Overview of Line Excavator (Dragline) Role in Optimization of Production in Surface Mines
A L Ravikumar Lakkana1, Somesh Bhambi2
1DA L Ravikumar Lakkana, General Manager, Department of Environmental Engineering, SV Minerals LLP in SPSR Nellore (Andhra Pradesh), India.
2Dr. Somesh Bhambi, Professor and HOD, Department of Mining Engineering, Bhagavanth University, Ajmer (Rajasthan), India.
Manuscript received on 10 June 2025 | First Revised Manuscript received on 16 June 2025 | Second Revised Manuscript received on 09 July 2025 | Manuscript Accepted on 15 July 2025 | Manuscript published on 30 July 2025 | PP: 23-31 | Volume-14 Issue-2, July 2025 | Retrieval Number: 100.1/ijrte.B827914020725 | DOI: 10.35940/ijrte.B8279.14020725
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Abstract: In coal mining, draglines have long been used, either alone or in conjunction with coal extractors as strippers. Because this type of technology has intrinsic benefits over its competitors, it must operate seven days a week, 24 hours a day, to increase production and save costs. In the nation of India, the expansion of significant surface mining operations such as Bina and Jayant, as well as the setting of high coal output goals (up to 10 MT/year), requires the development of technologies that can remove huge amounts of overburden in the shortest amount of time. As a result, the technology for removing overburden and interburden in surface coal mining has shifted from shovels to draglines. Coal India Limited (CIL) established a standard dragline in two different sizes: 10/70 and 24/96. Most mines employ draglines throughout the clock, every day of the week. The dragline is the major stripping equipment in many coal mines, and its performance has a direct impact on mine production. To minimise the effect on the mining operation, dragline designs focus on creating components with higher levels of predictability and reliability for planned component replacements and repairs. To determine the appropriate size, several factors must be considered when installing draglines in mines. Dragline’s productivity and output are measured using various indicators. This thesis has covered these subjects in detail. The need for energy continues to grow. Coal, the most evenly distributed raw material in the earth’s crust, is one of the most important fossil fuels. Surface mines are used to extract a large amount of coal. Large machinery is used, and most processes are automated, particularly in the context of economies of scale extraction. Draglines have long been employed in coal mining, either as strippers or as a combination stripper and coal extractor. The following technology must be utilised around the clock to ensure high output and low costs, as it possesses intrinsic advantages over its competitors. Despite its enormous size, draglines have a straightforward work schedule that consists of walking and excavation. One of these is walking, a dependable technique over which the mine design team has some influence. The stride length of almost all walking draglines is around 1.8 meters in 0.75 to 1 minute. The main factors affecting the frequency and length of prolonged deadheading periods, throughout which the unit is ineffective, are management’s coal loading strategy and strip panel design, which offers an easily understood section with one operator’s room on the predicted side or two on both sides (Erdem et al., 2003).
Keywords: Coal Extractors, Surface Mining, Mining Operation, Economies.
Scope of the Article: Environmental Engineering