Does blasting without the noise, risk of fly rock and all the usual strict safety precautions sound too good be to true? Well, maybe not anymore thanks to
The NXbursTTM products make it possible to work with explosives quickly, safely and in an environmentally friendly manner, according to the company. NXbursTTM is an alternative to all types of traditional explosives, including high explosives. Since the UN codes 0432 and 1.4S apply to NXbursTTM, they are classed at a lower safety level for carriage, storage and usage. Under European guidelines, this product is not even classed as an explosive, but rather a pyrotechnic article, similar to a firework.
The product works on the principle of deflagration using explosive combustion with the formation of gas. Since no detonation - an explosion with a blast wave - occurs, there is a significant reduction in the amount of dust, vibration, air displacement and pieces of airborne rock. NXBust has said that the product is very effective for breaking reinforced concrete and fracturing rock.
The product has been available for sometime in South Africa but will soon be manufactured for the European market in a purpose built factory in Germany. "The product is easier to ship than conventional explosives as it can be flown," explained NXBurst managing director Danny Boeff. "It is slightly more expensive than normal explosives and requires a different blasting pattern, but a number of quarries already consider the investment worth the reduced logistics, lower noise and improved safety."
