Man has to break rock ever since the Stone Age when it formed his main source of raw materials. JLTill this date, blasting with commercial explosives is the cheapest and easiest method of rock breakage in mining and construction projects throughout the world. However, it is an established fact that only 20-30% of explosive energy is utilized in breaking the rocks, while rest of the energy is wasted in producing the undesirable environmental disturbances such as ground vibration, noise/ air overpressure, flyrock, dust pollution etc. Many theories have been developed to explain the behaviour of rock under the effect of explosive detonation (Obert and Duval, 1950; Duval and Atchison, 1957; Ash, 1977; Hagan, 1973 & 1977 etc.). However, the mechanism of rock breakage is still remains a problem to be solved and defined in the technology of application of explosives to breakage (Jimeno et al., 1995).
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