TA3201 Geostatistics for Resources Modeling

Geometrical Support
Support
• The term is used in both a mathematical and in a
physical sense.
• Many, if not most variables of interest in geostatistics,
such as the concentrations of chemical elements or
compounds only have values at "points" in an idealized
sense although the random function treats them in this
manner.
• The data values are usually associated with a physical
sample having a length, area or volume; the
concentration then represents an average concentration
over this length, area or volume.
• This length, area or volume is called the support.
• Although it is common to report laboratory analyses in
such a way as to not reflect the original support, non-
point support has a significant effect on the variogram
modeling process and there is a significant difference
in estimating the average value over a large volume
and in estimating the average value over a small
volume.
• The kriging estimator and equations allow this to be
incorporated.
Geometrical Support

• A regionalized variable is related to the area, space,

plane or geometrics according to its variation.
• The variables is bounded on their geometrical support,
which is controlled by volume, shape, and orientation.
• If the support is changed, then a new regionalized
variable is created.
• When the support is larger, then a regularization
phenomena occurs, where the regionalized variable
tend to have more homogeneous characters in a deposit
or space.
• Variogram and geometrical support have a simple
relation, where the variogram of point sample can be
assumed as the variogram of sample.
• Consequently, the variogram of larger volume of sample
can be approximated by the variogram of smaller
volume of sample.
• In practical the experimental variogram is not exactly
the same as the point variogram in spaces.
• But the geometrical support of samples (drill cores,
channel samples, hand specimen, etc.) are very small, so
we can employ the variogram of samples directly in
practices.
Point and Regularized Semi-variograms
Geometrical Support on the Sample of Grains
• Distribution of population
data will be smaller (2 <<)
when the grains size is
smaller.
• So the larger of grains size,
we should take the sample
with larger quantity.
• This matter is closely
related to the homogeneity
of deposit.
• This phenomena explained
why the CV can be larger
than 1.
• The larger of grains size (2
>>,  >>, more
heterogenic) will give the
larger CV, and vice versa.
Geometrical Support on Mining Blocks

• If we employ the different

geometrical support on the
same blocks of grade, then
the distribution of blocks
will be different for a
certain cut-off grade (i.e.
cog = 3%).
TA3201 Geostatistics for Resources Modeling

Variance of Dispersion
• There are two dispersion phenomena well known to the mining
engineer.
• The first is that the dispersion around their mean value of a set of
data collected within a domain v increases with the dimension of V.
• This is a logical consequence of the existence of spatial
correlations: the smaller V, the closer the data and, thus, the closer
their values.
• The second is that the dispersion within a fixed domain V
decreases as the support v on which each datum is defined
increases: the mean grades of mining blocks are less dispersed than
the mean grades of core samples.
• These two phenomena are expressed in the geostatistical concept
of dispersion variance.
 Dispersion of Blast-hole Grades in the Bench

Dispersion of Blocks in the Bench Dispersion of the Average of Two

Neighboring Blocks in the Bench
• Let V be a domain consisting of n units with the same support v: if
the n grades of these units are known, their variance can be
calculated.
• The dispersion variance of the grades of units v within V, written
2D(v/V), is simply the probable value of this experimental
variance and calculated by means of the elementary variogram
2(h) through the formula:

 D2 v / V    V / V    v / v 

• Taking the generally increasing character of the variogram into

account, it can be seen that 2D(v/V) increases with the dimension
of V and decreases with the dimension of v.
• This formula can be used, for example, to calculate the dispersion
variance of the mean grades of production units when the size of
the units (v) varies or when V varies.
Variance of Dispersion on a Volume V

Variance of Points on a Volume V

If Z(x) is assumed as regionalized variable with variogram (h), so

the mean of Z(x) on a volume V is:
1 i n
Z V   Z x  dx   Z i
1
VV V i 1

Dispersion of values Z(x) if x located in volume V is equal to the

mean of squared deviation of Z(x) from the mean values as:
2
D
VV
 
   Z x   Z V dx  x  V
1 2
Matheron (1971) said that the mean of squared deviation is deducted
from:

 ( 0 / V )  2  dx   x  y dy
2 1
D
V V V

where x and y are two points distributed independently on a volume

V. In other meaning, the variance of points on a volume V is equal to
the average of  (h) on volume V as:

 ( 0 / V )   V ,V   F V 
2
D

The average of  (h) on a volume V named as function F. The

function F for any kind of simple geometrics has been available for
their table and nomogram.
 Z V x 
Variance of Volume v on a Volume V
We assume that V is collection of volume v. Z V x  is the mean of Z(x) on smaller
volume v and represents the mean of Z(x) on the larger volume V.
Dispersion of the mean values of volume v to the mean values of volume V is given
by:
  1
 2
 D v / V   Z V  x   Z V dx
2

VV

By this condition, Matheron (1971) said that the formula is written as:
 D2 v / V     dx  x  y  dy
1 1
V 2 V V v 2 v v
dx  x  y dy 

The formula can be written simply as:

 D2 v / V    V ,V    v ,v 
or
 D2 v / V    D2 0 / V    D2 0 / v 
or
 D2 v / V   F V   F v 
`Krige` Additivity Relationship

Krige (1951) found an important empirical phenomena related to the variance of

dispersion on a volume V.
If we knew about v as sample quantity, V as mining blocks, W as size of orebody,
so the formula of variance of dispersion can be obtained from the following
relationship:
 D2 v / V    D2 0 / V    D2 0 / v 
 D2 v / W    D2 0 / W    D2 0 / v 
and from the two formulas above we get:
 D2 v / W    D2 v / V    D2 V / W 
which means the variance of sample to the deposit is the sum of variance of
sample to the mining blocks and the variance of mining blocks to the orebody.
In this case, the variance of sample to the orebody is higher than the variance of
mining blocks to the orebody as:
 D2 sample/ orebody   D2 mining blocks/ orebody
Volume-Variance
Relationship
Examples:

• In a gold orebody, the variation of Au grade in a small sample will

have wider range, i.e from 0 to 100% (nugget).
• While Au grade in a mining blocks with size of some cubic meters
will produce the variation of grade with smaller range, i.e. from
0.1 to 3 gram/tonnes).
 Calculation of Dispersion Variance
• The previous formula showed that all dispersion variance can be
represented by the average of (h) of smaller volume.
• If the blocks is assumed to be square, rectangular, or line, then the
function F can be obtained by graph or interpolation from the table.

Function F-Linear (Line)

F h   L , L 
is the average of (x-y) on line L with length h, where
x and y are two points on line L which is independent each others.
h h
 L , L   F h   2    x  y  dxdy
1
h 0 0

The integration can be approximated by the summation of

segment l along the line L, so:
h  l  h
 Then we obtain:

    x  yj
l l l l
Fh  
l 1
l  h 2   i j
i 1 j1
 x  y h .h 
12 i 1 j1
i

For l = 6 will produce matrices l.h as follow:

Garis L
x1 x2 x3 x4 x5 x6
y1 0 1 2 3 4 5
In the case that segmen distance is the y2 1 0 1 2 3 4
same (considering the simetrical y3 2 1 0 1 2 3
matrices), we get: y4 3 2 1 0 1 2
2.(5.1h) is simetric to 2.(l-1).1h y5 4 3 2 1 0 1
2.(4.2h) is simetric to 2.(l-2).2h y6 5 4 3 2 1 0
2.(3.3h) is simetric to 2.(l-3).3h
2.(2.4h) is simetric to 2.(l-4).4h
2.(1.5h) is simetric to 2.(l-5).5h
2.(0.6h) is simetric to 2.(l-6).6h

or in common: 2.(l-i).ih, so the

summation formula is: l
F h   2  l  i    i  h
2
l j 1
For h = 0.6 and l = 6, h = 0.1 then:
i l -i i .h (i .h ) (l -i ).(i .h )
1 5 0.1 0.150 0.750
2 4 0.2 0.296 1.184
3 3 0.3 0.436 1.308 2 10.135
F ( 0.6 )  5.066   0.281
4 2 0.4 0.568 1.136 62 36
5 1 0.5 0.688 0.688
6 0 0.6 0.792 0.000
5.066

For h = 0.6 and l = 12, h = 0.05 then:

i l -i i .h (i .h ) (l -i ).(i .h )
1 11 0.05
2 10 0.10
3 9 0.15
4 8 0.20
5 7 0.25 2 41.364
6 6 0.30 F ( 0.6 )  2
20.682   0.287
7 5 0.35 12 144
8 4 0.40
9 3 0.45
10 2 0.50
11 1 0.55
12 0 0.60 0.792
20.682
Nomogram of auxilliary functions of (h), (h) and F(h) for the
variogram of Spherical (Matheron) model with C0 = 0; C = 1; a = 1
Function F-Quadratic (Plane)

F(l,h) =  R, R is the average of (x-y) in a rectangular plane R,

where x and y are two points in plane R which is independent each
others.

l F l , h   2 2
4
l h 0 0 l  x h  y    
h h

x 2  y 2 dxdy

• Function F for this plane is simetric where F(l, h) = F(h, l), while
F(h,0) = F(h).
• Value of function F for this plane can be obtained from the table
or nomorgram.
• The calculation in table or nomogram is the same as the case of
funcion F on a line (linear).
Nomogram of auxilliary function of point dispersion on a
rectangular F(h, l) for the variogram of Spherical model with C0 =
0 and C = 1
Auxilliary function of point dispersion on a rectangular F(h/a,l/a)
for the variogram of Spherical model with C0 = 0, C = 1
Function F-Cubic (Space)

F(l,h,k) =  P , P  is the average of (x-y) in a space P, where x and y

are two points in space P which is independent each others.

• Value of function F for this space P can be obtained from the

table or nomorgram.
• The calculation in table or nomogram is the same as the case of
funcion F on a line (linear).
Example:

In a nickel mine in New Caledonia, the mining blocks has

dimension55 m². We must calculate the dispersion variance of the
blocks for 2 months mining for mine area of 50  100 m². The mean
of orebody thickness is 10 m. The variogram model of thickness is
Matheron model with nested structure:
a 1  150 m C1  8.5 m 2
 h   1 h   2 h
a 2  1400 m C 2  12.7 m 2
Variance of dispersion is expresses as:
 D2 r / R    R , R    r , r    1 R , R    2 R , R    1 r , r    2 r , r 

For Block R: For Block r:

h/a1 = 50/150 = 0.333 h/a = l/a = 5/150 = 0.033

l/a1= 100/150 = 0.667 F(0.033/0.033) = 0.026
F(0.333/0.667) = 0.375 (see table, interpolate it!)
 1 r , r   0.026 C1  0.22
(see table or graph of function F)
 1 R , R   0.375 C1  3.19
h/a = l/a =5/1400 = 0.0036
h/a2 = 50/1400 = 0.036 F(0.004/0.004) = 0.000
 2 r , r   0.00
l/a2 = 100/1400 = 0.071
F(0.036/0.071) = 0.044
(see table, interpolate it!)
 D2 r / R   3.19  0.56  0.22  0.00  3.53 m 2
 2 R , R   0.044 C2  0.56
So the variation of
The calculation results the standard
block volume is:
deviation of orebody thickness as: 3.53   1.88 m
1.8855 = 46.9 m3
Homework!

Dimension of mining blocks: r = 55 m2 and r = 1010 m2

Mining area: R = 50100 m2 and R = 100200 m2

The orebody thickness is isotropic with variogram of Matheron

model with:
(1) a = 200 m, C = 5 m2, dan C0 = 2 m2
(2) a = 100 m, C = 10 m2, dan C0 = 4 m2

Calculate: Variation of volume in the mining blocks for each case!