Monitoring of the technical condition of load-bearing steel structures of mining dump trucks

Analysis of emergency failures of heavy-duty dump trucks at Kuzbass open-pit mines shows that up to 45% of failures are mechanical installations, of which up to 30% are related to failures of metal structures.The number of failures of mechanisms and systems of dump truck depends on the occurrence and development of cracks, which are formed as a result of gradual accumulation of damage, mainly in the frame, motor-reducer housings and dump truck body.During operation, the most dangerous from the point of view of cracking are dynamic loads arising when the dump truck is traveling on quarry roads.Visual inspection is mainly used to detect defects, but application does not allow to ensure accident-free operation of dump trucks.In this regard, it is proposed to use acoustic emission monitoring to search for defects and assess the dynamics of their development.The article describes the application of acoustic emission (AE) monitoring system for diagnostics of the frame section during direct operation of dump truck in a quarry.The results of diagnostics and information about detected defects are given.Acoustic emission monitoring allows not only to increase the efficiency of defects detection, but also to perform diagnostics remotely without interfering with the current production process.AE monitoring will provide daily information on the technical condition of the dump truck frame, carry out repairs as damage accumulates, and assess the quality of repairs.