Mining Institute

A comprehensive study of the current state and development prospects of the heat and power industry in Russia has been conducted. The structure of fuel and energy resources consumption, as well as the role of heat supply in ensuring the sustainable functioning of the country’s economy have been analyzed. Special attention has been paid to the intersectoral nature of thermal energy and its impact on industry, housing and communal services, and the social sphere. The high energy intensity of the industry has been emphasized, and the need to optimize the processes of generating, distributing, and consuming thermal energy has been pointed out. Various types of heat supply systems – centralized and decentralized – have been studied in terms of their efficiency, environmental friendliness, and economic feasibility. The current dynamics of these systems development in the context of regional specifics and climatic conditions has been described. The key issues of the industry have been analyzed, including uneven distribution of generating capacities, high level of physical wear of equipment, significant losses of thermal energy in distribution networks, as well as insufficient transparency and accuracy of consumption accounting. An important place in the study is devoted to the issues of tariff formation, and both technical and economic factors have been considered, including excess losses, excess costs, the investment component of tariffs, and the need to modernize infrastructure. A forecast of the Russian thermal power industry development has been proposed, and the main barriers hindering its modernization have been identified. Possible ways to increase the energy and economic efficiency of the industry in the face of rising fuel prices and stricter environmental requirements have been listed.

Abstract Toppling failure is a structurally complex and operationally disruptive mode of slope instability, particularly critical in open-pit mining settings where steep, jointed rock masses are exposed. In this study, a prominent toppling failure event along the lowwall of an active pit slope caused significant excavation delays and raised concerns over geotechnical safety. Conventional site investigations in the affected area were hindered by ongoing slope deformations, prompting the adoption of a remote-sensing-based alternative. To address these constraints, a spatial–temporal back-analysis framework was developed using terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) data acquired before and after the failure. High-resolution post-failure terrain models were aligned with pre-failure topography obtained from conventional surveys and photogrammetry referenced by ground control points (GCPs). The comparison of these datasets revealed distinct lateral and rotational displacements, consistent with progressive block movement and detachment along steeply dipping discontinuities. These topographic changes served as empirical indicators for delineating the potential detachment surface, which then formed the basis for numerical back analysis. A probabilistic approach was employed to iteratively calibrate the shear strength parameters until a failure-consistent condition was achieved. The analysis demonstrated that toppling failures in weak, layered rock masses are predominantly governed by frictional resistance along discontinuities rather than by cohesive bonding. Importantly, this study highlights the critical role of accurately identifying the potential detachment zone as a precursor to reliable back analysis. The integration of TLS-based deformation monitoring with probabilistic parameter evaluation enhances the spatial realism, safety, and reliability of slope failure assessment in complex geotechnical environments.

The study of the technical parameters of deformable cable barriers is a modern engineering challenge. The installation of cable barriers under current conditions is carried out using the European standard EN 1317. A key feature of cable barriers is that their design cannot rely solely on standard calculation methods, such as static or dynamic, linear or nonlinear analysis. This article presents a laboratory model of cable barriers, on which experimental studies were conducted. The aim of the experiment is to investigate the mechanism of impact energy dissipation in the cable barrier during impact tests with different energy characteristics, to determine how the kinetic energy of the impact is distributed among the barrier’s component cables, how much of it is transformed into elastic deformation energy in the cables, and how much is lost through dissipation. As a result of the experimental studies on the laboratory model of the cable barriers, it was determined that the distribution of tension caused by the impact energy in the cables of the barrier has a probabilistic nature and can vary within a fairly wide range. A similar characteristic applies to the distribution of elastic energy induced by the collision among the barrier’s cables. This may range from 2 % to 69 % of the total energy. Often, the main load is absorbed by one of the barrier’s component cable. Pre-tensioning of the cables in cable barriers reduces the transverse displacement indicator of the barrier by 15–19 % for a fixed impact energy value.

Geometallurgy as a link connecting geological features of deposit with metallurgical performance of a concentrator have found broad utilization in metals mining as well as for industrial minerals and black sands mining. However, coal industry yet stays uncovered by successful applications of geometallurgical approach due to certain specifics of a commodity. Production of coal preparation plant in terms of quality and quantity can be forecasted knowing behavior of coal bearing particles in process that is controlled by petrological and mineralogical properties. Application of process mineralogical tools together with comprehensive metallurgical testwork helps to acquire essential information for a simulation of coal preparation operations. Being combined with geological, geochemical and geotechnical data available for a deposit, outcome of process simulation will form holistic geometallurgical model. Once implemented, such models will become a powerful instrument for efficient utilization of resources and proper risk management, e.g. adaptation of the process to variations in run-of-mine coal quality, "what-if" analysis of alternative production strategies, forecasting of financial results, assessment of environmental impact.

The results of comprehensive ground-space monitoring of geodynamic processes in the area of the former Mirgalimsay deposit (Kentau, Kazakhstan) are presented. The objective of the study is to develop a monitoring and early warning system for hazardous surface deformations under conditions of mine flooding and changes in the hydrogeological regime. Monitoring was carried out using static GNSS measurements (41 benchmarks) and multi-temporal interferometric analysis of archival Sentinel-1 radar images using Persistent Scatterer (PS) and Intermittent Small Baseline Subset (ISBAS) methods. This integrated approach enabled the production of a spatially continuous surface displacement map with millimeter-level accuracy. According to InSAR data, subsidence of up to 12 mm/year (mainly in the western and southwestern parts of the area) and uplift of up to 7 mm/year were identified; the subsidence zone covers less than 20% of the city. GNSS measurements conducted in 2019�2020 (4 observation campaigns) recorded local displacements of up to 16 mm/year. Benchmarks with subsidence greater than 5 mm were evenly distributed throughout the city, indicating multiple causes of deformation (not limited to mine flooding). It is demonstrated that the integration of ground-based and satellite methods improves the accuracy and reliability of monitoring, enabling the timely identification of hazardous subsidence zones and enhancing the prediction of geodynamic processes to mitigate adverse impacts. The need for a unified system for processing heterogeneous monitoring data is substantiated.

The physical properties of petrographic varieties of granitoids of the Kola Peninsula have been considered. Experimental data on the mineral composition and physical properties of rocks (density, elastic modulus, Poisson's ratio, compressive strength, longitudinal wave velocity) that make up the rock complexes of the Murmansk block – granodiorite and alaskite granite – have been presented. To assess the thermophysical properties of rocks under normal thermodynamic conditions, the relationships between the parameters of the properties and their mineral composition have been used. Based on this approach and the temperature dependence of the properties of rock-forming minerals, a theoretical assessment of the effect of the thermal factor on the physical properties of granitoids (thermal conductivity, specific heat capacity, elastic modulus, coefficient of linear thermal expansion) have been carried out. The results of predicting changes in rock properties under elevated temperatures in the range from 20 to 100 °C have been presented.

The authors address a relevant problem connected with digital transformation of the mining industry toward import substitution and creation of a barrierless technology to operate digital data and models of objects of a mining technology with a view to solving tasks in geology, surveying and engineering. An important component of a barrierless technology is a single virtual digital space for the database translation when using program products based on different object models. Such technology is implementable through formation of a digital platform containing a basic function to operate object models in digital space and API-functions to integrate the created tools into this digital space. The requirements of the digital platform are to the largest degree met by the program products of mining and geological information systems. In the digital space of such systems, 3D modeling is performed and basic mining and geological problems are solved. The article formulates the main functionality standards of such digital platform and describes the current situation in creation of the platform using the mining and geological information system (MGIS) MINEFRAME at the Mining Institute, KSC RAS, and at MINEFRAME Laboratory LLC.

This article presents developed hardware and software solutions based on the application of machine vision technology. The hardware and software solutions were created in order to generate a database of HSV-color value for the main ore types, host rocks, and minerals to define criteria for the in-process identification of the Khibiny apatite in testing the walls of blasting boreholes. The hardware ensures a multi-parametric assessment of the optical characteristics of samples and minerals located on their surface. The designed software solution allows the user to control the measurement process; systematize a description of the textural and structural features of the sample under study; and process images of the core surface. The resultant database of HSV-color value for the main ores and rocks of the Khibiny massif and their constituent minerals will provide an opportunity to search for criteria for the in-process identification of the Khibiny apatite in a mineral mixture.

The Russian exports of processed food products analysis since 2014 has revealed a stable growth in this area, corresponding to the general dynamics of domestic agricultural products sales in the world market. At the same time, the share of processed food products in the total volume of domestic exports from 2014 to 2021 increased from 1.7 to 3.1%, which is a favorable factor in reducing the mineral-raw materials orientation of Russia’s foreign trade. The increase in processed products exports contributes to the export-oriented nature of the domestic food industry, which grew from 6.5 to 11.6 % over the period. This is also due to the fact that import substitution programs development and competitive imports limitation after the counter-sanctions introduction in 2014-2015 had a favorable impact on the food industry and allowed to maintain and increase a number of export directions. Over the past few years, the key areas of sales in the global market have been the products of the oil and fat and sugar beet industries. Along with the sale of finished products, the food industry wastes export, which are raw materials for fodder production, is also considered important. With the overall positive dynamics of processed food sales, the only direction showing a decrease in exports is tobacco and tobacco products. The reduction in tobacco products exports is explained by the change in the transnational corporations policy who own the Russian cigarette business, which, in addition to the Russian market, until 2014 also partially filled the markets of the Commonwealth of Indepen dent States and Eastern Europe countries.