ETD Collection

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://wiredspace.wits.ac.za/handle/10539/104


Please note: Digitised content is made available at the best possible quality range, taking into consideration file size and the condition of the original item. These restrictions may sometimes affect the quality of the final published item. For queries regarding content of ETD collection please contact IR specialists by email : IR specialists or Tel : 011 717 4652 / 1954

Follow the link below for important information about Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Library Guide about ETD

Browse

Filters

20181

Settings

Author: search.filters.author.Phillips, RaymondSubject: search.filters.subject.Strip mining

Search Results

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Optimisation in open pit mining
    (2018) Phillips, Raymond
    The mining industry forms an integral part of South Africa - its society, culture, history and of course, its economy. This research dissertation focuses on the Open Pit Mine Production Scheduling Problem, a cornerstone in the design and planning of an open pit mining venture and its pro tability thereafter. The accompanying optimisation problem is usually both complex and large. We investigate existing initial solutions as well as two existing metaheuristic algorithms that have been used to solve this problem, improving upon them and introducing a pseudo greedy approach that seeks production schedule improvement in the immediate solution space neighbourhood. This addition greatly improves initial solutions to the problem. Through analysis on a smaller and larger mining instance we reveal the perceived advantages and disadvantages of two existing metaheuristics in producing optimal production schedules. We then propose a parent algorithm that interchangeably selects either of these algorithms based on probabilities determined by their observed performances during computation periods. The parent algorithm produces a strong production schedule that surpasses the current best found solution for the larger mining instance. With these ndings we propose a probabilistic selection method parent algorithm that interchanges between both algorithms in an e ort to achieve a better solution.