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Reinforcing effects of polypropylene on energy absorption and fracturing of cement-based tailings backfill under impact loading

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Abstract

Polypropylene (PP) fiber-reinforced cement-based tailings backfill (FRCTB) is a green compound material with superior crack resistance and has good prospects for application in underground mining. However, FRCTB exhibits susceptibility to dynamic events, such as impact ground pressure and blast vibrations. This paper investigates the energy and crack distribution behavior of FRCTB under dynamic impact, considering the height/diameter (H/D) effect. Split Hopkinson pressure bar, industrial computed tomography scan, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) experiments were carried out on six types of FRCTB. Laboratory outcomes confirmed fiber aggregation at the bottom of specimens. When H/D was less than 0.8, the proportion of PP fibers distributed along the θ angle direction of 80°–90° increased. For the total energy, all samples presented similar energy absorption, reflectance, and transmittance. However, a rise in H/D may cause a rise in the energy absorption rate of FRCTB during the peak phase. A positive correlation existed between the average strain rate and absorbed energy per unit volume. The increase in H/D resulted in a decreased crack volume fraction of FRCTB. When the H/D was greater than or equal to 0.7, the maximum crack volume fraction of FRCTB was observed close to the incidence plane. Radial cracks were present only in the FRCTB with an H/D ratio of 0.5. Samples with H/D ratios of 0.5 and 0.6 showed similar distributions of weakly and heavily damaged areas. PP fibers can limit the emergence and expansion of cracks by influencing their path. SEM observations revealed considerable differences in the bonding strengths between fibers and the FRCTB. Fibers that adhered particularly well to the substrate were attracted together with the hydration products adhering to surfaces. These results show that FRCTB is promising as a sustainable and green backfill for determining the design properties of mining with backfill.

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Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (No. 2022YFC2905004) and the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (No. 2023M742134).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Civil and Resources Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, 100083, China

    Jiajian Li & Shuai Cao

  2. State Key Laboratory of High-Efficient Mining and Safety of Metal Mines of Ministry of Education, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, 100083, China

    Jiajian Li & Shuai Cao

  3. Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Division, Recep Tayyip Erdogan University, Fener, Rize, TR53100, Turkey

    Erol Yilmaz

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Shuai Cao is an editorial board member for this journal and was not involved in the editorial review or the decision to publish this article. The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

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Li, J., Cao, S. & Yilmaz, E. Reinforcing effects of polypropylene on energy absorption and fracturing of cement-based tailings backfill under impact loading. Int J Miner Metall Mater 31, 650–664 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12613-023-2806-3

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