This invention relates to mine support grout packs of the type having a grout bag that, in use, is filled with a cementitious or other settable mix, typically, but not necessarily, including pulverised ore or backfill of processed or barren mined material.
The term grout bag as used herein is intended to mean a generally permeable bag that is used to contain slurry pumped into it under pressure and to retain the solids whilst allowing excess moisture to permeate through the grout bag wall that is typically made of a suitable textile material such as a geotextile material.
The term grout pack as used herein is intended to mean a grout bag that is used in combination with a restraining envelope encircling the generally upright walls of the grout bag, the restraining envelope including either or both of a reinforcing mesh and a series of elongate tension elements typically in the form of confinement rings or bands encircling the grout bag.
Depending on the type and quality of rock being supported, the depth of mining, the prevalent field stresses, seismicity, stoping width and a number of other factors, stope support can utilise a vast range of materials, configurations and systems, including, gum poles, timber and composite packs, steel props, unmined ore pillars, rock anchors and granular (tailings) type supports.
Among the granular support media, cemented grout packs are increasingly being utilized as combination support products, consisting essentially of a support column formed by cured cemented backfill or a similar cured cementitious grout, contained within a geotextile bag and stiffened against lateral deformation under axial load with an external restraining envelope of either or both of a reinforcing mesh and a series of tension rings or bands encircling the grout bag, typically both.
In a conventional configuration, a non-yielding type of grout pack consists of a grout bag surrounded by a restraining envelope including some form of mesh reinforcement and a plurality of confinement rings encircling the mesh and bag. In the instance of yielding grout packs, the construction is similar except that the confinement rings or ring assemblies are able to yield under load thereby maintaining a measure of restraining force before their eventual failure. The mesh is typically a reinforcement of wire or polymer netting and the confinement rings are usually made of steel wire.
Also, due to its relative rigidity, steel wire requires relatively complex production facilities for making the confinement rings. Also, the yielding characteristics of steel wire may not be appropriate as regards the yielding behaviour of the confinement rings.
It is an object of this invention to provide a grout pack having an alternative restraining envelope that is suitable for ease of production and to provide for controlled collapse of an installed grout pack in use.
In accordance with one aspect of this invention there is provided a grout pack comprising a grout bag and a restraining envelope encircling the grout bag, the grout bag having flexible side walls and two ends defining, in use, a top, and a bottom and a cavity for receiving settable granular material or grout, the grout bag further having an inlet for slurry to be introduced into the interior of the grout bag and wherein the flexible side walls are adapted to retain solids within the grout bag and the grout bag has an axis in the general direction of which a filled and set grout pack is adapted to yield, the grout pack being characterised in that the restraining envelope includes multiple elongate tension elements each of which is made of a multitude of fibres twisted, braided or woven or any combination thereof to form confinement tension elements for operatively supporting the grout bag.
Further features of the invention provide for the fibres to be polymer fibres including but not limited to one or more of polypropylene, nylon, polyesters, polyethylene especially high molecular weight polyethylene, and aromatic polyamides; for the restraining envelope to include an inner mesh layer positioned on the inside of the elongate tension elements; for the elongate tension elements to assume the form of containment rings encircling the grout bag at spaced positions up the height of the grout pack in the installed condition; or, alternatively, for the elongate tension elements to extend in generally helical directions of opposite hand in the installed condition of the grout pack; and for the restraining envelope to include terminal rigid confinement rings at each of its two ends, the rigid confinement rings conveniently being of steel wire or similar relatively rigid material.
In one variation of the invention each tension element assumes the form of a rope that may be of a twisted construction or a braided construction. In such variation the ends of a length of rope are preferably spliced together to form an endless loop. The splice may be either configured to be a non-slip type of splice or it may be configured to slip under predetermined loads in order to provide for controlled yielding of an installed grout pack.
In another variation of the invention each tension element assumes the form of a length of webbing. In such an instance the free ends of a length of webbing may be stitched together to form an endless loop. Alternatively, the free ends of a thing of webbing may be associated with a buckle that may be arranged to provide for yielding under predetermined loads. In the event that the webbing is arranged in a criss-cross arrangement, the overlapping zones of the webbing can be stitched together.
The invention also provides a restraining envelope adapted to receive a grout bag in order to form a grout pack as defined above.
As a general rule, the grout packs defined above are preassembled at a factory level for transport, storage and conveyance to a site of installation in a collapsed condition with the grout pack being ready for installation and erection by securing the upper portion of the assembly against the stope hanging wall and filling the grout bag with a suitable settable material that is typically a cementitious material introduced in the form of a slurry.
In order that the above and other features of the invention may be more fully understood, various embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
In the drawings:—
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The grout bag may be manufactured from a series of panels stitched together or it may be made from a tubular textile material having end panels secured thereto of the required shape defining the top and bottom.
The fabric from which the grout bag is manufactured may be any suitable fabric and, in particular, a geotextile is considered to be particularly suitable, at least for the flexible side walls that are adapted to retain solids within the grout bag and allow water to permeate through it as may be required. A similar result can be achieved in numerous different ways and utilising numerous different designs.
In this particular embodiment of the invention a grout pack is formed utilising the grout bag described above together with a restraining envelope comprising both an inner peripheral supporting mesh (7) conforming generally to the outer shape of the grout bag in the open condition and a series of operatively axially spaced circumferential confinement rings (8), the axis being indicated by line A-A in
In keeping with this invention, each of the confinement rings (8) is formed from a synthetic polymer rope made of a multitude of polymer fibres twisted or braided together to form the rope. The free ends of a suitable cut length of rope are joined together by means of a splice indicated by numeral (9) to form an endless loop. The splice can be configured in one of two different ways.
In a first way the splice is made to be non-slipping and a permanent connection between the two ends. In such an event yielding is dependent on the stretch available in the rope and the rope will eventually break at some point that will generally not be the splice.
In a second way the splice is configured such that when a predetermined tension is exerted on the splice in consequence of the grout pack yielding, the splice slips to allow the containment ring to increase in size whilst still retaining effective containment of the collapsing grout pack. In such an event the confinement ring will eventually fail once the splice has slipped sufficiently to cause the splice to effectively open.
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Numerous variations may be made to the embodiments of the invention described above without departing from the scope hereof. In particular, it should be noted that the construction of the elongate tension members can be varied widely and is not limited to any of those described above. Also, wherever a steel ring is used, this may be a double steel ring to facilitate attachment of any mesh that may be used and any elongate tension members to it. Also, any other type of fastening of the elongate tension members to each other or to an end confinement ring may be employed.
Numerous other arrangements are possible within the scope of the invention.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2008/10305 | Dec 2008 | ZA | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/IB09/07299 | 11/3/2009 | WO | 00 | 4/22/2011 |