Prediction of blasting fragmentation based on geological characterization of in-situ rock mass discontinuities
Abstract
In mining metal deposits, blasting fragmentation is a key indicator that directly affects production efficiency and economic costs. To address the limitations of current post-blast assessment, which overlooks the intrinsic relationship between in-situ fragmentation (geological characterization of in-situ rock mass discontinuities) and the resulting blasting fragmentation, this paper proposes a quantitative prediction model and methodology for blasting fragmentation. Through field investigation of discontinuities and three-dimensional discontinuity network modeling, the in-situ fragmentation of rock mass was characterized. Combined with rock breakage characteristics under blasting loads, a fractal-based model was established to predict blasting fragmentation from in-situ fragmentation, yielding a quantitative prediction framework. Across the full size distribution, validation through an engineering case study showed an RMSE of 6.611% and a MAPE of 4.393% between the predicted and measured cumulative fragmentation percentages. The results indicate engineering applicability and provide a quantitative prediction methodology for blasting fragmentation, particularly for boulder yield prediction.
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BibTeX
@article{cao2026prediction,
title = {{Prediction of blasting fragmentation based on geological characterization of in-situ rock mass discontinuities}},
author = {Jianli Cao and Bingchen Han and Huan Liu and Kejie Zou and Zirui Xiang and Yongyi Fang and Hangxing Ding and Xinyu Liu},
journal = {Scientific Reports},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1038/s41598-026-74962-x},
url = {https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-026-74962-x},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Prediction of blasting fragmentation based on geological characterization of in-situ rock mass discontinuities
AU - Jianli Cao
AU - Bingchen Han
AU - Huan Liu
AU - Kejie Zou
AU - Zirui Xiang
AU - Yongyi Fang
AU - Hangxing Ding
AU - Xinyu Liu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/08
JO - Scientific Reports
DO - 10.1038/s41598-026-74962-x
UR - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-026-74962-x
AB - In mining metal deposits, blasting fragmentation is a key indicator that directly affects production efficiency and economic costs. To address the limitations of current post-blast assessment, which overlooks the intrinsic relationship between in-situ fragmentation (geological characterization of in-situ rock mass discontinuities) and the resulting blasting fragmentation, this paper proposes a quantitative prediction model and methodology for blasting fragmentation. Through field investigation of discontinuities and three-dimensional discontinuity network modeling, the in-situ fragmentation of rock mass was characterized. Combined with rock breakage characteristics under blasting loads, a fractal-based model was established to predict blasting fragmentation from in-situ fragmentation, yielding a quantitative prediction framework. Across the full size distribution, validation through an engineering case study showed an RMSE of 6.611% and a MAPE of 4.393% between the predicted and measured cumulative fragmentation percentages. The results indicate engineering applicability and provide a quantitative prediction methodology for blasting fragmentation, particularly for boulder yield prediction.
SN - 2045-2322
ER -