State Engineering University of Armenia (Erevan, Armenia):

Оganesyan A. G., Professor, Doctor of Engineering Sciences, e-mail: hov_armen@mail.ru
Alaverdyan G. A., Assistant Professor, Candidate of Engineering Sciences

Tepanosyan G. O., Candidate for a Master's Degree

“Geoekonomika” JSC (Erevan, Armenia)

Agabalyan Yu. A. (junior), Engineer-Economist

In the last decade, the self-mobile load-haul-dump machines and track-mounted drolls were used more often on Armenian underground mines. Shaumyan gold and polymetal deposit in Armenia includes ore bodies with the following basic geological and mining-technical peculiarities:
-70% of ore reserves are concentrated in thin veins (up to 2 meters);
-ore bodies are characterized by variable thickness and sinuous contacts with enclosing rocks;
-ores and enclosing rocks are characterized by high strength and stability;
-ores are characterized by high total cost.
Nowadays, the sublevel mining method is applied on the mine (with a very low level height – 13 m), where the dilution was approximately 30% and ore losses were 10%. This method provided the goaf stowing by barren measures. For the purpose of improvement of mine development efficiency, there was proposed the usage of mining method by horizontal slices with backfill in two ways: with scraper transportation of ore and by the usage of self-mobile machines. Selection of versions of mining method is made with usage of an estimated parameter "critical thickness” of ore body, when compared versions have equal efficiency.

1. Agabalyan Yu. A., Oganesyan A. G., Alaverdyan A. A., Agabalyan Yu. A. (junior). Gornyi Zhurnal – Mining Journal, 2013, No. 2, pp. 105–108.
2. Agabalyan Yu. A. Teoriya i praktika optimalnogo osvoeniya nedr (Theory and practice of optimal mastering of subsoils). Moscow : Nedra, 1994, 176 p.