Application of 3-D Geoscience Modeling Technology for the Estimation of Solid Mineral Reserves

Abstract: Applying new approaches, methods, and technologies for the estimation of reserves can effectively improve the efficiency and accuracy of assessments of solid mineral resources. After analyzing the development of 3-D geoscience modeling technology (3-D GMT), this paper discusses the application of 3-D GMT for the estimation of solid mineral reserves, emphatically introducing its workflow and two key technologies, 3-D orebody surface modeling, and property modeling. Moreover, the paper analyzes the limitations of traditional methods, such as the section method and geological block method, and points out the advantages of 3-D GMT: building more accurate 3-D orebody models, expressing the internal inhomogeneous attributes of an orebody, reducing the potential for errors in the estimation of reserves, and implementing dynamic estimations of reserves.