Components development for plasma blasting technology

Plasma blasting technology (PBT), a method to generate explosions from electrical discharges, has been demonstrated to be a clean and well-controlled way to fracture rock and concrete. Laboratory systems and field prototypes were built for the purpose of proving the feasibility of the PBT process and for establishing energy requirements for various blasting applications. In order to further advance the state of the technology, a program was initiated by Noranda to develop and test long-lasting components for PBT with commercial applications in sight. A blasting test bench was built in order to allow repetitive testing (>200 shots/day) of critical components such as the blasting electrode, cables, and switch. The program led to successful testing of electrodes (>500 shots life) and flexible power-delivery cables (>1000 shots life). The next step of the development will focus on the adaptation of these components to various industrial platforms.