Environmental risk evaluation of the use of mine spoils and treated sewage sludge in the ecological restoration of limestone quarries

The ecologic restoration criteria in areas degraded from extraction activities require making use of their mine spoils. These materials do not meet fertility conditions to guarantee restoration success and therefore, need the incorporation of organic amendments to obtain efficient substratum. Reducing the deficiencies in the organic material and restoration material nutrients with the contribution of treated sewage sludge is proposed in this work. This experiment was based on a controlled study using columns. The work was conducted with two mine spoils, both very rich in calcium carbonate. The first mineral, of poor quality, came from the formation of aggregates of crushed limestone (Z). The other residual material examined originated in limestone extraction, formed by the levels of interspersed non-limestone materials and the remains of stripped soils (D). Two treatments were undertaken (30,000 and 90,000 kg/ha of sewage sludge), in addition to a control treatment. The water contribution was carried out with a device that simulated either short-duration rain or a flooding irrigation system in order to cover the surface and then percolate through the soil. The collection of leached water took place 24 h after the applications. Different parameters of the leached water were determined, including pH, electrical conductivity, nitrate anions, ammonium, phosphates, sulphates and chlorides. The values obtained for each irrigation application are discussed, and the nitrate values obtained were very elevated.     

On size and boundary effects in scaled model blasts spatial problems

This paper addresses size and boundary effects on wave propagation, fracture pattern development and fragmentation in small scale laboratory-size specimens for model blasting. Small block type specimens are centre-line loaded by linear explosive charges and supersonically detonated. Using elastic wave propagation theory and fracture mechanics it is shown that the type of boundary conditions which prevail at the outer boundary of the cylinder control the extension of bore-hole cracking and fragmentation within the body of the cylinder. In the case of a composite block where a cylindrical core of different material is embedded, the level of fracturing and fragmentation is controlled by the separation of the interface which in turn depends on the relative dimensions of the core and the block. The most important parameter is the ratio between the length of the pulse (space-wise or time-wise) and the characteristic dimensions of the models, i.e. in this case the dimensions of the core and the mantel. Stress wave superposition effects occur in the corner sections of the mantel. Theoretical results are in good agreement with recent experimental findings.     

Installation of a vertical slurry wall around an Italian quarry lake: complications arising and simulation of the effects on groundwater flow

Slurry walls are non-structural barriers that are constructed underground to impede groundwater flow or manage groundwater control problems. The study area is in the Piemonte plain (Italy), close to the River Po. Quarrying works carried out below the piezometric surface created two big quarry lakes. The local groundwater system is characterized by a lower semi-confined aquifer, which is overlain by a semi-permeable bed of clayey peat (aquitard) and an upper unconfined aquifer. Locally, the peat fades away and the granulometry of this horizon becomes silty sandy. A planned enlargement of the quarry will increase the size and depth of the quarry lakes. So the aquitard bed between the two aquifers will be damaged, creating a mixing rate of groundwater. Such a procedure would not be compatible with the presence of two municipal wells upstream from the quarries. Consequently, the installation of a vertical diaphragm (slurry wall) is recommended to separate the aquifers and to act as a filter for the groundwater flowing from the unconfined to the semi-confined aquifer. To predict the consequences caused by the installation of the vertical diaphragm separating the unconfined aquifer and the semi-confined one, a specifically adjusted finite-difference model was used. The model showed a maximum rising of the water table equal to 12 cm, just upstream of the diaphragm and for a distance of about 100 m, and a maximum lowering of 2 cm just downstream of the diaphragm. However, the slurry wall would not cause any change in the piezometric head in the area where there are municipal wells and, hence, will not have any negative effect on the functionality of the municipal wells. Moreover, the migration of water from the unconfined aquifer through the vertical diaphragm will stimulate a series of attenuation and auto-depuration processes of eventual contaminants. These processes are due to the higher crossing time that the groundwater flow takes to go through the vertical barrier (t _a = 96.5 days, whereas for the horizontal semi-permeable layer t _a = 9.6 days). So, the vertical diaphragm can be a resolutive element, representing a mediation and separation factor between the unconfined and the semi-confined aquifers along the border of the quarrying areas, and a protective barrier for the water quality of the quarry lake and the semi-confined aquifer.     

Impact of quarrying gypsum in a semidesert karstic area (Sorbas,SE Spain)

The Messinian gypsum of Sorbas is intensively karstified, with hundreds of dolines and numerous, highly unusual exo- and endokarstic forms. Amongst these the tumuli are especially spectacular, as are the large caverns, adorned with numerous speleothems, some of which have not been described anywhere else in the World. The extraction of the gypsum has impacted practically all the elements of the environment (landscape, water, soil, subsoil, flora, fauna, etc.) and, in particular, all of the karstic forms. In addition to endangering the caves and the natural treasures that they contain, it affects the surface waters, markedly modifying the hydrographic network. Groundwaters, which now occur in the bottom of a quarry, are also affected.     

Long bone histology of a eusuchian crocodyliform from the Upper Cretaceous of Spain: Implications for growth strategy in extinct crocodiles

The long bone histology of a Late Cretaceous eusuchian crocodyliform from the Iberian Peninsula reveals clear variations in the cortical structure which reflects changes in the speed of bone deposition (i.e., skeletal growth) related to ontogeny. The presence of secondary woven-fibred bone tissue in the perimedullar region of the cortex, and the existence of an external fundamental system in the most external periostic cortex, which is a proxy for somatic maturity and effective cessation of growth, challenges the former idea that the growth strategy of extinct crocodylians fit in the typical ectotherm condition, according to which these animals grew slowly during life under an indeterminate growth strategy. The analysed specimen lived for a minimum of 16 years and the highest preserved apposition rates took place in an advanced ontogenetic stage. The study suggests that the general aspects of the modern crocodylian growth strategy were already in place in some lineages by the Cretaceous.     

Abandoned stone quarries in and around the Izmir city centre and their geo-environmental impacts—Turkey

There are 70 abandoned quarries in and around Izmir city centre. Of these quarries, 56 are in andesites, 2 are in dasitic lavas, 4 are in flysch and 8 are in limestones. The quarries initially located near the Izmir city centre, are now within the city centre because of the expansion of the urbanization due to the rapid increase of population. Geo-environmental problems identified in the abandoned quarry sites are slope stability problems such as sliding and toppling. Geotechnical study of the abandoned stone quarries in and around the city centre of Izmir which has been carried out involves the recording and determining the properties of discontinuities for stability assessment of already-failed and standing slopes in the quarries, using stereographic projection techniques, and the statistical evaluation of different types of rock mass movements in these quarries. The number of mass movements that had already occurred and are likely to occur in 70 quarries lying in and near Izmir have been determined as 84 totally. Stability analyses of rock slopes have shown that rock falls, toppling, plane and wedge failure-type rock mass movements are more common in the south of Izmir Bay, but toppling-type slope failures are more frequent in the north.     

Prediction of in-situ block size distributions with reference to armourstone for breakwaters

Understanding a quarry in terms of its potential for breakwater construction materials presents a special challenge for the engineering geologist. Unlike blasting in aggregates and mining operations, optimisation of the extraction process has a focus on the potential for production of large blocks for armourstone. These blocks weighing many tonnes are used for cover layers to resist wave action. The quarry-run is used for breakwater core. If the quarry has been developed as a source of materials dedicated to a breakwater construction project, the success of the project depends greatly on the blasting and production of rock sizes that are required and the avoidance of leaving a massive quantity of unused materials behind in the quarry after project completion. Prediction of in-situ block sizes such as from joint spacing data, provides the most critical input for the prediction of the blast pile block size distribution (BBSD), which in turn is a vital early design input if the constructed breakwater is to be economical as well as effective.This paper is part of a series of papers that introduces the coastal engineering motivation for this work on engineering geology, giving reasons why the prediction of the fragmentation curve of the blast products in a dedicated quarry is of such economic importance for breakwater projects. The first step towards blasted block size distribution (BBSD) prediction is the prediction of the in-situ block sized distribution (IBSD), the main subject of this paper. Drawing together research methods from the 1990s and the rock mechanics principles of discontinuity analysis, a practical step by step methodology for IBSD assessment that includes approaches that are not reliant on specialised computer software is presented. Continuing on the practical theme, a new extension of the volumetric joint count approach is suggested for IBSD prediction for the case when sparse borehole data is all that is available. A case study of IBSD assessment and the associated BBSD and blast assessment is presented from a Carboniferous limestone quarry. For clarity, details of blast design and yield curve prediction that are recommended for use in the context of armourstone production, have been presented in a companion paper. The Rosin-Rammler equation is used as an example form for the BBSD prediction of a dedicated quarry and the potential for breakwater project optimisation is illustrated. The final section sets out a method for directly comparing yield curves together with the demand for materials set by the breakwater design. On the same plot, sizes where there is a relative shortfall in production can be identified. The dependence of effective breakwater design on accurate quarry yield prediction and quarry blasting performance is discussed.     

Penecontemporary tectonic forms in basement areas: evidence derived from quarry exposures on northwestern Eyre Peninsula,South Australia

Monitoring of quarry exposures on northwestern Eyre Peninsula, South Australia has shown that the granite domes of that region are structurally complex features, commonly with several structural domes within each topographic form. The rock masses are in horizontal compression so that few steeply inclined fractures have been penetrated by water and hence are not weathered, though sheet fractures, which are tectonic features, are arched, dilated, and thus readily infiltrated by water. Neotectonic forms, such as fault scarps, A-tents, or pop-ups, and disturbed blocks are still developing. These observations provide further evidence of neotectonism, even in cratonic lands.     

Site characterizations for the Tehran network (TDMMO) in Tehran Region Using Micro-Earthquake,Microtremor and Quarry Blast Data

We did a Study of Horizontal-to-Vertical Component Spectral Ratio in the Tehran seismic zone. Micro-earthquakes, microtremors and quarry blasts data were used as an estimation of the site response in the Tehran zone. Site effects were studied based on horizontal to vertical ratios by the Nakamura׳s technique. Also, we used the spectra of signals for three components with the lowest noise levels for spectral slope studies. The analysis used seismic events from a network of 13 seismic stations by the permanent local seismological network of the Tehran Disaster Mitigation and Management Organization (TDMMO) from 2004 to 2007. The number of events used were different for each station. Quarry blast events were with 1.2≤M_L≤2.2 and micro-earthquakes were with 1.1≤M_L≤4.1.By comparing results for earthquake, microtremor and quarry blast, we could see that there is a significant difference between them. The data showed clear observations, especially in high-frequencies. The H/V spectral ratios indicate dominant frequency for rock/soft site with a higher ratio level for quarry blast ratios, which are comparable to the earthquake results due to their difference sources. The results derived by spectral H/V ratios and spectral analysis may be used to distinguish between local earthquakes and quarry blasts.     

矿山爆破中的电磁辐射

利用ＥＳＭＩ电磁干扰接收机和由多频天线与ＳＲ－５０Ｃ磁带机组成的记录系统,在不同距离观测到矿山爆破中的电磁辐射信号,不仅记录到与地震波同时出现的电磁辐射,还记录到大量震后电磁辐射信号．讨论了所得结果的性质及在地震预报中的意义．