MIN 490W – Mine Design Project

Instructor: Rajive Ganguli Ph: 474 – 7212

Office: 317 Duckering Bldg Office hours: MW 9:30-10:30

Email: ffrg@uaf.edu

Description: The students will design a mine in a group effort covering the various aspects of mine design such as ore reserve estimation, mine layout, strata control, ventilation plans, production plans, equipment selection including power requirements, permitting requirements, reclamation and closure plans and economic evaluation. This is a writing intensive course. Both MIN 489W and MIN 490W have to be completed to fulfill the “W” requirement of the program.

Goal: The object of this course is for mining engineering seniors to apply their mining engineering knowledge to design a mine as a group project. They are then expected to present the design both in a report and in an oral presentation.

Pre-requisites: ENGL 111X; ENGL 211X or ENGL 213X or permission of instructor; MIN 301, MIN 302, MIN 370,MIN 454 and MIN 489.

References: Mining Engineering Handbook

Mining Engineering, Journal

Underground Mining Methods

Class time: 1 hour/week, by arrangement. The various groups are required to keep the instructor aware of their progress during their weekly meeting. Periodically, a draft of the report-in-progress will be expected. Technical content as well as the writing quality will be discussed.

Computer Usage: Present day mine design is computer intensive. Therefore, the student is expected to use available technology for mine design. Depending on their topic they would need to use design software such as AUTOCAD, VULCAN, TECHBASE in addition to word processors or spread sheets. The student may have to learn to use a software depending on their background.

Grade: 1 page project proposal: 10% (Due by the end of the first week of classes)

Two 3 page Interim Reports : 10% each (20%)

Oral Presentation: 20%

Final Report: 40%

Writing Quality: 10%

Initial submission of the interim and final reports will be “draft” copies. There will be meeting specifically to discuss the writing in these reports. The reports will then have to re-submitted after making necessary changes.

NOTE: The final product of the course is a project report to be prepared and orally presented by each student detailing the design procedures they followed. All written work is expected to be professional and of good written quality. Technical drawings should conform to engineering standards.

The course will require the student to present their work to an audience of faculty and students. Please schedule a 30 minute presentation for end of April, as early as possible. Typically, such presentations are held between 1-2 pm (lunch break) to allow everybody in the department to attend.

Course Outcomes

Outcome	Role of MIN 490
Outcome 1: A knowledge of mathematics, science and engineering principles and the ability to apply the knowledge	The mine design projects undertaken by the students involve application of mining engineering fundamentals in combination with strata mechanics computations that require a good grasp of mathematics and sciences.
Outcome 3. Ability to design system, component or process to meet needs	Designing system processes equipment is an integral part of mine design. Most mine designs will include equipment selection for the method and ventilation planning.
Outcome 4. Ability to function on multi-disciplinary teams	The class is divided into groups, with each group having its own project. Each group will work as a team in designing the various aspects a mine such as mine structures, ventilations and equipment.
Outcome 5: The ability to identify, formulate and solve mining engineering problems	Designing a mining method requires the ability to identify and formulate mining engineering features and problems. The design is expected to solve the anticipated problems. The student’s ability to identify, formulate and solve the various issues are demonstrated in the project.
Outcome 6: Understanding of professional and ethical responsibility	This is expected to be an indirect outcome of the design process. Students will be expected to contribute equally to the projects. Having due regard for human life (safe designs) and ethical engineering will be required.
Outcome 7: The ability to communicate effectively in written, oral, and graphical forms.	A very important aspect of engineering is communicating the engineering approach and the resulting design. These require displaying plots and mine plans in the written reports that describe the design process in a logical manner. As this course is designated a “writing intensive” course, communication abilities (in written and graphical form) are graded frequently. Oral communication is used when the students require help from the instructor in design, interact with each other on a group project and when orally presenting their design to the department faculty and students.

Outcome 8: Broad Education	This course is intended to incorporate elements various mining and engineering fundamentals. Therefore, a broad education is required.
Outcome 10: A knowledge of contemporary issues	Mine designs always have to be reviewed for compliance and other issues and, therefore, the design is judged on the student’s knowledge of contemporary issues. These issues are typically also raised by the audience when the students present their projects.
Outcome 11: The ability to use appropriate modern techniques, skills and tools, including computer applications necessary for engineering practice.	Mine design is an iterative process, requiring the use of computer aided design (CAD) tools (such as AUTOCAD), spreadsheets and word processors for engineering design, computations and reporting requirements. These abilities are manifested in the project proposal and design report.
Outcome 12: Knowledge of engineering for arctic and sub-arctic conditions	Frozen ground issues such as access to deposit and ventilation may alter mine design.
Outcome 13: Knowledge of environmental issues of the arctic	Affects selection of mine design. Wetlands, wildlife issues.

Estimated ABET Category Content: Engineering 2 Credit