Thompson, BD, Bawden, WF, Grabinsky, MW & Karaoglu, K 2010, 'Monitoring barricade performance in a cemented paste backfill operation', in R Jewell & AB Fourie (eds), Paste 2010: Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Seminar on Paste and Thickened Tailings, Australian Centre for Geomechanics, Perth, pp. 185-197, https://doi.org/10.36487/ACG_rep/1063_16_Thompson
(https://papers.acg.uwa.edu.au/p/1063_16_Thompson/)
Abstract: Efficient barricade design and construction practices can have an important impact on mining cycle time 
and therefore on the economic performance of the mining operation as a whole. However, standardised 
procedures have yet to be developed that will allow the mining engineer to reasonably predict barricade 
performance and assess the actual behaviour of the barricade during filling, curing, and subsequent mining 
of surrounding stopes. A case study will be presented in which a reinforced shotcrete barricade is 
instrumented to measure pressures exerted on the barricade and its corresponding deformation. Various 
points within the fill mass are also instrumented to measure total and effective stresses and to assess 
hydration progress in situ. The study provides important insights regarding the mechanisms of backfill 
curing and the establishment of an initial stress state within the fill mass and on the barricade. General 
recommendations are developed so that other mine sites may follow similar procedures to optimise their 
barricade design and construction practices.