Integrating data-flow analysis and object-oriented analysis for compositing of borehole metal-grade intervals

Compositing of borehole metal-grade intervals is a primary step in the cross-sectional method used for orebody modeling and mineral resources estimation. Numerous boreholes and dilution cases make the compositing tedious and time-consuming for manual work. Therefore, computer algorithms are desirable to facilitate the task. Data-flow analysis is effective for modeling the compositing of borehole metal-grade intervals. However, data-flow models inadequately define objects and their relationships and, thus, lack an overall conceptual structure of the compositing procedure. Object-oriented analysis results in object-oriented models, which identify metal-grade intervals and composites as objects in a consistent way and define inferential relationships between those objects. By using second-order logic-based statements, we integrated data-flow analysis and object-oriented analysis in the modeling of the compositing procedure, and then developed a demo computer program. Our study shows that object-oriented models and data-flow models complement each other in the compositing of borehole metal-grade intervals, and second-order logic-based statements are effective as a medium between them.