Ore passes are a fundamental component of underground mining operations, yet they remain one of the most challenging structures to design and maintain.
The Core Design Challenges
Ore passes operate under some of the harshest conditions in underground mining. The consequences of poor design extend well beyond operational inefficiency.
- Hang-ups and Blockages. Ore pass hang-ups are a common problem in underground mining. Settling fines oxidise and form blockages that can halt operations entirely and are notoriously difficult to clear.
- Wall Degradation and Structural Damage. Constant material flow causes progressive damage to pass walls, potentially requiring costly repairs or redesigns.
- Safety Risks. Uncontrolled ore runs and structural failures can cause equipment damage and, in serious cases, injuries or fatalities.
These risks make it clear why thorough design validation, before a single metre is excavated, is so important. This is precisely the problem Simcenter EDEM is built to solve.
Optimising Design with Simcenter EDEM
While several tools exist for bulk material simulation, Simcenter EDEM provides specific advantages through high-fidelity modelling, GPU scalability, and deep integration with the Simcenter simulation portfolio. By simulating material behaviour at full scale before construction begins, engineers can identify and resolve design weaknesses that would otherwise only reveal themselves once the pass is operational.
Advanced Particle Physics and Numerical Stability
A primary challenge in ore pass design is accurately representing the diverse shapes and sizes of blasted rock. Simcenter EDEM utilises two complementary solvers:
- Multi-sphere method: The most computationally efficient way to model irregular shapes whilst maintaining high numerical stability, enabling complex contact physics calculations without excessive overhead.
- Polyhedral solver: For cases where exact geometry is critical, such as flat plates or angular fragments, this solver provides high-precision shape representation.
Accurate shape modelling is essential for predicting:
- Material segregation across different particle sizes
- Hang-ups caused by the formation of stable arches that halt material flow
- Friction behaviour that governs discharge rates
Rapid Material Characterisation with the GEMM Database
Calibrating virtual materials to match real-world ores is one of the biggest bottlenecks in DEM simulation. Simcenter EDEM addresses this through the Generic EDEM Material Model (GEMM) database.
Key features:
- 60 000+ pre-calibrated material models covering a wide variety of rocks and ores
- Three-question setup: Simply specify the scale of application, bulk density, and angle of repose
- Validated starting points that eliminate the weeks of manual parameter tuning required by other platforms
- Specialised starter packs for cohesive soils and fine powders
The result: engineers spend less time on calibration and more time on design optimisation.
Simulating Massive Mining Environments
Ore pass simulations often require millions of particles to represent the scale of a real operation. Two unique Simcenter EDEM features manage this efficiently:
- Bed Generation Tool: Instantly creates large material beds using pre-generated blocks, removing the need to wait for material to flow in via time-dependent inlets.
- Dynamic Domain: Focuses processing power only on the active region around the equipment, so huge volumes of material can be present without increasing the computational cost of inactive particle contacts.
High-Performance GPU Solving
Simcenter EDEM uses a native GPU solver engineered for both speed and accuracy:
- Double-precision arithmetic maintains numerical stability in high-energy mining environments, unlike solvers that sacrifice accuracy for speed
- Multi-GPU scaling across multiple cards simultaneously, with benchmarks showing up to 20x speed improvements over CPU-based methods
- OpenCL compatibility provides flexibility across different engineering workstation configurations
Advanced Breakage and Wear Modelling
Material breakage during discharge has a direct impact on ore pass structural integrity. Simcenter EDEM addresses this with the Tavares Breakage Model, specifically validated for brittle materials.
What this enables:
- Fragmentation prediction: Understand how rocks fracture under compression, shearing, or impact
- Liner wear analysis: Identify wear-prone areas before liners are installed, using per-contact energy and force calculations
- Custom physics via API: Write bespoke physics for advanced behaviours such as liquid effects, agglomeration, or flexible fibres
System Integration and Coupled Workflows
Simcenter EDEM is built for multi-disciplinary engineering workflows, not isolated simulation:
- EDEMpy post-processing: A Python library for automated data extraction and complex analyses, including segregation indices and particle residence times
- Simcenter portfolio integration: Seamless data transfer to structural analysis and fluid dynamics tools, enabling a comprehensive digital twin of the ore pass
Flexible Licensing for Project Success
Simutron understands that project requirements in the South African engineering sector vary in duration and intensity. To support this, we offer flexible licensing models designed to suit your specific project timelines.
You can choose from the following licensing options:
- Monthly term licences for short-term validation tasks.
- Quarterly term licences for mid-scale design projects.
- Annual term licences for continuous development and long-term operations.
These options ensure that you have access to high-end simulation power exactly when you need it, without unnecessary long-term overheads.
Choose the Right Solution for Your Operations
Whether you are designing heavy equipment, managing complex material flow, or optimising processing efficiency, Simutron has a tailored solution to meet your engineering challenges.
Explore our dedicated solution pages to learn more:
- Heavy Equipment and Rock Interaction: If you need to simulate dump truck loading, bucket forces, or crusher flow, visit our Construction and Mining page.
- Conveyor Systems and Bulk Handling: For optimising transfer points, chutes, and conveyor performance in your mining operations, visit our Powder Handling page.
- Particle and Fluid Dynamics: To enhance the efficiency of equipment like hydro cyclones or mills through combined DEM and CFD simulation, visit our Mineral Processing page.
