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Using an algorithm based on the physical properties of soap bubbles, researchers at the University of Melbourne have developed software for solving operational problems in open mine design.
Through startup Thinking Mine Design, mathematician Professor Hayam Rubinstein and mining engineer Dr. Louis-Lewis Yarmouk developed Bubble Pit software to address a long-standing problem, how to best design mining pits to maximize value and meet operational needs.
Key ideas for this project were developed during Dr. Yarmouk’s doctoral dissertation at the University of Melbourne, under the supervision of Professor Rubinstein.
Professor Rubinstein, from the School of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Melbourne, explained that the mining industry faces many complex challenges and many companies invest in finding solutions to make mining more economical.
Open pit mines are built using a series of nested pits, known as urgency, leading to easily recognizable stepped pits found in mines around the world.
“Open pit mining is the most common method used for near-surface ore deposits and integrating the operational constraints of the pit forms into the design process is a problem that the industry has been trying to solve for decades,” said Professor Rubinstein.
“Our software uses a proven mathematical model to revolutionize a potential way in which urgency is shaped, by using the geometric properties of masses of soap bubbles to find the optimal design shape for the nested pits.”
“Our bubble model allows miners to optimize production from urgency, using clusters of nested bubble pits that provide the required connectivity and minimum operational width to the work areas and increase the efficiency of ore extraction.”
After receiving a grant through AMIRA Global, the Bubble Pit software was completed in July 2021. It is currently being tested at Newcrest Mining in Australia, and at the world’s largest gold mining company, Newmont.
The team is currently exploring two additional software phases examining how the bubble model can relate to scheduling and transportation. Newmont and Newcrest have agreed to sponsor further development based on the success of Bubble Pit software.
“Timing and transportation are hot topics in mining. When the upfront investment in setting up large mines is so significant, you want to maximize the efficiency of scheduling and transportation of material – and we use the bubble principles to develop software to make them more efficient,” said Professor Rubenstein.
“The mining industry is facing cost pressures due to lower ore grades and more difficult mining locations, so improving efficiency is the key to success.”
The intellectual property (IP) background is patented by the University of Melbourne and Thinking Mine Design has an exclusive agreement with the University of Melbourne for the commercialization of the IP.
Bubble Pit software will be released to the global mining industry in late 2022.
quotation: Inspirational soap bubbles in new software that makes mining more economical (2021, December 8) Retrieved December 11, 2021 from https://techxplore.com/news/2021-12-soap-software-cost-effective.html
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