Keynote Speakers

José Sanchidrián

José Sanchidrián is Chair Professor of the Department of Mining Engineering and Earth Sciences at the School of Mines and Energy, Technical University of Madrid. Prof. Sanchidrián is a mining engineer. He served 7 years in Spain’s Army Corps of Engineers and 10 years in the explosives industry prior to joining university. He is author of 5 books and more than 150 journal and conference papers on explosives and blasting. His research topics are rock fragmentation, rock characterization for blasting, vibrations, and detonation & explosion physics. He is currently president of the Fragblast International Committee.

Renshu Yang

Renshu Yang is president of the University of Science and Technology Beijing and the academic leader of mine construction engineering in the State Key Laboratory for Geomechanics and Deep Underground Engineering, China. Prof. Yang has published more than 100 academic papers and 5 monographs. He is honored with the second prize of the National Technological Invention Award once, the second prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award twice and the first prize of the Provincial and Ministerial Award ten times in China. His research focuses on rock blasting theory and technology, mine construction engineering and geotechnical engineering.

Ruilin Yang

Dr. Ruilin Yang obtained a Bachelor Science Degree in Mining Engineering from Northeast University (1982) in China and a Ph. D degree in Mining Engineering from University of Queensland in Australia. After his Ph. D, he worked with JK Centre, CSIRO, Queens University as a research fellow on geo-mechanics and blast modeling. Then he joined Orica in 1993 working on explosive testing, field blast diagnosis, and blast modeling. He developed several applied blasting models and theories, which are applied in worldwide mining industry. Now he is principal research fellow - the highest technical position a person could achieve at Orica, and he is a fellow of Canadian Academy of Engineering.

Alex Spathis

Alex Spathis experienced researcher / engineer / scientist / author / reviewer / publisher with high level skills in geomechanics and geophysics. He conducts bespoke work in the measurement and modelling of physical processes. He is the author/co-author of over 50 technical papers plus three books on blasting, lead organizer of FRAGBLAST 11 in Sydney, Secretary-General of the FRAGBLAST International Organizing Committee.

Yongsheng Jia

Dr. Yongsheng Jia obtained his PhD degree in mining engineering from Wuhan University of Technology, China, in 2010. He is currently the vice president of Jianghan University, and the executive deputy director of the State Key Laboratory of Precision Blasting, China. He is mainly engaged in teaching, scientific research and engineering practice of blasting engineering, and the author/co-author of over 100 technical papers.

Dale S. Preece

Dr. Dale S. Preece has done rock blasting research since 1986. He has BS & MS degrees from BYU and a PhD from Univ. of New Mexico. He is the author of 140 technical publications and a recipient of the ISEE President’s and Distinguished Service Awards. He joined Sandia National Laboratories in 1980, Orica in 2007 and Dyno Nobel in 2018, where he is currently General Manager - Blast Modeling Technology.   

The International Symposium on Rock Fragmentation by Blasting (FRAGBLAST) is a key international forum for sharing the state of the art in rock blasting and explosives engineering. It aims at promoting the understanding of explosive-rock interaction in all aspects and the exchange of research and field experience in rock blasting. Beginning in 1983, the FRAGBLAST symposia have been held in Sweden (1983 & 2018), USA（1986）, Australia (1990 & 2015), Austria（1993）, Canada（1996）, South Africa（1999）, China (2002), Chile（2006）, Spain（2009） and India（2012）, contributing an unparalleled combination of scientific advances and practical applications. 

With the prominence of blasting engineering activities and R&D initiatives in China, the FRAGBLAST International Organizing Committee (FIOC) has rewarded the 13th International Symposium on Rock Fragmentation by Blasting (FRAGBLAST 13) to China Society of Explosives and Blasting (CSEB), and the event will be held on October 17-19, 2022, in Hangzhou, “City of Heaven” in China.

We hope FRAGBLAST 13 could draw attentions from blasting engineers, explosives manufacturers as well as researchers and professionals of related disciplines all over the world.