Terra iQ
Mining and Exploration
Mining and Exploration Decision Support Systems
Ambercore provides industry solutions for mining and exploration in the form of decision support systems which give the decision maker a powerful set of tools to import, store, access, process, model and display spatial data in 2 and 3 dimensions.
Terra iQ accepts as input, a variety of geological and mining related data including drillhole data, geology and stratigraphy maps, surface data, block model data and auxiliary data such as aeromagnetic and geochemical.
Using various probabilistic modeling methods, the software builds a geological model of the data which indicates the level of confidence for each point in space. The system then updates this geological model as new information becomes available and as each new data set is added.
Terra iQ models real world simulations using the data to find optimum solutions for applications such as exploration and production drilling, mine planning and waste disposal.
Customized wizard based interfaces lead the user through the more complex procedures and “what if” analyses with embedded intelligence to handle the finer points of the analyses.
Drilling Exploration and Mining Modeling
Terra iQ allows the user to visualize resource data in 3 dimensions in order to design a complex drilling path through the stratigraphy and access specific parts of an ore body.
Well positioned, cost effective drilling paths can be designed by the user based on multiple factors such as drilling time, volume, cost and yield. The resulting design can be saved as 3 dimensional coordinates or converted to customized, day to day, drill plan schedules. Production data is then fed back into the system for cross validation. This data is used to update the probabilistic model and the remaining drill plan schedules.
Geological Modeling
Terra iQ uses the customized wizard approach to model and simulate the movement of geological formations including the behavior of fluvial and alluvial deposits. In situations where geological deformations may have occurred, analyses of the irregularities in paleo surfaces can be performed. These analyses are used to derive deformation models which are then incorporated into the ore body model.
The information derived by this type of modeling is used in the decision support system to help supplement field data and interpolated data. It is especially useful to affirm and support intuitive data provided by experts.
By comparing actual field data to the information derived by modeling, the model can be adjusted and fine tuned to more accurately reflect the real world situation in that particular area. This gives a more accurate picture of the ore body in general, and results in a more reliable interpolation in the unknown areas.
Integrated Planning Accelerates Time to Production
Using Ambercore Technology companies can dramatically reduce exploration, regulatory approval, extraction, environmental impacts and remediation costs.
The time to production of mining operations is reduced by years and even marginal optimization of large operations can represent substantial cost savings.
Mining Waste Disposal Modeling
Another area where the Ambercore team has used its expertise to develop modeling algorithms is in the field of mining waste disposal. Fine grained tailings can be thickened to a paste and pumped to suitable locations for disposal and containment using a technology known as Thickened Tailings Deposition (TTD).
Terra iQ determines optimal solutions for the placement of tailings by modeling the shape, size and composition of the material. The behavior of the waste material is simulated to predict how much the material will slump and slide on various terrain of different slopes. Different logistic cost models are then created depending on the methods of transporting materials to candidate sites in different ways.
Ambercore have also developed mathematical models which simulate real world effects such as wind and water erosion and possible pollutant delivery into the surrounding environment. Using customized wizards, the user can perform “what if” scenarios to explore different ways of containment and arrive at the most acceptable solutions.
