Develop guidelines for the design of pillar systems for shallow and intermediate depth, tabular, hard rock mines and provide methodology for assessing hangingwall stability and support requirements for the panels between pillars

Abstract

The overall view of the research being conducted at Impala platinum was to improve pillar design techniques through a rock testing programme, underground instrumentation and back analysis. The laboratory rock testing programme has provided a useful insight into pillar behaviour showing that even at a width to height ratio around 5; the pillar can have a negative post failure characteristic. Using Flac to reproduce the laboratory stress strain curves for the width to height tests has, so far, not proved to be successful