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Date submitted2021-02-24
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
A probabilistic approach to the dynamic cut-off grade assessment
Cut-off grade is an important conditioning parameter that determines the quantity and quality of recoverable reserves and development efficiency. Today, Russian mining companies operate with certified quality requirements. By setting permanent quality requirements, the government seeks to prevent depletion of reserves, reduced production during periods of falling prices, and decreased budget revenues, expressing the interests of all members of society. But to what extent do the permanent quality requirements protect the interests of the state? The answer to this question is ambiguous and does not lie on the surface. The State Commission for Reserves and domestic researchers are working to find a rational solution to the problem of quality requirements. One solution is dynamic quality requirements. The effectiveness of their application has been proven for individual mining companies, but it is incorrect to transfer these conclusions to the entire mineral resource base of the country. This article presents a new approach to determining the dynamic cut-off grade, which varies depending on the price of minerals. The dynamic cut-off grade is proposed to be determined based on the indicators of constant requirements to the quality of exploration work, using the maximum allowable costs in the region. The approach allows to calculate the effect of the introduction of dynamic cut-off grade in the practice of subsurface use for the state (in the form of the amount of taxes received) and for subsoil users (in the form of the amount of income). For a group of gold-bearing deposits with open-pit mining method, it was established that the development of reserves using dynamic values of the cut-off grade in periods of price changes ensures compliance with the interests of the state and subsoil users.
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Date submitted2021-07-13
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Prediction of the stress state of the shotcreting support under repeated seismic load
- Authors:
- Maksim A. Karasev
- Roman O. Sotnikov
The article assesses the impact of repeated blasts on the stress-strain state of the shotcreting support, which negatively affects the bearing capacity of the support and can lead to the formation of local rock falls in places of significant degradation of the shotcreting strength. Despite the fact that a single seismic load usually does not have a significant impact on the technical condition of the shotcreting support, repeated dynamic loading can lead to the development of negative processes and affect the safety. The article considers unreinforced and dispersed-reinforced shotcreting concrete as a shotcreting support. Models of deformation of rock and shotcreting support have been studied. To describe the deformation model of a rock mass, an elastic–plastic model based on the Hook-Brown plasticity condition has been accepted, which accurately describes the elastic-plastic behavior of a fractured medium. When performing the prediction of the stress-strain state of the shotcreting support, a model of plastic deformation of concrete with the accumulation of Concrete Damage Plasticity (CDP) was adopted, which allows to comprehensively consider the process of concrete deformation both under conditions of uniaxial compression and stress, and with minor edging draft. At the first calculation stage, a forecast of the seismic waves propagation in the immediate vicinity of the explosive initiation site was made. At the second stage, forecasts of the seismic waves propagation to the mine working and the stress-strain state of the support were made. On the basis of the performed studies, a methodology for assessing the impact of repeated blasts on the stress-strain state of the shotcreting support of the mine working is proposed.
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Date submitted2021-03-05
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Physical and mathematical model of rock destruction by a milling machine cutter
As a result of the analysis of the work on rock destruction by cutters of milling of machines, it was found that the existing developments do not allow us to proceed to the derivation of calculation d dependencies for determining fracture resistance, or can be used only in preliminary calculations of the known by design parameters of milling machines. To eliminate these disadvantages, a combined physical and mathematical model of the process of interaction of a single milling cutter with a spherical tip with the rock has been developed. Consideration of the physical picture of the action of forces and stresses acting from the cutter with spherical tips on the separating rock element in the limiting condition allowed to describe analytically the components of total resistance, which are the mathematical part of the physical and mathematical model of rock destruction by cutters. Analytical dependences for determining the tangential and normal components of fracture resistance of rocks of medium hardness have been obtained. The adequacy of the physical and mathematical model to the physical process of destruction of rocks of different hardness by cutters on a universal stand was tested both in the field and in the laboratory conditions. Technical evaluation of the results of experimental studies confirms the reliability of the developed physical and mathematical model.
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Date submitted2021-04-11
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Comprehensive assessment and analysis of the oil and gas potential of Meso-Cenozoic sediments in the North Caucasus
- Authors:
- Igor I. Bosikov
- Andrey V. Мaier
At the present stage, the development of the oil and gas industry in the Russian Federation is impossible without replenishing the raw material base, so the urgent task is to conduct investigations, prospecting and evaluation of oil and gas bearing capacity prospects in undiscovered areas. The purpose of the investigations is to analyze facies and thicknesses, choose the methodology of prospecting and exploration in reservoirs, make a comprehensive assessment of oil and gas bearing capacity prospects based on experimental investigations and construct a map of oil and gas bearing capacity prospects of the studied sediment structure. The methodology of the conducted investigations was to identify and trace zones of increased fracturing by qualitative interpretation of time seismic sections. Methods for qualitative interpretation of time seismic sections, the model of physical, chemical and geochemical criteria developed by I.A.Burlakov, gas and geochemical surveying and correlation analysis were used in the investigations. A number of prospecting criteria, established based on the analysis of reference seismic materials on well-studied areas in comparison with the results of well tests, were also used. Structural plan for forecast prospects of oil and gas bearing capacity in the studied area was made; zonal and local objects with prospects for oil and gas were identified. Graphical plotting of Eh and pH concentrations distribution and various gas and geochemical indicators allowed identifying zones of possible oil and gas accumulations and starting their detailed survey. Processing of gas and geochemical materials by means of software allowed efficient assessment of prospects for oil and gas bearing capacity of the investigated objects.
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Date submitted2021-05-31
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Experimental evaluation of compressibility coefficients for fractures and intergranular pores of an oil and gas reservoir
- Authors:
- Vitaly S. Zhukov
- Yuri O. Kuzmin
The paper is devoted to studies of the volumetric response of rocks caused by changes in their stress state. Changes in the volume of fracture and intergranular components of the pore space based on measurements of the volume of pore fluid extruded from a rock sample with an increase in its all-round compression have been experimentally obtained and analyzed. Determination of the fracture and intergranular porosity components is based on the authors' earlier proposed method of their calculation using the values of longitudinal wave velocity and total porosity. The results of experimental and analytical studies of changes in porosity and its two components (intergranular and fractured) under the action of effective stresses are considered. This approach allowed the authors to estimate the magnitude of the range of changes in the volumetric compressibility of both intergranular pores and fractures in a representative collection of 37 samples of the Vendian-age sand reservoir of the Chayanda field. The method of separate estimation of the compressibility coefficients of fractures and intergranular pores is proposed, their values and dependence on the effective pressure are experimentally obtained. It is determined that the knowledge of the values of fracture and intergranular porosity volumetric compressibility will increase the reliability of estimates of changes in petrophysical parameters of oil and gas reservoirs caused by changes in the stress state during the development of hydrocarbon fields.
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Date submitted2021-03-18
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Date accepted2021-09-10
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Date published2021-10-29
Development of blocking compositions with a bridging agent for oil well killing in conditions of abnormally low formation pressure and carbonate reservoir rocks
- Authors:
- Dmitrii V. Mardashov
Production well killing before workover operations in late-stage oil and gas-condensate fields can be complicated by abnormally low formation pressure, carbonate type of reservoir rocks, and high gas-oil ratio. These complications lead to the intensive absorption of technological fluids by the formation and gas ingresses, which, in its turn, increases the time of killing wells and putting them on production, reduction of productivity, and additional costs. Therefore, it is crucial to develop a high-performance well-killing composition that would allow improving the efficiency of killing wells in complicated geological, physical, and technological conditions at the expense of reliable overlapping of the perforation interval (or open wellbore) to prevent gas intakes and gas outflow from the formation. To develop blocking compounds, a set of laboratory tests has been carried out, including physical and chemical (determination of density, viscosity, thermal stability, sedimentation stability, etc.) and research of blocking and filtration properties of compositions during simulation of a fractured reservoir. In the course of laboratory tests, the choice of fractional composition and polymer filler concentration was substantiated in the blocking emulsion and polymer compositions to increase the efficiency of their application under the complicated conditions of killing oil wells. As a result of laboratory research and field tests, the emulsion and polymer blocking compositions containing bridging agent (microcalcite) were developed, which increase the oil well killing efficiency by preventing the absorption of technological fluids in the formations and, as a result, preserving its productivity.
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Date submitted2021-06-24
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Modeling the acid treatment of a polymictic reservoir
- Authors:
- Mars M. Khasanov
- Andrey А. Maltcev
Acid treatment of wells program is directly related to oil production efficiency. Investigations aimed at improving the efficiency of acid treatment in a terrigenous reservoir have mainly reviewed the changing and adapting the reagents to minimize bridging caused by acid-rock interaction. Under real conditions, application of new and unique acid compositions is a complex process from an organizational point of view and is therefore not widely used as compared with conventional compositions based on a mixture of hydrochloric and hydrofluoric acids. The paper is based on an approach to improve acid treatment efficiency through optimal design based on near-bottomhole zone treatment simulation. The aspects for practical application of the developed acid treatment simulator for terrigenous reservoirs based on a numerical model of hydrodynamic, physical and chemical processes in a porous medium on an unstructured PEBI-grid are described. The basic uncertainties of the model are identified and analyzed. Influence of empirical parameters within the system of equations on the calculation results and modeling of the mineralogical composition of rocks are considered. Algorithm for static modelling of near-bottomhole zone for acid treatment modelling is described, as well as an approach to optimizing the design of near-bottomhole zone treatment based on adapting the results of rock tests in the model. Using experimental data, the necessity of accounting for influence of secondary and tertiary reactions on the results of modeling physical and chemical processes during acid treatment of terrigenous reservoirs was proved. The distinctive features of West Siberian objects (polymictic reservoirs) with respect to the efficiency of near-bottomhole zone treatment with clay acid have been investigated. Series of calculations to determine the optimum volume of acid injection has been carried out. Experience of previously conducted measures under the considered conditions has been analyzed and recommendations to improve the efficiency of acid treatment have been given.
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Date submitted2021-07-07
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Influence of hydraulic compression on porosity and permeability properties of reservoirs
Active development of hard-to-recover oil reserves causes the need for an innovative approach to methods of oil recovery and intensification of its production, based on taking into account the specifics of filtration processes in low-productive reservoirs and complex geological and physical conditions. Pilot works for studying the mechanism of changes in porosity and permeability properties of reservoirs during swabbing of wells are presented. Based on the hydrodynamic investigations performed, the results of the work are analyzed. The method of oil production intensification using hydraulic compression of formation has been developed. It has been shown that when using hydraulic compression technology in the pore space of the formation, the effect of capillary and gravitational forces is strongly reduced. The influence of these forces decreases when significant pressure gradients with changing direction are formed during well swabbing for depression impact on the bottomhole zone of the formation. Hydraulic compression induced an increase in well productivity and flow rate; insights into how how permeability and porosity properties change during well swabbing were clarified. The range of compressive durability (minimum and maximum values) was determined for the Verean deposits of the Melekeskaya Depression and the South Tatar arch. The impact of formation hydraulic compression caused changes in permeability and porosity properties of the reservoir in the bottomhole zone on a qualitative level. Piezo- and hydraulic conductivity increased by 20 %. Experimental work in well 1545 of Keremetyevskoe field showed an increase of piezo- and hydraulic conductivity coefficients, effective formation thickness, change of filtration flows character.
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Date submitted2020-12-08
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Prospects for the oil and gas content of the Upper Permian deposits of the southwestern part of the Vilyui syneclise based on the analysis of sedimentary environments and geochemical conditions of oil and gas content
The article discusses the prospects for the oil and gas content of the Upper Permian deposits in the southwestern marginal part of the Vilyui syneclise. In this margin, the Permian terrigenous complex with proven oil and gas productivity in the central part of the syneclise, pinches out. The study area, represented by the monoclinal slopes of the Vilyui syneclise, is considered a promising area for the exploration of non-structural hydrocarbon traps in the Upper Paleozoic sediments. The objectives of the study include identifying general patterns of sediment formation, associated mainly with the development of the alluvial complex, and substantiating the potential opportunities of migration and accumulation of hydrocarbons in the predicted traps. The research is based on the interpretation of the latest seismic surveys and prior-years geological and geophysical data. Authors carried out structural and paleo-structural analysis, identified lithofacies in the well log, generalized and analyzed the geochemical conditions of the oil and gas content of the Upper Permian deposits, traced the pinching out of the Upper Permian deposits on the southwestern margin of the syneclise, and also outlined areas of river valleys development that form zones of advanced reservoirs. The results of the studies have validated promising oil and gas accumulation zones on the southwestern slopes of the syneclise associated with non-anticlinal hydrocarbon traps. Authors also drew up a diagram of the oil and gas potential of the Upper Permian deposits. The obtained results are of interest for prospecting for oil and gas in the area under study.
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Date submitted2021-06-17
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Dissolution kinetics of rare earth metal phosphates in carbonate solutions of alkali metals
- Authors:
- Tatyana E. Litvinova
- Ivan L. Oleynik
Treatment of apatite raw materials is associated with the formation of large-tonnage waste – phosphogypsum. The content of rare earth metals in such waste reaches 1 %, which makes it possible to consider it a technogenic source for obtaining rare earth metals and their compounds. Up to the present moment, there are neither processing plants, nor an efficient process flow to handle phosphogypsum dumps. It is rational to use a way that involves extraction of valuable components and overall reduction of phosphogypsum dumps. Such process flow is available with carbonate conversion of phosphogypsum to alkali metal or ammonium sulfate and calcium carbonate upon the condition of associated extraction of rare earth metal (REM) compounds. Associated extraction of REM compounds becomes possible since they form strong and stable complexes with hard bases according to Pearson, which among other things include carbonate, phosphate and sulfate anions. Formation of lanthanide complexes with inorganic oxygen-containing anions is facilitated by the formation of high-energy Ln-O bonds. The study focuses on the dissolution of lanthanide phosphates in carbonate media. It was established that formation of REM carbonate complexes from their phosphates is a spontaneous endothermic process and that formation of lanthanide carbonates and hydroxides serves as thermodynamic limitation of dissolution. A shift in equilibrium towards the formation of carbonate complexes is achieved by increasing the temperature to 90-100 °C and providing an excess of carbonate. The limiting stage of REM phosphate dissolution in carbonate media is external diffusion. This is indicated by increasing rate of the process with an intensification of stirring, first order of the reaction and the value of activation energy for phosphate dissolution from 27 to 60 kJ/mol. A combination of physical and chemical parameters of the process allowed to develop an engineering solution for associated REM extraction during carbonate conversion of phosphogypsum, which included a 4-5 h conversion of phosphogypsum at temperature of 90-110 °C by an alkali metal or ammonium carbonate solution with a concentration of 2-3 mol/l. As a result, a solution with alkali metal (ammonium) sulfate is obtained, which contains REMs in the form of carbonate complexes and calcium carbonate. The rate of REM extraction into the solution reaches no less than 93 %. Rare earth metals are separated from the mother liquor by precipitation or sorption on anion exchange resins, while the excess of alkali metal or ammonium carbonate is returned to the start of the process.
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Date submitted2021-06-15
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Study on hydrometallurgical recovery of copper and rhenium in processing of substandard copper concentrates
- Authors:
- Denis S. Lutskiy
- Aleksander S. Ignatovich
Over the past decade, there has been a steady growth in demand for rare metals, with rhenium being one of the most highly demanded, but also one of the most expensive and difficult to obtain. The high demand for rhenium is due to its use as a key component of metallurgical alloys or as a component of catalysts used in the oil refining industry. The aggregate of facts causes profitability of processing of the rhenium-containing mineral resources, which also are the copper substandard concentrates obtained at processing of the Zhezkazgan sandstones. The study focuses on the processes of extraction of copper and sorption recovery of rhenium from solutions of ammonia leaching of copper substandard concentrates. Model solutions similar in the elemental composition to solutions of ammonia leaching solutions of copper substandard concentrates obtained during the processing of Zhezkazgan sandstones were used as an object of the study. The paper estimates extraction characteristics of copper recovery using LIX 84-I solution in kerosene, as well as sorption characteristics of the rhenium recovery process using the Purolite PPA100 anion exchanger. Based on the obtained characteristics the possibility of hydrometallurgical processing of ammonia leaching solutions of substandard copper-sulfide concentrates, and recovery of the obtained commercial products is shown.
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Date submitted2020-12-24
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Natural gas methane number and its influence on the gas engine working process efficiency
The natural gas usage as a vehicle fuel in the mining industry is one of the priority tasks of the state. The article pays special attention to the component composition of natural gas from the point of view of its thermal efficiency during combustion in the combustion chamber of a power plant on a heavy-duty vehicle in difficult quarry conditions. For this, domestic and foreign methods for determining the main indicator characterizing the knock resistance of fuel in the combustion process – the methane number – are considered. Improvement of technical and economic indicators will be carried out by changing the composition of the gas mixture based on methane to fit the design features of the gas power plant, the methane number will be the determining indicator. A theoretical analysis of the influence of the methane number on such engine parameters as the compression ratio and the maximum speed of the flame front propagation in the second phase of combustion in the engine cylinder, expressed through the angle of rotation of the crankshaft, is presented. Based on the results of theoretical and experimental studies, the dependences of the influence of the methane number on the efficiency of the working process of the engine and its external speed characteristic were obtained.
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Date submitted2021-02-20
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Thermal protection implementation of the contact overheadline based on bay controllers of electric transport traction substations in the mining industry
The article presents the principle of thermal protection of the contact overheadlineand substantiates the possibility of practical implementation of this principle for rail electric transport in the mining industry. The algorithm for the implementation of modern digital protection of the contact overhead line as one of the functions of the controller is described. A mathematical model of thermal protection is proposed, which follows from the solution of the heat balance equation. The model takes into account the coefficient of the electrical networktopology, as well as the coefficient of consumption of the current-carrying core of the cable, which determines the reduction in the conducting section from contact erosion and the growth of oxide films. Corrections for air flows are introduced when receiving data from an external anemometer, via telemechanics protocol. The mathematical model was tested by writing a real thermal protection program in the C programming language for the bay controller, based on the circuitry of which is the STM32F407IGT6 microcontroller for the microcontroller unit. Verification tests were carried out on a serial bay controller in 2020. The graphs for comparing the calculated and actual values of temperatures, with different flow rates of the current-carrying conductor of the DC cable, are given. To obtain data, telemechanics protocols IEC 60870-104 and Modbus TCP, PLC Segnetics SMH4 were used.
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Date submitted2021-04-19
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Date accepted2021-10-18
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Date published2021-10-29
Mutual spectral densities calculation of the moments of resistance on the peat milling unit working bodies
- Authors:
- Konstantin V. Fomin
When performing technological operations in the peat industry, various units with milling-type working bodies are used. They differ in design, layout, number and type of cutting elements, operating modes, and may have one or more working bodies. During operation, random forces and moments act on the cutters, which have a dramatically variable nature, which is associated with the periodic interaction of the knives with the peat deposit, its structural heterogeneity, variations in the milling depth, physical and mechanical properties of peat, the rotational speed of the cutter and the movement speed of the machine. In this case, significant dynamic loads arise in the structural elements, which leads to a decrease in their reliability, deterioration of the energy characteristics of the engine operation and technical and economic indicators of use. In the dynamic analysis of drive elements, when using machines with several working bodies, it is necessary to know both spectral and mutual spectral load densities. For their calculation, expressions were obtained that take into account the physical and mechanical properties of peat, the operating modes of the unit and their probabilistic characteristics, as well as the design features of the working body. The expressions are obtained for the case when there are several working bodies with the same diameters and the number of knives in the cutting plane. In this case, the number of planes, width, type of cutting element and type of cutting (locked, semi-locked, etc.) may differ. As an example of using the developed approaches, the calculation of spectral and mutual spectral densities of moments on cutters and loads in the drive elements of the machine for surface-layer milling MTF-14 is presented.
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Date submitted2021-04-23
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Date accepted2021-09-07
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Date published2021-10-29
Development of the concept of an innovative laboratory installation for the study of dust-forming surfaces
Currently, the determination of the emission rate of suspended solids from a unit of the surface area of a man-made mass at various parameters of the wind flow is not sufficiently described. The analysis of the world experience of researchers shows that existing laboratory installations have various design features that do not allow to correctly determine the mass of the dust being flapped and wind-blown. Based on the analysis results, the concept of an innovative laboratory installation for the study of dust-forming surfaces has been developed. It takes into account the influence of wind shadows, the deturbulization of an artificially created air flow, the possibility of regulating not only the flow velocity mode, but also the creation of a vacuum or disturbance in the area of sample placement, as well as the formation of a certain angle of wind flow attack relative to the surface. The concept provides for the possibility of determining the volume of dust emissions by the values of the lost dust masses in the sample and by the values of dust concentrations in the outgoing stream. The calculation of the main basic elements of the installation using the ANSYS FLUENT software package was carried out. The model and configuration of the wind tunnel have been developed and calculated, the main geometric parameters and functional elements for the possibility of use in scientific work have been determined. For practical use of the empirical roughness value of the underlying surface, its values are recommended in a wide range – from zero for the water surface to 0.44 for large cities with tall buildings and skyscrapers.
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Date submitted2021-03-05
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Date accepted2021-09-07
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Date published2021-10-29
Utilization of sewage sludge as an ameliorant for reclamation of technogenically disturbed lands
- Authors:
- Tatyana A. Petrova
- Edelina Rudzisha
When rehabilitating technogenically disturbed lands of mining facilities, fertilizers and ameliorants are to be applied due to the lack of organic matter and nutrients required for the restoration of the soil and vegetation layer. The use of unconventional fertilizers (ameliorants) based on sewage sludge is one of the actual directions of land reclamation at mining sites. The purpose of the work is to summarize and analyze up-to-date information on the effectiveness of the use of sewage sludge for the reclamation of technogenically disturbed lands of mining and processing industries. The analysis is based on a review of recent studies aimed at assessing the impact of introduced sediment on soils, plant communities, and rehabilitated areas. The introduction of sewage sludge has a positive effect on the physical and chemical parameters of the soil (optimizes density and aggregation), saturates it with nutrients, i.e. N, P, K, Ca, Mg, and Na, thus improving plant growth indicators. However, it may contain a number of heavy metals and pathogens; therefore, studies of each sediment and conditions of reclaimed areas are necessary.