Surface auger mining at Rietspruit Mine

Services (Pty) Ltd

by M.J. Lukhele* Paper written on project work carried out in partial
fulfilment of B.Tech (Mining Engineering) degree

the centre and the southern boundary of the

Witbank Coalfield, which is part of the main
Synopsis Karoo basin.
The coal bearing strata forms part of the
A number of high wall mining methods were developed over the Vryheid Formation of the Ecca Group and of
years to mine coal reserves exposed on the high walls created the Karoo Sequence and is of Permain age.
during surface mining. The auger mining system was initially
Coal seams are discontinuous over a
developed in the early 1940s in the United States of America.
prominent palaeo-topographic high and due to
High wall mining is a method of recovering coal from seam
exposed either by mechanical excavation methods or natural post-Karoo weathering.
erosions. This is usually associated with strip-mining (opencast) The formations underlying the mining area
where the stripping ratio is high and uneconomical to mine using have been affected to varying degrees by
the opencast mining method. chemical weathering processes. The influence
This paper discusses the surface auger mining as deployed at of physical weathering processes is believed to
Rietspruit Mine Services Proprietary Limited. be minimal. The depth of weathering varies
from 2 metres to more than 18 metres, but
may be greater in the low lying vlei areas
where deeper penetration of groundwater
occurs into the strata.
Introduction The geological succession of the Karoo
Sequence is represented by sediments of the
Rietspruit Mine Services Proprietary Limited is Dwyka (bottom) and Vryheid Formations and
a joint venture between Ingwe Coal is up to 105 metres in thickness. The pre-
Corporation and Duiker Mining Limited and is Karoo rocks consist of mainly rhoylite (felsite)
producing approximately 600 000 run-of-mine and gabbro of the Bushveld Igneous Complex.
tonnes. Rietspruit Mine services Proprietary No coal is present towards the southern
Limited is situated near Kriel in the boundary of the mine as rhyolite outcrops
Mpumalanga Province and was originally form part of the easterly striking pre-Karoo,
established as an opencast mine in 1976. As a Smithfield palaeo-ridge which is also the
result of increase in depth and stripping ratio it southern boundary of the Witbank Coalfield,
was decided to start underground operations Sedimentation and coal formation occurred
in 1991. initially on undulating surfaces.
Three separate opencast pits were mined,
The Dwyka Formation underlies the coal
the layout and configuration of these pits
seams conformable and consists of 0 to15
resulted in the construction of a number of
metres thick tillite and diamictite with minor
permanent ramps and haul roads that were
gritty, conglomerate and shale lenses and
constructed to be used until the end of life of
layers. These sediments cover the Bushveld
the mine.
The combination of opencast and rocks over most of the area and are the
underground mining meant that portions of thickest in palaeo-valleys. The six coal seams
coal seam could not be extracted from the numbered from 1 at the bottom are all present
vertical high wall, and these were regarded as within the Vryheid Formation. The number
sterilized reserves. The use of the coal recovery 1,2A (a split off from the 2 seam), 3, 4 and 5
auger miner resulted in the mine utilizing the seams are limited in extent due to palaeo-
remaining reserves. Approximately 500 000 topography and/or surface weathering in the
run-of-mine tonnes on the number 2 and 4
seam has been mined utilizing an auger
mining method * Technikon Witwatersrand.
The South African Institute of Mining and
Geology Metallurgy, 2002. SA ISSN 0038223X/3.00 +
0.00. This paper was first presented at the SAIMM
The Rietspruit lease area is presently towards Student Colloquium in Oct. 2001.

The Journal of The South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy MARCH 2002 115
Surface
Surfaceauger
augermine
mineat atRietspruit
RietspruitMine
MineServices
Services(Pty)
(Pty)Ltd
Ltd

area. The parting between the number 1 and 2 or 2A seams Auger holes
consists mainly of coarse to gritty sandstone with minor silty Ingwe Rock Engineering Department designed all auger holes
lenses and is from 0,1 to 11 metres in thickness. The number resulting in various extraction factors in different areas to
4-seam consists of the 4U (upper) and 4L (lower) seams provide the required safety factors as shown in Figures 1, 2,
being separated by mainly a mudstone from 0,4 to 2,3 metres 3, and 4. In order to ensure sufficient support of the
in thickness. The 2-seam is the dominant seam and overburden, a half-a-metre (0.5 m) thick septum of coal
comprised about 58 per cent of the coal. separates individual holes with a stabilizing pillar between
Sandstones, siltstone, mudstone and shale with each cluster of holes.
associated coal seams (nos 3, 4U, 4L and 5) represent the The auger hole configuration depends on the safety
Vryheid formation above the 2 seam coal and generally factors of different areas and this results in different recovery
consist of upward coarsening sequences between the coal rates as shown in Figures 1, 2, 3 and 4. Ingwes unique
horizons. Carbonaceous mudstones usually form the roofs of methodology has enabled Rietspruit to extract coal under
coal seams. The number 3-seam is sporadically developed haul roads and in close proximity to underground workings.
with a maximum thickness of 0,7 m and is of no economic
interest. Variations in thickness of both coal and sedimentary The number 4-seam hole design
units are common and seam splitting with intra seam
sedimentary layers and lenses are
Stratigraphic column

SANDSTONE
Fine to Coarse Figure 1

14.0
5 SEAM
16.0
SANDSTONE
Fine to Coarse
Figure 2

38.0 MUDSTONE
39.2 4 SEAM The number 2-seam hole design
40.4
42.9
46.0 SANDSTONE
46.2 Fine to Coarse

63.8 MUDSTONE
2 SEAM
70.3
73.3 1 SEAM
75.9 TILLITE
Figure 3

The auger miner

This refined auger miner can recover a high percentage of the

reserves from the coal seam within the high wall depending
on the hole spacing design, and can operate on benches as
narrow as 18 metres. The auger miner is an entirely self-
contained production unit and using only diesel and
hydraulic oil pressure is able to operate in remote parts of the
Figure 4
mine without impacting on other operations.
The BryDet 2348-72 coal recovery auger used at
Rietspruit Mine Services (Pty) Ltd weighs 84 tonnes, and is Methodology of determining the safety factor for auger
driven by a 1000 horsepower diesel engine. The large- mining method
diameter 1,8 metre cutting head is able to drill into the coal
seam at a rate of approximately 1,2 metres per minute.The
flight conveyor hauls the coal from the cutting face to a side
discharge pan conveyor and onto a crawler conveyor, then
deposited beside the auger. This coal in turn is loaded out to
a stockpile, or directly onto tipper-truck (Rear Dump Truck).
Approximately every four-and-a-half minutes an
additional 2,5 tonne, 5,4-metre long flight is added at the
drive end by means of a boom hoist. In total, 22 scrolls are
used to drill the 120-metre hole into the coal seam. Figure 5
Surface
Surfaceauger
augermine
mineat atRietspruit
RietspruitMine
MineServices (Pty)
Services Ltd
(Pty) Ltd

116 MARCH 2002 The Journal of The South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy
Surface
Surfaceauger
augermine
mineat atRietspruit
RietspruitMine
MineServices (Pty)
Services Ltd
(Pty) Ltd

Strength The main components are; latch pin, rear latch actuator
Safety factor = Load and latch pin lever.
0.46 The front latch mechanism operates the latch pins on
7200*W auger flight. This is used when removing an auger flight
Strength = 0.66 from the string to disconnect an auger flight from another
H auger flight.
0.46

7200(2 * 3) mechanism operates the latching on the drive chuck as well

= 0.66 as on the female end of the auger flight. This is used when
4.1 removing an auger flight from the auger string.
= 6469 kpa
W-effective pillar width (m) H-depth from surface
h-height of excavation (m) A-Area indicated on
Figure 5 with a depth
of 1 m
A2-Area between
holes with a depth of
1m
25 H A
Load = A2

25*30 (1.8+0.5+1.8 +0.5+1.8+0.5+1.8+0.5+1.8+3)*1

3*1
Load = 3500 kpa

Safety factor 6469

= 3500
= 1.84

Auger mining system operation

The BryDet auger system consists of 1000 diesel horse power

and the hydraulic pump with the drilling pressure between
500 and 2000 psi which varies between machine action. The
auger mining system consists of the following
Cutting head Auger
flights Latching
mechanism Auger
fork.

Cutting heads and flights

These are the tools the auger used to recover coal. As the
cutting head scrolls into the hole, the rotating auger flights
transfer the coal backwards toward the hole opening. The
coal is transferred into a pan conveyor and to the crawler
conveyor. Auger mining operations are remotely controlled
by controls from the operators cab. The cutting head consists
of the following components; rear wear bend, cut-down bit
socket, front wear bands, bit socket, dust bends, centre
breaker, wedge breaker, lighting and outer cutting barrel.

Latching and fork mechanisms

Auger mining requires that a number of auger flights need to
be secured to the cutting head for penetration. The cutting
head and auger flights are joined by a square pinned male
shank which connect to the female socket that ensures a
secure link between the cutting head and the auger flight.
Once the auger flight is disconnected, a hoist mechanism is
used to remove or add the auger flights. The rear latch

The Journal of The South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy MARCH 2002 117
Surface
Surfaceauger
augermine
mineat atRietspruit
RietspruitMine
MineServices (Pty)
Services Ltd
(Pty) Ltd
The operator cab
The operators cab is where the auger control functions are
initiated and is ergonomically designed to meet safety
requirements and promote efficient operation.

Auger alignment and movement

The BryDet auger miner is equipped with the components for
elevation and alignment functions that provide manoeuvra-
bility in a variety of pit conditions. The control system
includes inter alia
Front and rear skids
Front and rear jacks
Auger level
Auger guide
High wall guard.
The typical procedure for moving the auger miner to its
drilling location at the high wall and for aligning the auger
with the coal seam is as follows:
Extend/retract the hydraulic jacks and skids as
necessary to move the auger miner to its new location
Using various combinations of hydraulic jack and skid
functions can move the auger parallel to its original
position or allow the auger miner to position itself at
any angle.
Hydraulic skids
The two hydraulic skids under the auger miner are
essentially the feet of the machine enabling the auger miner
to walk, to turn and traverse through rough terrain. Each
skid can be operated independent from the other skid.
Operating sequence
Lower the auger frame until it rests on the ground
Use the hydraulic jack controls in the operator cab to
lower the auger frame. Make sure the jacks are
retracted completely so that there is no weight on the
skids
Extend the skids to the left out from under the auger
frame
Use the skid controls in the operator cab to extend the
skid cylinders. Fully extend both skids
Raise the auger from the ground
Before continuing, make sure no part of the auger
frame is in contact with the ground
Move the auger to the left or right
Use the skid controls to retract the skid cylinders
As necessary repeat until the auger is at its new
position
The distance the auger is moved is determined by the
diameter of the holes being cut and the desired width
of the coal seam support pillars
Check the new position of the auger against the marker
stakes. The front and rear corners of the auger should
be exactly the same distance from the corner stakes. If
the distances are not the same, use the skid controls to
adjust the position.

The Journal of The South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy MARCH 2002 118
Surface
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augermine
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The Journal of The South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy MARCH 2002 119
 0.5 m 2.0 m 1.8 m

Surface
Surfaceauger
augermine
mineat atRietspruit
RietspruitMine
MineServices (Pty)
Services Ltd
(Pty) Ltd

Auger holes Auger miner

118 MARCH 2002 The Journal of The South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy

Crawler
conveyor

Stock pile

~...,. ......... .
-.

The Journal of The South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy MARCH 2002 120
Surface
Surfaceauger
augermine
mineat atRietspruit
RietspruitMine
MineServices (Pty)
Services Ltd
(Pty) Ltd

Hydraulic jacks and auger level before starting the hole and if not correctly done it may result
in short holes or may take longer than necessary to complete
The auger miner has four hydraulic jacks that level the
the hole.
machine at the proper elevation and angle for the coal seam.

Auger guide Adding auger flights

The adjustable auger guide serves as the cutting head guide The first auger flight must be added to the drive train in
when starting a new hole in the coal seam. It also serves as a
order to continue operations. Adding the first auger and
bridge transfer pan to help move recovered coal coming out
subsequent auger flight to the drive train involves discon-
of the hole for the short distance from the hole opening to the
nection, alignment, and reconnection operations.
auger miners pan conveyor.
The auger flights are lifted into position using the auger
High wall guard hoist mechanism.

The high wall guard serves as a shield to protect the auger

miner and the personnel from objects (rocks, etc.) that fall off Conclusions
the high wall.
The overall guard is made of three components namely: The auger mining method is suitable to extract coal that was
stationary top high wall guard attached to the top of the high previously sterilized using the conventional mining method.
wall guard support structure and an adjustable front high The auger miner concept has been utilized at several other
wall guard attached to the front of the support structure, collieries in South Africa. In an attempt to maximize the
hydraulic cylinders attached to the front high wall guard and extraction of reserves auger miner can be considered.
the high wall guard support structure can be used to tilt the
front high wall guard at different angles to suit the character- Acknowledgements
istics of the high wall contours.
The author would like to thank the General Manager of
Starting the hole
Rietspruit Mine Services and Auger Mining South Africa for the
The levelling and alignment of the machine is essential information and assistance that made the paper possible.

Hoist boom

High wall guard

Engine

Chuck
Operators
cab

Hydraulic
jack

Skids

Auger guide

The Journal of The South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy MARCH 2002 121


120 MARCH 2002 The Journal of The South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy