In the mining methodology system, cutting operations play a crucial bridging role—they serve as the pivotal link that connects development and preparation work to the actual extraction phase. At their core, these tasks involve carefully excavating a series of underground tunnels and shafts—such as undercut drifts and cutting slots—within already-developed and prepared ore blocks. This meticulous process ingeniously establishes blast-free surfaces and creates optimal space for ore discharge, thereby laying the essential groundwork for large-scale extraction activities ahead. Take, for instance, the V.C.R mining method: In practical operations, cutting work is executed with pinpoint precision through undercutting, skillfully forming an ore-discharge trench at the bottom. This trench acts like a tailor-made "energy buffer zone" specifically designed for subsequent deep-hole blasting. By ensuring that blast energy is evenly distributed throughout the ore body, it significantly enhances the efficiency and safety of ore fragmentation, making the entire mining process both more productive and secure.

The design of cutting operations is by no means isolated—it is closely tied to the geological conditions of the ore body as well as the mining method chosen. Different ore-body shapes and mining techniques impose vastly different requirements on cutting engineering. For instance, when dealing with steeply inclined, thick ore bodies and employing the sublevel caving method for extraction, it becomes necessary to create vertical free faces within the ore body through medium-to-deep hole slotting. This approach is essential because the unique characteristics of steeply inclined, thick ore bodies dictate that only by establishing vertical free faces can the ore be effectively fragmented and allowed to slide more easily during blasting, thereby facilitating subsequent mining operations. On the other hand, when extracting gently inclined ore bodies using the room-and-pillar method, the focus shifts more toward constructing horizontal undercut spaces. This is due to the fact that the movement of ore in gently inclined deposits under gravity differs significantly from that in steeply inclined ones; thus, horizontal undercut spaces provide a stable working platform for both mining and transporting the ore efficiently.

From a core logical perspective, the cutting engineering process involves precisely determining the specifications, quantity, and construction sequence of cut shafts and drifts—based on the specific requirements for the number, location, and compensating space dictated by the mining recovery method. These carefully designed cutting projects ultimately serve the critical subsequent processes, such as rock drilling and blasting, ventilation, and ore extraction, ensuring that the entire mining operation can proceed efficiently and smoothly, thereby enabling the safe and highly productive extraction of mineral resources.

As the core component of cutting operations, the development and innovation of slotting technology are directly linked to mining efficiency and safety. From the early shallow-hole slotting method, to the widely adopted medium-to-deep-hole slotting technique today, and further to cutting-edge innovative slotting technologies, each transformation has driven advancements in the mining industry, seamlessly adapting to diverse orebody conditions and varying extraction requirements.

The shallow-hole cut-and-fill method is a relatively traditional mining technique with deep-rooted applications in the history of mining. The process relies heavily on the development of cutting stopes as key support points. In practice, the cut-and-fill slot is treated as a miniature stope, and the room-and-pillar method is employed to carry out layered upward mining operations—from bottom to top. Throughout this process, the cutting stope not only plays a crucial role in ventilation, ensuring smooth airflow to maintain a safe and healthy working environment underground, but also serves as an essential passageway for personnel, enabling miners to move safely and efficiently between different levels. Meanwhile, the extracted ore flows smoothly down funnels into the electric scraper haulage tunnels. Once extensive ore removal is completed, the cut-and-fill slot is officially formed, typically measuring 2.5 to 3 meters in width.

This groove-cutting method offers unique advantages in ensuring the quality of the grooves. Thanks to its meticulous layering and relatively precise operations, it allows for excellent control over the shape and dimensions of the grooves, thereby guaranteeing their stability and integrity. However, its limitations are also quite evident. In practice, the process requires significant manual labor for handling and transporting ore, sharply increasing the physical strain on workers and exposing them to grueling physical tasks. Moreover, the underground working environment is typically harsh—confined spaces, damp air, and challenging geological conditions all pose potential risks to the health and well-being of the operators.

From an efficiency perspective, the single-cycle efficiency of the shallow-hole cut-and-fill method is relatively low. Due to its traditionally oriented operational approach, each cycle takes a considerable amount of time, making it difficult to meet the demands of large-scale, high-efficiency mining operations. In today’s mining industry, where the focus is on achieving greater efficiency, safety, and智能化 (smartification), the shallow-hole cut-and-fill method is gradually being replaced by more advanced technologies. Nevertheless, in some smaller mines—where the scale of extraction is limited, equipment and technological investments are constrained, or when dealing with extremely complex ore and rock conditions that render other techniques impractical—the shallow-hole cut-and-fill method continues to play a valuable role, thanks to its simplicity, ease of operation, and minimal equipment requirements.

The horizontal deep-hole slotting technique is an important process within the medium-to-deep-hole slotting method, with its operational principle rooted in the innovative concept of "cutting the bottom first, then blasting." In practical implementation, the first step involves carefully cutting open the bottom of the slot—this phase is crucial, as it lays a solid foundation for subsequent ore extraction operations, ensuring that the ore can be efficiently removed from the slot floor. Once the bottom of the slot meets the necessary conditions for ore discharge, horizontal fan-shaped medium-deep holes are meticulously arranged inside the cut shaft. These medium-deep holes are strategically distributed in a fan pattern, enabling more effective coverage of the blasting area and significantly enhancing the overall blasting efficiency. Finally, by employing a layered blasting approach, a cutting slot with a width ranging from 5 to 8 meters is gradually created.

This slotting technique has demonstrated numerous advantages in practical applications. Due to its minimal blasting confinement effect, the ore experiences less constraint from the surrounding rock mass during the blasting process, allowing for more thorough fragmentation. As a result, both the efficiency and quality of ore extraction are significantly improved. Moreover, the stability of the slot itself is remarkably high, thanks to its well-designed blasting scheme and meticulous construction techniques. These factors effectively minimize damage to the surrounding rock, ensuring the structural integrity of the slot during subsequent operations. With the aid of mechanized drilling equipment, the horizontal deep-hole slotting technology enables highly efficient operations. Mechanized drilling tools boast high precision and rapid speed, drastically reducing construction timelines and boosting overall productivity—making them particularly well-suited for the efficient mining of medium-to-thick ore bodies. In the staged open-pit backfilling method employed at the Xincheng Gold Mine, the horizontal deep-hole slotting technique has been successfully implemented. This innovative approach has markedly enhanced the quality of compensation space in deep-hole blasting, facilitating smoother extraction of the blasted ore and providing robust support for the mine’s efficient production operations.

Vertical deep-hole slotting technology is also an essential component of the medium-to-deep-hole slotting method, and its operational approach differs from that of horizontal deep-hole slotting. During construction, a cutting drift is first excavated—this drift essentially serves as a "highway" for subsequent operations, providing convenient access for various equipment and personnel. Inside the cutting drift, workers drill parallel medium-deep holes that extend vertically upward, creating a free face in the form of a shaft. When blasting, construction teams can choose from several methods depending on site conditions: they may opt for sequential row-by-row blasting—in which blasts are carried out one row at a time, following a specific order—or they can employ simultaneous multi-row blasting, detonating multiple rows of medium-deep holes at once to enhance blast efficiency. In some cases where conditions permit, even all boreholes can be blasted simultaneously, enabling the rapid and complete formation of the cutting slot in a single operation.

The flexibility of this technology lies in its ability to dynamically adjust blasting parameters based on the physical properties of the ore body, such as hardness. For harder ore bodies, the energy and number of blasts can be appropriately increased to ensure thorough fragmentation of the ore; meanwhile, for softer ore bodies, blast intensity can be reduced to prevent over-crushing and minimize resource waste. In medium-to-deep-level stopes of metal mines, the vertical deep-hole slotting technique is widely employed. For instance, in the mining of several large-scale iron ore deposits—where the ore bodies are particularly extensive—the rapid formation of a vertical free face is essential to meet the demands of large-scale extraction. In such cases, the vertical deep-hole slotting technique proves highly effective, enabling quick and efficient creation of vertical cutting slots that set the stage for seamless subsequent mining operations. As a result, this technique has become an indispensable tool in metal mine extraction.

With the rapid advancement of technology, mining techniques are also continuously innovating—among which the combined upward and downward borehole slotting method stands out as a remarkable example. Take patent technology CN 111441774 B as an illustration: this slotting method ingeniously combines upward-boring from the upper layer with downward-boring from the lower layer, enabling coordinated blasting that breaks free from the traditional limitation of requiring cutting shafts. As a result, it achieves the goal of creating complete vertical slots without the need for any cutting shafts at all.

When dealing with fractured ore bodies, traditional cut-and-fill methods often encounter numerous challenges. Fractured ore bodies suffer from poor stability, making it easy for collapses and other safety hazards to occur during the construction of cutting shafts. Moreover, these operations are not only difficult to execute but also come with significantly higher costs. In contrast, the combined up-and-down borehole cut-and-fill method cleverly sidesteps these issues. By fully leveraging the lower caving zone as the initial free face, this approach not only resolves the challenge of establishing a stable free face but also streamlines the overall construction process. Through staged blasting techniques that gradually expand the space, the cutting slot can be formed safely and efficiently. In the application at the Asherle Copper Mine in Xinjiang, the combined up-and-down borehole cut-and-fill method has delivered remarkable results. During the extraction of fractured ore bodies, this technology has successfully reduced construction costs, boosted mining efficiency, and minimized safety risks—providing a new technological pathway for the sustainable development of mines. This breakthrough represents a significant advancement in cut-and-fill techniques toward safer and more efficient practices, while also pointing the way forward for future innovations in mining technology.

As a critically important economic and technical indicator in mining engineering, cutting-to-mine ratio serves as a precise "ruler," accurately quantifying the amount of preparatory and cutting roadway work required for every unit of ore extracted (tons, kilotons, or tens of thousands of tons). Its calculation formula is:

In this formula, ∑L represents the total engineering volume of the mining-cutting roadways, measured in either meters (m)—to indicate the length of the roadway—or cubic meters (m³), used to quantify its volume. Meanwhile, T denotes the total amount of mined ore, typically expressed in kilotons (kt) or ten-thousand tons.

Since the cross-sectional sizes of roadways vary significantly across different mines in actual mining operations—much like using rulers with different scales—this creates challenges when comparing cut-to-fill ratios. To address this issue, the industry has adopted a standardized 2m × 2m cross-section as a conversion benchmark. By implementing this unified standard, the volume of roadway engineering work with varying cross-sectional dimensions can be systematically converted to a common scale, enabling fair and accurate horizontal comparisons of cut-to-fill ratios among different mines. This, in turn, provides reliable data support for economic analysis and decision-making in mining operations.

Cutting-to-mine ratio holds paramount importance in mining engineering, serving as a critical indicator for assessing both mining costs and economic efficiency. Essentially, the cutting-to-mine ratio reflects the proportional relationship between the volume of excavation work and the amount of ore extracted during the mining process. A low cutting-to-mine ratio means that, when extracting the same quantity of ore, significantly less underground development work—such as tunnels and shafts—is required. This not only leads to substantial savings in manpower, materials, and financial resources but also helps streamline the mining cycle, ultimately boosting the overall productivity of the mine.

Take the V.C.R. mining method as an example—this technique boasts unique advantages in cutting operations. It eliminates the need for excavating conventional cut shafts, instead relying on ingenious design and advanced construction methods combined with large-diameter deep-hole blasting technology to directly create the required free faces and compensation spaces within the ore body. This innovative approach significantly simplifies the cutting process, enabling the mining-to-cut ratio to remain at a relatively low industry standard. By reducing the mining-to-cut ratio, the V.C.R. method markedly enhances the economic efficiency of the mine, providing a robust foundation for its sustainable development.

In actual mining operations, optimizing the cut-to-stope ratio is one of the key objectives that mining enterprises strive to achieve. To reach this goal, several effective approaches can be adopted. By leveraging advanced 3D modeling technology, mines can conduct comprehensive and detailed modeling analyses of ore blocks, enabling precise design of cutting drift layouts. Through these 3D models, engineers can clearly visualize the location, orientation, and spatial relationship between drifts and the orebody, thereby refining the design方案 and minimizing unnecessary drift excavation. Additionally, employing large-diameter deep-hole blasting techniques is another crucial method for optimizing the cut-to-stope ratio. This approach enhances blast energy and increases its effective range, reducing the number of auxiliary operations and, consequently, lowering the overall volume of cutting and stope work. Furthermore, by utilizing blast-induced pile-shape simulation technology, miners can analyze and optimize the distribution and geometry of post-blast ore piles, improving blast efficiency while minimizing secondary crushing and easing ore extraction. Ultimately, the integrated application of these optimization measures allows mining companies to minimize cutting and stope volumes—while still ensuring favorable recovery conditions—thereby boosting both economic profitability and market competitiveness.

This non-cutting well-mining design offers numerous significant advantages. In terms of engineering workload, it reduces the mining and cutting operations by more than 30%. For instance, at a large-scale metal mine, before adopting the V.C.R mining method, each ore block required extensive cutting and mining work, resulting in lengthy construction periods that severely impacted the mine's overall productivity. However, after implementing this method, the volume of cutting and mining activities dropped dramatically—what once took several months to complete can now be finished in a fraction of the time. This not only significantly shortens the upfront preparation period for mining but also enables the mine to move more swiftly into the recovery phase, ultimately boosting overall production efficiency.

From a safety perspective, the non-cutting shaft mining design relocates all critical operations—such as rock drilling and charging—to the stable underground tunnels. Inside the tunnels, workers benefit from relatively spacious working areas and excellent ventilation conditions, which effectively minimize the accumulation of harmful gases, thereby reducing the risk of health hazards caused by oxygen deficiency or exposure to toxic fumes. Moreover, the structural stability of the tunnels provides workers with a reliable safety buffer, preventing injuries or fatalities that might otherwise result from accidents like shaft collapses, significantly enhancing overall operational safety.

The blast compensation mechanism of the V.C.R mining method is key to its ability to achieve efficient and safe mining. It ingeniously combines the trench-like space created by bottom-draw-back with the funnel effect of deep-hole blasting, enabling precise distribution and effective utilization of blast energy. In actual operations, the trench space formed by bottom-draw-back acts as a carefully designed "energy buffer zone." When deep-hole blasting occurs, the energy generated by the explosion is evenly dispersed and cushioned within this space, ensuring that the ore breaks and moves precisely as intended.

After each blast, the V.C.R mining method releases only 40% of the broken ore, a ratio deliberately chosen after thorough research and practical validation. By retaining 60% of the broken material, the method ensures ample "compensation space" for subsequent blasting operations. This reserved ore acts as a buffer and structural support during later blasts, allowing the explosive energy to be distributed more evenly throughout the ore body. As a result, it prevents issues such as inadequate blast effectiveness or excessive fragmentation caused by insufficient compensation space. Meanwhile, the accumulated ore within the working area provides effective support to the surrounding rock mass, significantly reducing the risk of deformation and collapse, and thereby enabling better control over ground pressure activities.

In the mining of easily self-combustible ore bodies such as sulfide ores, the advantages of this blasting compensation mechanism become even more pronounced. Since sulfide ores are prone to oxidative self-combustion under certain conditions, the V.C.R mining method effectively controls the amount of ore extracted, ensuring that a consistent pile of ore always remains within the mining area. These ore piles help fill the voids in the mine space, significantly reducing air circulation and minimizing the exposure of sulfide minerals to oxygen. As a result, the method not only slows down the oxidation process but also markedly lowers the risk of ore-related fires. At one particular sulfide ore mine, after adopting the V.C.R mining technique, the incidence of mining-area fire incidents dropped dramatically, ensuring safer and more efficient operations. Moreover, this approach has helped minimize resource losses and environmental pollution caused by fires, demonstrating a profound balance among "safety, efficiency, and cost." Ultimately, it provides robust support for the sustainable development of the mine.

In this era of rapid technological advancement, digital technologies are integrating into the mining industry at an unprecedented pace, bringing revolutionary changes to cutting-edge engineering. Thanks to its exceptional precision in data acquisition, 3D laser scanning technology has become a critical tool for accurately modeling orebody shapes. By capturing comprehensive, multi-angle scans of the orebody, it generates vast amounts of point cloud data—essentially creating a detailed "digital map" that precisely reconstructs the true geometry of the mineral deposit.

In practical applications, engineers can import these point cloud data into professional numerical simulation software (such as FLAC³D), leveraging the software's powerful analysis and simulation capabilities to virtually test and optimize various cutting schemes. Through simulation, they can visually assess how different cutting groove positions influence blasting outcomes, ultimately helping them select the optimal方案 and ensuring that the blast free-face parameters precisely match the design specifications. This approach not only enhances the precision and quality of cutting projects but also significantly reduces resource waste and construction risks caused by improper design decisions.

The emergence of automated drilling rigs has taken the intelligence level of cutting operations to a whole new height. These rigs are equipped with advanced navigation systems—essentially giving them "smart eyes"—enabling them to automatically identify and pinpoint targets in complex underground environments, thus achieving precise drilling of medium-to-deep holes. With positioning errors kept within an impressive 5 cm, this enhanced accuracy ensures that drill hole locations and angles are far more exact, laying a more stable and reliable foundation for subsequent blasting operations. In fact, after introducing automated drilling rigs at a major metal mine, construction efficiency for cutting operations improved by more than 30%, while blast results also saw significant enhancements: ore fragmentation became more uniform, leading to a dramatic boost in overall mining productivity.

As global attention to environmental protection continues to grow, the concept of green mining has become an inevitable trend in the development of the mining industry. In cutting operations, waste-free mining technology is gradually gaining prominence, emerging as one of the key technologies for achieving sustainable, eco-friendly mining practices. At the heart of this technology lies the seamless integration of cutting processes with advanced backfilling systems, enabling resource recycling and minimizing waste generation.

In practical operations, the waste rock generated from cutting roadways is no longer treated as useless waste—it is instead directly used for backfilling mined-out areas. This approach not only reduces the volume of waste rock that needs to be lifted, thereby lowering transportation costs, but also prevents waste rock from occupying space and polluting the environment. Through careful design and construction, the waste rock can be precisely placed into the mined-out zones, effectively supporting the surrounding rock, controlling ground pressure activities, and ensuring safe production in the mine. In some mines adopting zero-waste mining technologies, the utilization rate of waste rock has already reached over 80%, demonstrating highly efficient resource utilization while effectively protecting the environment.

Low-carbon blasting technology is also a significant innovation under the green mining concept. Traditional blasting techniques often generate substantial amounts of dust and harmful gases, posing serious risks to both the environment and the health of workers on site. In contrast, low-carbon blasting technology employs a new type of emulsified explosive as a substitute for conventional explosives, offering advantages such as high explosion energy utilization and reduced emissions of dust and hazardous gases. By optimizing blasting parameters and refining the design of cutting slots, this approach further enhances ore recovery rates, pushing them beyond 95%. In a recent application at a non-ferrous metal mine, the adoption of low-carbon blasting technology led to a more than 50% reduction in dust emissions and a 30% or greater decrease in harmful gas emissions. Meanwhile, the improved ore recovery rate has also delivered substantial economic benefits to the mine.

As the "nerve center" of mining methods, cutting engineering’s technological advancements have always revolved around the core objectives of "efficiently creating free space, precisely controlling blasting conditions, and continuously reducing project costs." From traditional shallow holes to intelligent deep holes, and from reliance on cut-and-fill mining to groundbreaking innovations in wellless techniques, each breakthrough has propelled the mining industry forward toward safer, more efficient, and environmentally friendly practices. For mining engineering practice, selecting the optimal cutting strategy tailored to specific orebody conditions—and striking a delicate balance between technical feasibility and economic viability—remains the key to enhancing overall mining efficiency.