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TALKING TECHNICALLY

Blasting Technology
Improving the L
Quality of
Excavation
L
There are two reasons to go
underground and excavate: to Look-out (L)
use the excavated space for stor-
age or transport; or to make use
of the excavated material. In both
cases, tunnelling forms an impor- L
tant part of the entire operation.
In underground construction, it is
necessary to gain access to the
construction site by tunnelling,
but the tunnel can also have
its own purpose as a conduit
for road, railway, sewerage and The look-out should only be sufficient to allow space for the drill rig to drill the next round.
utilities.
On mines, drifts are used
as adits, and for preparatory modern drillrig, and improve the blasting, ventilation, scaling, support
work, as well as for internal quality of drilling. work, grouting, loading and transport,
communication. The charging of the blast holes can and setting out for the next blast.
Tunnels can be driven horizon- be carried out quickly, either manually Nowadays the face does not have to be
tally, or close to horizontal, but
can also be inclined shaft raises,
with plastic pipe charges, or with marked up, as the drillplan is stored in
ranging from vertically upwards mechanical charging equipment for the drillrig computers.
to vertically downwards. bulk explosives. In the latter case, the Langefors, in The Modern
Construction of rock chambers amount of explosives needed per Technique of Rock Blasting, says
involves tunnelling, as do mining metre of blasthole can easily be about drilling precision: “The scatter-
operations. Correct matching of
modern drilling equipment with
adjusted. The development of explo- ing of the drill holes as a quantitative
the latest explosives technology sives has moved in the direction of factor is often disregarded. It is includ-
will yield a higher quality ex- safer products, with improved fumes ed quite indefinitely in the technical
cavation accompanied by lower characteristics. Modern emulsion margin, together with the rock factor.
overall costs. explosives are well oxygen-balanced, In discussing blasting as a whole, it
generating a minimum of noxious would be a great advantage if attention
Recent Development fumes, and far less smoke. could be paid to the drilling precision
Initiating systems like NONEL in calculating the charges, and in con-
Drilling techniques have, in the last 25 have shortened the charging time, and structing the drilling pattern; for the
years, developed from pneumatic to added further safety to the blasting blasting of the cut it is essential.” With
electro-hydraulic, and drilling jumbos operation due to their non-susceptibility computers, this is now possible, and it
now have a very high capacity. The to electrical hazards. Electronic deto- is likely that it will come true within a
focus of this development has not just nators, giving no spread in the few years.
been on speed, but also on the quality detonating intervals, are also avail-
of drilling. Quality includes the basic able. These are sparsely used, due to Free Face
parameters, such as location, straight- their relatively high price, but are
ness, and length of holes, together economic in situations where a smooth The main difference between tunnel
with control and balancing of the contour is essential, with only little blasting and bench blasting is that
drilling parameters, such as percussion over- and under-break. tunnel blasting is done towards one
pressure, applied torque and feed Modern equipment has shortened the free surface, while bench blasting is
force, to reduce and practically elimi- drilling time, the NONEL system has done towards two or more free sur-
nate jamming and loosening of the made connecting of the detonators safer faces. The rock is thus more constricted
drill string components. CAN-bus and faster, and emulsion explosives in the case of tunnelling, and a second
computer technology has entered into have shortened the ventilation time. free face has to be created towards
the drilling operation, to control and All of the above contribute to a which the rock can break and be
monitor all activities performed by the faster work cycle for drilling, charging, thrown away from the surface.

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This second face is produced by a specific charge will decrease with the less explosives consumption, because
cut in the tunnel face, which can be a distance from the cut, until it reaches a of more stoping downwards. A high
parallel hole cut, a V-cut, or a fan-cut. minimum value of about 0.9 kg/cu m. position of the cut gives an extended
After the cut opening is made, the and easily loaded muckpile, with
stoping towards the cut will begin. Large Hole Cut higher explosives consumption and
The stoping can be compared with more drilling, due to upwards stoping.
bench blasting, but it requires a higher The most commonly used cut in The normal location of the cut is on
specific charge, due to higher drilling tunnelling today is the parallel hole the first helper row above the floor.
deviation, the need for good fragmen- cut, or large hole cut. All holes in the The large hole cut comprises one or
tation, and absence of hole inclination. large hole cut are drilled parallel to more uncharged large diameter holes,
In addition, overcharging of a tunnel each other, and the blasting is carried which are surrounded by small dia-
blast does not have the same disastrous out towards one or more empty large meter blast holes with small burdens
effect as in an open air blast, where drill holes, which act as an opening. to the large holes. The blast holes are
high precision in calculation is a must. The parallel hole cut is a develop- drilled in squares around the opening.
In the case of Vee cuts and fan cuts, ment of the burn cut, where all the The number of squares in the cut is
the cut holes will occupy the major holes are parallel, and normally of the limited by the fact that the burden in
part of the width of the tunnel. same diameter. One hole in the middle the last square must not exceed the
The contour holes around roof, is given a heavy charge, and the four burden of the stoping holes for a given
sidewall and floor, have to be angled holes around it are left uncharged. In charge concentration in the hole.
out of the contour (look-out), so that other cases, the middle hole is left The cut holes occupy an area of
the tunnel will retain its designed area. uncharged and the four holes are approximately 2 sq m. Small tunnel
The look-out should only be big charged. faces may need only cut holes and
enough to allow space for the drilling However, burn cuts generally result contour holes.
equipment for the coming round. As a in a smaller advance than for large When designing the cut, the follow-
guide value, the look-out should not hole cuts, so this method can be ing parameters are of importance for a
exceed: 10 cm + 3 cm/m hole depth, disregarded. good result: diameter of the large hole;
which keeps it to around 20 cm. The cut may be placed at any loca- burden; and charge concentration.
The consumption of explosives in tion on the tunnel face, but its location In addition, the drilling precision is
tunnel blasting is higher than in bench influences the throw, the explosives of the utmost importance, especially
blasting. The specific charge is 3 to 10 consumption, and the number of holes for the blast holes closest to the large
times higher than that for bench blast- needed in the round. holes. The slightest deviation can
ing, depending mainly on reasons If the cut is placed close to a side- cause the blast hole to meet the large
mentioned above, like large drilling wall, there is a probability of better hole, or the burden to become exces-
scatter, the confinement of the round, exploitation of the drilling pattern, sively big. Too big a burden will only
heave of lower rock upwards to ensure with less holes in the round. cause breakage or plastic deformation
swell, and lack of cooperation Furthermore, the cut may be placed in the cut, resulting in lower advance.
between adjacent blast-holes in the alternately on the right or left side, in
fragmentation work. relatively undisturbed rock. To obtain Hole Diameter
The consumption of explosives will good forward movement, and centring
be greatest in the cut area of the blast. of the muckpile, the cut may be placed One of the parameters for good
A 1 m x 1 m area around the empty approximately in the middle of the advance of the blasted round is the
hole/s in a parallel cut will consume cross section, and quite low down. diameter of the large empty hole. The
approximately 7 kg/cu m, and the This position will give less throw, and larger the diameter, the deeper the
round may be drilled, and a greater
Typical designs of large hole cuts. advance can be expected.
One of the most common causes of
short advance is too small an empty
hole in relation to the hole depth.
a = 1.5 d An advance of approximately 90%
can be expected for a hole depth of
4 m, and one empty hole with 102 mm
d diameter.
If several empty holes are used, a
a = 1.5 d fictitious diameter has to be calcu-
lated. The fictitious diameter of the
opening may be calculated in accor-
dance with the formula D = d n,
where D = fictitious empty large hole

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TALKING TECHNICALLY

diameter; d = diameter of empty large

11 12
holes; n = number of holes. Roof holes *
9

In order to calculate the burden in 5 3 7

the first square, the diameter of the 20 20 20 20
20 10 2 10
1
large hole is used in the case of one 20
20 20
20
19
large hole, and the fictitious diameter 20
19
Stoping holes
19
20
8 4 6
0˚
in the case of several large holes. 20 19 19 20 12
>5 9 11
18 18
The distance between the blasthole 21
17
21
18 18
and the large empty hole should not be 19 19
greater than 1.5 times the diameter of 19
16 15 15 16
19
the larger hole for the opening to be 16
14
14 16
19 19
clean blasted. If the distance is longer,
there is merely breakage, and when 19
15
Cut 15
19 Wall holes *
13 >90˚ 13

the distance is shorter, there is a great 19 19

20 16 14 14 16
risk that the blasthole and empty hole 20

will meet. 22 21 21 21 21 21 22

So the position of the blastholes in Floor holes *

the 1st square is expressed as: a =1.5d
Where a = C—C distance between Firing sequence of a typical hole pattern (*contour holes).
the large hole and the blasthole, d =
diameter of the large hole. rest of the round are utilized, but with In the first two squares of the cut,
In the case of several large holes, a lesser charge concentration, and the only one detonator of each delay
the relation is expressed as: a =1.5D contour holes are widely spaced. The should be used. In the following two
Where a = C—C distance between contour of the tunnel becomes rough, squares, two detonators of each delay
the centre point of the large holes and irregular and cracked. may be used. In the stoping area, the
the blasthole, D = fictitious diameter. The smooth blasting technique has delay time must be long enough to
The holes closest to the empty been developed to obtain a smoother allow movement of the rock, to gener-
holes must be charged carefully. Too and stronger tunnel profile. Smooth ate space for expansion of the adjacent
low a charge concentration in the hole blasting, where the contour holes are rock to be loosened, say, 100 to
may not break the rock, while too high drilled close to each other and weaker 500 milliseconds.
a charge concentration may throw the explosives are used, produces tunnels For the contour holes, the scatter in
rock against the opposite wall of the with a regular profile, requiring sub- delay between the holes should be as
large hole with such high a velocity stantially less reinforcement than if small as possible, to obtain a good,
that the broken rock will be recom- normal profile blasting is used. smooth blasting effect. Therefore, the
pacted there, and not blown out roof should be blasted with the same
through the large hole. Full advance is Firing Pattern interval number, normally the second
then not obtained. highest of the series, and here we can
The firing pattern must be designed so benefit from electronic detonators, as
Tunnel Contour that each hole has free breakage. The their scatter is practically nil. The
angle of breakage is smallest in the cut walls are also blasted with the same
The contour of the tunnel is divided area, where it is around 50 degrees. In period number, but with one delay
into floor holes, wall holes and roof the stoping area, the firing pattern lower than that of the roof.
holes. The burden and spacing for the should be designed so that the angle of Detonators for tunnelling can be
floor holes are the same as for the stop- breakage does not fall below 90 electric or non-electric.
ing holes. However, the floor holes are degrees. Electric detonators are manufac-
more heavily charged than the stoping It is important in tunnel blasting to tured as MS (millisecond) and HS
holes, to compensate for gravity and have sufficient time delay between the (half-second) delays, and non-electric
for the weight of the rock masses from holes. In the cut area, the delay detonators as deci-second and half-
the rest of the round, which lie over between the holes must be long second delays.
them at the instant of detonation. enough to allow time for breakage,
For the wall and roof holes, two and throw of rock through the narrow Vee and Fan Cuts
variants of contour blasting are used: empty hole, which takes place at a
normal profile blasting; and smooth velocity of 40 to 60 m/sec. A cut The most common cut with angled
blasting. drilled to 4 m depth would thus holes is the Vee cut. A certain tunnel
With normal profile blasting, no require a delay time of 60 to 100 width is required, in order to accom-
particular consideration is given to the milliseconds to be clean blasted. modate the drilling equipment.
appearance and condition of the blasted Normally, delay times of 75 to 100 Furthermore, the theoretical advance
contour. The same explosives as in the milliseconds are used in the cut. per round increases with the width,

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The principle of the fan cut is to do not create cracks beyond the
make a trench-like opening across the perimeter of the blast.
tunnel face. Like the Vee cut, it
C requires a certain width of tunnel to Smooth Blasting
accommodate the drilling equipment to
attain acceptable advance per round. Smooth blasting was developed and
The constriction of the holes in a refined in Sweden during the 1950s
fan cut is not large, making it easy to and 60s. Smooth blasting holes are
blast. The drilling and charging of the fired together with the main round,
holes are similar to that of the cut using later delays. Small diameter
holes in the Vee cut. light explosives, with low velocity of
detonation (VOD) and relatively low
Contour Blasting gas content, were developed, such as
Gurit. This is a nitroglycerin based
Accurate blasting is a priority,
especially in those tunnels where the
Vee cut drilling layout. overbreak has to be replaced with
expensive concrete.
and 45-50% of the tunnel width is Numerous blasting techniques have
achievable. By applying a more been used to control overbreak. They
advanced arrangement of the blast- all have one objective in common: to
holes, larger advances can be minimize the stress induced by the
achieved, but this requires a far better blasting, and consequent fracturing of
accuracy in the location of the blast- the rock beyond the theoretical exca-
holes than normal. vation line, by reduction and better
The angle of the cut must not be too distribution of the explosives charges.
acute, and should not be less than 60 In tunnels, and road and railway
degrees. More acute angles require cuttings, it is of the utmost importance
higher charge concentration in the holes. that the rock around the profile is
The cut is normally a double Vee, sound, otherwise rockfall, rockslides
but in deeper rounds may be triple or and excessive maintenance work will
quadruple Vee. Each Vee in the cut result. Crack zone from conventional blasting.
should be fired with the same interval It is often claimed that good over-
number using MS detonators, to break control cannot be expected in all explosive containing kieselguhr, first
ensure coordination between the blast- geological formations. That is true, but used by Alfred Nobel to tame the
holes with regard to breakage. The carefully executed blasting will mini- nitroglycerin.
delay between different Vees should mize overbreak, even in severe The contour holes must be carefully
be in the order of 50 milliseconds, to geological conditions. charged with joined-up charges, which
allow time for displacement and The first approach to control over- are locked in the hole by stemming.
swelling. break was by Line Drilling, which To prevent the sand from running
simply involved a single row of
uncharged holes closely spaced along
the perimeter of the excavation, pro-
viding a weak plane to which the blast
2 4 6 could break. Line Drilling was modi-
1 3 5 fied over the years, and the holes were
2 4 6
charged with light charges and their
spacing increased.
5
7 When cushion, or smooth, blasting,
3 the contour holes were ignited after
1
the main blast, and when presplitting,
they were ignited before the rest of the
round.
In all four methods, the charge
calculations have to consider not only
the contour holes, but also the holes
closest to the contour line. These have
Fan cut layout. to be charged in such a way that they Crack zone from smooth blasting.

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down the hole, a paper plug can be

placed on top of the last cartridge. V mm/s
The holes directly adjacent to the Small diameter blastholes
contour holes must also be lightly 3000
charged, to avoid spoiling the contour.
The quality of the remaining rock
depends to a large extent on the relation 3m R
between the spacing of the holes (S) and 2000
the burden (B). For a good result, the
ratio S/B should be around 0.8, making
the burden greater than the spacing.
The increased demand for stable 0.23 0.5 1 1.5 2.5 kg/m
rock surfaces in permanent underground 1000 Range where
damage begins
chambers has resulted in smooth blast- 700
ing being prescribed as the standard
method for controlled contour blasting.
Also, less fissures in the remaining rock 0
3 R, m
0 1 2
means less rock reinforcement.
Vibration velocity (V) as a function of the distance (R) with
Because the stoping holes in a different charge concentration
tunnel blast are closely spaced and
constricted, the crack formation from Vibration velocity with different charges.
these holes may extend beyond the
final contour if they are over charged. explosions. A special blasthole plug and straightness. The accuracy of such
SVEDEFO has worked out an has been developed which locks the drillrigs can maintain the true excava-
empirical formula to predict the vibra- charge in the hole efficiently. These tion line around 10 cm closer to the
tion velocity which can be expected measures are not necessary, however, theoretical excavation line.
from different linear charge densities with modern bulk explosives. Four main cost items associated
at different distances. Well-balanced The firing of the contour holes with accurate drilling have been
charges in the holes next to the contour should be carried out with the same identified as: mucking of excessive
holes are a must for the best result. period number for the best result. rock material; primary shotcrete sup-
The table below gives the rec- To summarize, smooth blasting port; secondary concrete lining; and
ommended charge and drilling patterns offers the following advantages: extension of construction time.
for different diameters of contour increased hole spacing with reduced The following is a summary of the
holes (upgraded recommendations are drilling cost; better result in incompe- costs related to excess overbreak on a
presently being developed). tent rock formations; simultaneous tunnel with a cross-section of 70 sq m
The smooth blasting explosive excavation; and light and well distrib- and a perimeter of walls and roof of
Gurit may be replaced by detonating uted charging of the perimeter holes. 22 m.
cord, which has a very high velocity
of detonation. Its small diameter in Cost of Overbreak Mucking – 11/m
relation to the blasthole diameter, and Shotcrete support – 66/m
its low gas content, cause minimum Deviation in the excavation of a tunnel Concrete lining – 264/m
damage to the surrounding rock. Gurit from the theoretical line imposes an Excess time – 70/m
11 mm can be replaced by 40 g/m increased construction cost. Traditional
cord; Gurit 17 mm by 80 g/m cord; drilling techniques accept an element By comparison, the cost of explo-
and Gurit 22 mm by 160 g/m cord. of overbreak as normal. However, sives and detonators per metre of
The charges should be connected more modern technology, such as tunnel is 181, assuming 4 m rounds.
together, string charged, and the hole Advanced Boom Control, ensures that So, it can be concluded that
plugged, otherwise they may be blastholes are drilled accurately with accurate drilling will yield savings
sucked out of the hole by adjacent respect to collaring, orientation, length equivalent to more than twice the total
explosives costs.
Contour Charge Charge type Burden Spacing
hole diam. concentration m m by Stig Olofsson
mm kg/m This article is extracted from Stig
25–32 0.11 11 mm Gurit 0.3–0.5 0.25–0.35 Olofsson’s book entitled Applied
25–48 0.23 17 mm Gurit 0.7–0.9 0.50–0.70 Explosives Technology for Construction
51–64 0.42 22 mm Gurit 1.0–1.1 0.80–0.90 and Mining, ISBN 91-7970-634-7,
51–64 0.45 22 mm Emulite 1.1–1.2 0.80–0.90 published by Applex, PO Box 71, S-640
43 Arla, Sweden.

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