Continuous cutting for surface overburden – Mining3 trials with Dynacut

Mining3 is working on an ACARP funded project to investigate the use of a continuous cutting system for coal mine overburden in surface mining. A high-capacity continuous cutting system could mechanically cut rock at sufficiently high rates, and low costs, to be a viable alternative to using drill and blast to fragment the rock.

With the support of Komatsu Mining Corporation, the DynaCut technology (an undercutting disc technology for mechanical cutting), was used to carry out a series of tests in August and September 2017 at a sandstone quarry in South East Queensland. The objective was to quantify key performance and cost factors and to develop concepts for new mining systems and methods to exploit the benefits offered by a high-capacity continuous cutting system.

Bench sections were excavated, with a working face of approximately 3 m x 5 m, and a total cut volume approaching 500 m3. The machine demonstrated excellent performance (with cutting rates several times that achieved in previous hard rock trials) and the cutter life exceeded expectations. Machine and performance data are now being collated and analysed to enable preparation of the final project report.