The S-Block software can be used to assist with the design of open pit mine catch-bench dimensions by analysing likely failure volumes, loss of crest, rock spillage and rolling rock hazards.
About S-Block
S-Block has been developed intermittently since 2003 with a major update in 2023. The update includes numerous improvements to modeling the jointed rock mass, failure calculations, and presentation of results.
S-Block is designed so that analyses can be conducted by geologists or geotechnical engineers at a mine site without the need for specialized numerical modeling skills. Analyses can be conducted with the limited geotechnical data typically available prior to mining. The analyses are easy to set up and run and provide results in a few seconds, allowing numerous alternatives to be evaluated efficiently.
Wedge and plane failure modes are identified and evaluated automatically providing probabilistic stability outcomes.
Rockfall analysis can be conducted using SBlock with predicted catch bench together with equations developed from published rolling rock testing.
Results are presented as 2D and 3D visualizations, together with statistical charts and maps of expected bench failures.
S-Block is designed to assist with the assessment of bench scale stability in open pit mines located in jointed rocks.
Inputs include the rock-mass joint characteristics and proposed mine bench geometry.
Simulation of potential block and wedge formation at the bench face is conducted based on joint set spacing and trace length data. The removability of the blocks is determined using the keyblock approach developed by Goodman & Shi.
The stability of the blocks is calculated using vector analysis together with joint strength data. Thousands of block simulations are typically conducted to provide probabilistic stability outcomes.
Results include probabilistic results of potential loss of crest, failure volumes, berm width distributions, spillage of failed rocks onto berms, and rolling rock hazards.
Single block analyses are included which allow back analysis of observed failures to assist in estimating realistic joint cohesion and friction parameters associated with the observed failures.
S-Block Methods
Example of some tabulated results, S-Block generated blocks and wedges, and calculated bench failure probability
S-Block Results
Tables of results summarize some of the key parameters, such as loss of crest, berm width, and failure volume, that can be use to assess bench scale performance for a given geotechnical domain.
Bench crest failure probability provides a plot of likely bench failures based on the simulation of 20 or more 250 m wide benches which may represent the outcome of thousands of potential wedge or block failures at the bench face, expressed as a probabilty. The plot also shows the likely maximum depth of failure.
Spillage width plot of failed material at the toe of a bench provides an indication of the distribution of the widths of the failed rock piles that are formed at the toe of a bench. If the failed material width exceeds the berm width, spillage is likely to occur to the benches below.
Berm width distribution and spillage width plot shows that 80% of the planned 6 m width berms will have a width of greater than 3.22m (loss of crest is 2.78 m). The superimposed spillage width curve shows that there is a 10.7% chance that the failed rock pile at the toe of a bench will exceed the bench width and spill over to the next bench.
Three-dimensional view of potential failures along a 250 m bench.
Combined plot showing five realization of failure along a stack of benches
2D Vector plot of unstable blocks and wedges formed along a 250 m wide bench
Factor of safety distribution of blocks and wedges after simulating 20 benches that are each 250 m wide
Batch run results exported to Excel(TM) for plotting, showing berm widths and spillage widths results of bench rotated through 360 degrees at 10 degree intervals. Batch runs with more than 1000 cases can take a while to run (hours).
Results of a single block analysis showing block being evaluated and likely distribution of safety factors for defined variability of cohesion and friction parameters.
Results of catch bench effectiveness analysis showing spread of final resting location of rolling rocks on a 30 m wide working bench with a stack of five catch benches above. Statistics are gathered for 5000 rolling rock simulations originating from the five benches. Results show that 82% of released blocks were retained by the catch benches. Risk of injury and loss of equipment is also calculated for provided inputs.
Try a Demo or Purchase a License
A fully functional demo license is available for S-Block which runs for 24 hours. Please fill out the form below and request to recieve a free demo license and a link to download S-Block
Demo:
Purchase:
S-Block licenses are available for purchase. A license can be purchased for one, two or multiple simultaneous users. The pricing is as follows in US$:
License type Single user Network License (per seat)
Permanent $1 200 $2 200
One year lease $ 800 $1 000
Licenses can be hosted on individual user computers or on a company network serving multiple users. S-Block does not run on your company server computer, it runs on each individual user's computer. Only the license server runs on the company server requiring miniscule compute. License validity is checked periodically via the internet against license servers in the UK.
If you would like to purchase a S-Block license please fill out the form below to request a quote and/or invoice for the purchase. Please state number of licenses required and type (permanent or lease):