The measurement of the fragmentation size distribution of a blast muckpile can be achieved directly by screening the entire muckpile._x000D_
Screening of muckpiles in a production operation is generally not practical due to the logistics and time involved moving large volumes of rock through a screening plant. An indirect technique to assess blast fragmentation size distributions has been developed. This technique uses photographs of the blast muckpile taken at intervals during the excavation cycle. The images from the photographs are input to desktop computer software via a digitiser tablet._x000D_
The software compilates the rock fragment sizes and calculates a size distribution. This paper discusses the technique and subsequent data analysis._x000D_
Examples of the application of this technique for the assessment of comparative blast performance are given.