Recently, the Shijiazhuang Tiedao University team led by Professor Zhang Liting, a Hebei provincial government consultant, has made significant progress in the development of a 3D tailings dam breach model testing technology. The research has resulted in four invention patents granted in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and three in China. The operating techniques and testing methods of the simulation system have been released and implemented as Hebei provincial standards, establishing a tailings dam safety control technology system based entirely on independent intellectual property rights. This has played a vital role in ensuring safety in the mining industry.
Tailings dams are special hydraulic structures used to store tailings or other industrial waste discharged during the mining of metal or non-metallic ores. A tailings dam failure can lead to significant disasters and accidents. According to statistics, China has 7800 operating tailings dams, the most in the world. Hebei province has the largest number of registered tailings dams in China, with 2004, of which 855 are located in Chengde City[5]. The safety risks of tailings dams in China continue to exist, and the situation of tailings dam disaster prevention and control remains severe.
To address this issue, the research team collaborated with relevant personnel from Copper Source International Engineering Design Research Co., Ltd., Hebei Provincial Water Conservancy Engineering Bureau Group Co., Ltd., Hebei Provincial Institute of Water Conservancy Science, and Shijiazhuang Xufu Engineering Co., Ltd. to form an innovative collaborative team. The team received a series of international and domestic invention patents for tailings dams, published high-level academic papers, and participated in the compilation of national and industry standards. This has helped establish a complete tailings dam safety control technology system and obtained intellectual property protection both internationally and domestically.
In contrast to traditional hydraulic structures, tailings dams have unique structural forms and characteristics. The greatest threat to their safety is water. How can we accurately and quickly regulate the water accumulation in the tailings dam based on weather forecasts? How can we precisely control the discharge rate of floodwater within the tailings dam? How can we establish a holographic physical model test platform for research? These issues are all closely related to the safety of tailings dams.
To address the safety issues of tailings dams, Zhang Liting led members of the innovative collaboration team to conduct in-depth field investigations and worked day and night in the laboratory to overcome technical difficulties that had plagued the safety of tailings dams.
