This project builds the evidence needed to represent hard rock in mechanised-mining design and simulation. It began with Ulrich du Preez’s linear cutting machine and UG2 experiments and now extends into diamond core-drill digital twins and fractured-rock stability modelling.
Connected questions
- How do heterogeneous UG2 properties change cutting forces and fragmentation?
- Which model parameters can be calibrated from laboratory evidence, and which generalise?
- How can drill dynamics and rock condition be represented together in a useful digital twin?
- Which fractured-rock models are suitable for mechanised-mining stability assessment?