Comprehensive evaluation of high-steep slope stability and optimal high-steep slope design by 3D physical modeling

Abstract

High-steep slope stability and its optimal excavation design in Shuichang open pit iron mine were analyzed based on a large 3D physical simulation technique. An optimal excavation scheme with a relatively steeper slope angle was successfully implemented at the northwest wall between Nos. 4 and 5 exploration lines of Shuichang Iron Mine, taking into account the 3D scale effect. The physico-mechanical properties of rock materials were obtained by laboratory tests conducted on sample cores from exploration drilling directly from the iron mine. A porous rock-like composite material was formed for the model, and the mechanical parameters of the material were assessed experimentally; specifically, the effect of water on the sample was quantitatively determined. We adopted an experimental setup using stiff modular applied static loading to carry out a visual excavation of the slope at a random depth. The setup was equipped with acoustic emission (AE) sensors, and the experiments were monitored by crack optical acquirement, ground penetrating radar, and close-field photogrammetry to investigate the mechanisms of rock-mass destabilization in the high-steep slope. For the complex study area, the model results indicated a clear correlation between the model’s destabilization resulting from slope excavation and the collected monitoring information. During the model simulation, the overall angle of the slope increased by 1–6 degrees in different sections. Dramatically, the modeled excavation scheme saved over 80 million tons of rock from extraction, generating enormous economic and ecological benefits.