The effect of mineralogy on the microwave assisted cutting of igneous rocks

Hard rocks can be excavated difficultly by some mechanical miners such as roadheaders. Tunnel boring machines (TBMs) can excavate hard rocks, but the cost is high due to low advance rate and high tool wear. The difficulties in hard rock excavation can be overcome by exposing hard rocks to microwave energy while cutting. This study investigates influence of mineralogy on the microwave assisted cutting of igneous rocks. The normal and cutting forces were measured during the cutting tests, and the specific energy values were calculated. The optimum specific energy (SE_opt.) values reduce quite steadily with the increasing microwave power. The SE_opt. of some tested crystalline rocks first increases at the low power (3 kW) and then decreases at the high power (6 kW). The losses in the SE_opt. range from 22.5 to 38.7% at the power of 6 kW. The equations were also developed for the estimation of the SE_opt. loss. Concluding remark is that the same rock types may be affected differently by microwave energy because of the different mineral types and percentages, and thus they behave diversely under cutting tests. The derived equations will be useful for the prediction of the SE_opt. loss due to the microwave treatment.