Optimisation of long-term quarry production scheduling under geological uncertainty to supply raw materials to a cement plant.
- Resource Type
- Article
- Authors
- Vu, Trong; Bao, Tran; Drebenstedt, Carsten; Pham, Hien; Nguyen, Hoai; Nguyen, Duc
- Source
- Mining Technology (2572-6668). Sep2021, Vol. 130 Issue 3, p146-158. 13p.
- Subject
- *CEMENT plants
*PRODUCTION scheduling
*QUARRIES & quarrying
*UNCERTAINTY
*STOCHASTIC programming
*RAW materials
- Language
- ISSN
- 2572-6668
The success of a cement production project depends on the supply of raw materials. Long-term quarry production scheduling (LTQPS) based on resource models is essential to maintain a consistent supply to cement plants. Geological uncertainty is inherent due to sparse exploration data in resource models and significant risk factors for not achieving production targets. This research proposes a stochastic framework for LTQPS that considers the impact of geological uncertainty on raw material supply. A clustering algorithm uses multiple simulated deposit models to aggregate blocks into mining cuts. A new stochastic mixed-integer programming model is formulated with two objectives: to minimise the cost for developing the raw mix and the risk of not meeting production targets. The proposed framework is implemented successfully in a limestone deposit in Southern Vietnam, resulting in an increase of 5 million tons (Mt) and a 30% reduction in unit cost over the deterministic mixed-integer programming model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]