Underhand Longwall Program at Lucky Friday Mine, Mullan, ID

Details

• Personal Author:
  Hoskins JR ; Johnson G ; Poad, M. E. ; Whyatt, Jeffrey K.
• Description:
  Researchers from the U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) have been investigating alternative mining methods to reduce the number and severity of mining-induced seismic events in the deep mines of the Coeur d'Alene Mining District of northern Idaho. In 1984, USBM entered into a three-way memorandum of agreement with Hecla Mining Co., Mullan, ID, and the University of Idaho, Moscow, ID, to design, implement, and evaluate a mining system that could be used safely and productively for vein mining in a rock-burst-prone mine. A mechanized underhand longwall cut-and-fill method using a ramp system for access was chosen for study at the Lucky Friday Mine, Mullan, ID. A 122-m (400-ft) long test stope was developed between the 5100 and 5300 levels. In the underhand method, a block of ground is mined from the top down in a single advancing face, always toward virgin ground; this procedure eliminates the development of a highly stressed sill pillar. Because an engineered fill is placed after each cut, a more competent back is created for the next cycle. Success of the test stope led to adoption of the underhand longwall as the primary mining method throughout the mine. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Engineering Geology Mining Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Control-technology Engineering-controls Geophysics Ground-control Ground-stability Mining-industry Rock-bursts Rock-falls Rock-mechanics Underground-mining
• Series:
  Mining Publications
• Publisher:
  U.S. Bureau of Mines
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Book
• Place as Subject:
  Idaho ; OSHA Region 10 ; Washington
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  SRC - Spokane Research Center
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  335-346
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20024632
• Citation:
  Proceedings: Mechanics and Mitigation of Violent Failure in Coal and Hard-Rock Mines. Washington, DC: U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1995 May; :335-346
• Editor(s):
  Maleki H; Wopat PF; Repsher RC; Tuchman RJ
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1995
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  Proceedings: Mechanics and Mitigation of Violent Failure in Coal and Hard-Rock Mines
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:a9341f5e5fd08a067f3a0358861b0e5dbac1de5aeddbd5d9b07449e43704c27d389b0e0d18a14c2a1cebce20f363a682d939ebeb56bcd237a5405c8ebc7e45ef
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/220801/cdc_220801_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.83 MB ]