Effects of simulation in a mining system to optimize the hauling and loading process

Abstract

Mining is one of the oldest engineerings in the world with a history of more than 43,000 years. From the stone age to the 4th industrial revolution, mining has used different technologies to optimize its processes according to current production and environmental needs. Industry 4.0 has become a tool to reduce the carbon footprint in mining operations, which is why mining operators are constantly searching for technological tools that help them minimize their environmental impacts and optimize their extraction processes.This thesis project focuses on using simulation in one of the processes that the mining system poses in its performance. The hauling and loading process is considered one of the most important in open pit mining and one of the most polluting due to high fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.Through different technological strategies, it is possible to optimize the consumption of resources in the hauling and loading process; For this case, three different technologies belonging to industry 4.0 were used: simulation, artificial intelligence through visual data analysis, and telemetry. By collecting data from visual data and telemetry data, inputs are generated for the simulation computation. Before executing the case studies, a specific workflow was defined to determine the input data, the simulation procedure, and the output data. Once this was defined, two case studies were selected in different geographical areas to simulate the process and validate theeffects that the simulation will have on the optimization of the hauling and loading process. In both case studies, it will be determined that improvement plans could be carried out in the operation, thus achieving increases in production, optimization of fuel consumption, and reduction of C02 emissions. This type of tool has a broadmarket potential since it covers a current need in the mining industry. Similarly, it is low-cost to implement and generates positive impacts in the short term, allowing much faster analysis and more accurate information.