlaying rock (m) Particle number Computation time (h)

PFC3D 16 16 4×4 5 18,259 30.2

PRF3D 16 16 4×4 5 18,344 3.1

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