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Del tajo óptimo al valor sostenible: una revisión integral a lo largo de seis décadas de optimización minera
From optimal pit to sustainable value: a comprehensive review ofsix decades of mine optimization
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15446/rbct.n60.129630Palabras clave:
Lerchs Grossman, minas a cielo abierto, optimización económica de minas; riesgo, secuenciamiento directo de bloque, Superficie de Valor, criterios ASG (es)Lerchs Grossman, open pit mines, mine optimization, risk, direct block scheduling, hill of values, ESG criteria (en)
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Este artículo consolida y actualiza una literatura hasta ahora dispersa sobre optimización de minas a cielo abierto, integrando en un solo marco de referencia más de 90 publicaciones producidas entre 1965 y 2026 —desde el algoritmo de Lerchs-Grossmann hasta los enfoques contemporáneos de planificación integrada—, conectando por primera vez la teoría de grafos, modelos económicos, diseño computacional y la gobernanza ASG en una trayectoria conceptual unificada. La revisión demuestra que la disciplina dejó de ser un ejercicio puramente geométrico o económico para convertirse en un proceso multidimensional que incorpora incertidumbre, riesgo y sostenibilidad. Un elemento que refuerza su rigor es la delimitación de su alcance: se basa exclusivamente en literatura técnica y académica de acceso público, excluyendo deliberadamente los desarrollos propietarios de compañías mineras y módulos de software comercial, al no existir documentación pública sobre ellos, lo que la convierte en la consolidación más completa del conocimiento público.
Open-pit mine optimization research has accumulated for over sixty years, yet much of it remains scattered across disconnected sources — regional engineering societies, specialized journals, and local publications. This paper brings that literature together for the first time, synthesizing more than 90 publications from 1965 to 2026 into a single, coherent narrative tracing the field's evolution from the Lerchs-Grossmann algorithm to today's integrated planning frameworks, linking graph theory, economic modeling, computational design, and ESG governance along the way. The review argues that open-pit optimization has outgrown its origins as a purely geometric or economic problem, emerging as a multidimensional discipline shaped by uncertainty, risk, and sustainability. This study is scoped to publicly technical and academic sources, excluding proprietary algorithms developed by mining companies and commercial software, for which no verifiable documentation exists, its contribution as the most comprehensive synthesis of public knowledge in the field.
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