APPLICATION OF ACOUSTIC EMISSION (AE) IN MINING AND EARTH SCIENCES: A REVIEW

Jedan od najčešće primjenjivanih alata u rudarstvu i znanostima o Zemlji jesu visokofrekvencijski, elastični, zvučni valovi. Oni mogu biti koristan alat za predviđanje i mjerenje, praćenje i prepoznavanje okoliša te su specifični, mjerljivi, dostupni, pouzdani i utemeljeni na vremenu (skr. SMDPV, engl. SMART). Emitiranje zvuka može biti dijelom inženjerskih operacija poput otkapanja, procjene volumena ili istraživanja. Stoga su oni primijenjeni u opažanju, praćenju i mjerenju inženjerskih pojava. Razvojem obradbe zvučnih signala te rastućom potrebom za točnim, brzim i ekonomski povoljnim predviđanjem, praćenjem i mjerenjem, te metode postaju zamjena postojećim metodama druge vrste u različitim vrstama projekata. Ovdje su prikazane uporabe zvučnih valova u različitim znanostima o Zemlji, poput rudarstva, bušenja, geologije, naftnoga inženjerstva i sličnim granama. Primjena zvučnih valova podijeljena je u tri skupine: predviđanje i procjena, praćenje i procjena svojstava te opažanje. Njihovo korištenje u usporedbi s laboratorijskim i bušaćim tehnikama vrlo je brzo i točno, a uz odgovarajuću tehničku opremu signali se mogu primijeniti i obraditi na mjestima udaljenim od onih gdje se mjerenje izvodi. Na kraju je opisana primjena zvučnih metoda u procjeni različitih projekata kao alata za donošenja odluka.One of the most important products of the majority of tools, processes and, phenomena in mining engineering and earth sciences are high-frequency elastic waves, often referred to as acoustic waves. These acoustic waves can be a useful tool for prediction and measurement, monitoring and diagnosis. Due to the importance of engineering activities that should be specific, measurable, available, reliable and time-based (SMART), Acoustic Emission (AE) techniques can be integrated into engineering operations such as excavation to give exact estimations or simplify some aspects of investigations. Hence, these techniques are expected to play an increasing role in the detection, monitoring, and measurement in engineering applications. With the development of acoustic signal processing methods in earth sciences and the growing need for accurate, fast, and cost-effective prediction, monitoring and measurement methods, AE tools and techniques are expected to turn into powerful alternatives to current methods. The purpose of this paper is to review the application of the acoustic methods as a tool in various projects. For this purpose, the application of AE methods has been reviewed in different fields related to earth sciences including mining engineering, drilling engineering, geology, petroleum engineering, and other related fields. According to the purpose of using these methods, the application of AE is divided into three groups: prediction and estimation, monitoring and performance assessment, and detection. The use of AE methods, among other laboratory or in-situ methods, is very fast and accurate, and by only installing specific sensors with data logging equipment, it has been able to process and analyse data online and remotely. Finally, the possibility of using AE techniques in design and calculating in various projects and as a tool for decision making was evaluated