Department history

 

Nikolai Ivanovich Aksyuchits was born in 1906 in the village of Doltsy, Borisov district. From 1921 to 1926, he studied at the Engineering and Land Reclamation Faculty of the Goryachy Agricultural Institute. In 1930-1931, he successfully introduced new methods of peat extraction, including milling, for the first time in the BSSR (Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic). 

From 1937 to 1941, Aksyuchits worked concurrently at the Belarusian Polytechnic Institute (BPI) as a lecturer and acting associate professor in disciplines such as "Technology of Peat Fuel Production" and "Economics and Planning of the Peat Industry." During 1939-1941, he served as the head of the planning department and was a member of the board of the People's Commissariat of Local Fuel Industry of the BSSR. 

In 1943-1944, Aksyuchits was part of the operational group of the People's Commissariat of Local Fuel Industry in Moscow, later in Gomel. From July 16, 1945, to October 1, 1948, he was the head of the Peat Fuel Production Department. 

From 1944 to 1950, Aksyuchits served as the head of the planning department and was a member of the board of the Ministry of Local Fuel Industry of the BSSR. From 1950 to 1952, he was the head of the Fuel Department of the State Planning Committee (Gosplan) of the BSSR. In 1952, Aksyuchits became the Deputy Chairman of Gosplan of the BSSR. From June 1955 to 1960, he held the position of associate professor at the Department of Peat Production.

 

Pavel Petrovich Petukhov was born in 1903 into a peasant family in the village of Slobodka, Kaluga province, Kozelsky district. He completed rural school in 1915. In 1928, he was assigned to study at the Vladimir Workers' Faculty, which he completed in 1932, after which he entered the Moscow Peat Institute. From 1937 to 1939, he served as the chief mechanic at the Leontievskoye enterprise. In 1939, he was recalled to the Moscow Peat Institute for postgraduate studies. In May 1943, the Council of the Moscow Peat Institute awarded him the degree of Candidate of Technical Sciences. 

From December 1947, Petukhov worked as an associate professor at the Department of Peat Fuel Production at the Belarusian Polytechnic Institute (BPI). From September 1948 to May 1949, he served as acting head of the Department of Peat Fuel Production. During 1947-1948, Petukhov delivered lectures and conducted practical classes on the exploration of peat deposits. He also taught courses on hydropeat, pumps, and strength of materials. From February 1949 to 1953, he served as the dean of the peat faculty.

 

Evgeny Alexandrovich Aksenov was born on January 7, 1908. He began his career as a draftsman in 1927. In 1928, he graduated from the Minsk Polytechnic College, and in 1941, he graduated from the Belarusian Polytechnic Institute (BPI). Recognized for his engineering and organizational abilities, in 1947 Aksenov was appointed Deputy Minister of Local Fuel Industry of the BSSR, and in 1952, he became Senior Assistant to the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the BSSR.

Aksenov started working at BPI in 1951 as a senior lecturer at the Department of Peat Extraction Technology, and from 1953, he served as an associate professor. In September 1955, he was appointed head of the Department of Peat Fuel Production Technology, where he worked until 1968. 

Known for his dedication, meticulousness, and extensive knowledge, Aksenov was a highly productive and organized individual. He was also noted for his friendliness and responsiveness to colleagues. During his tenure at the department, he published 21 scientific works.

 

Mikhail Alexeevich Pimenov was born on September 29, 1912, in the village of Uspenskoye, Noginsk, Moscow region. After completing a 7-year school in Noginsk in 1928, he enrolled in a vocational school. From 1930 to 1931, he worked as an apprentice weaver. In 1931, after preparatory courses, he entered the Mining Department of the Moscow Peat Institute and graduated in 1937 as a mining engineer.

Until 1951, Pimenov worked at enterprises in the Leningrad region. From 1955 to 1957, he served as an associate professor at the Belarusian Polytechnic Institute (BPI), and from 1958 to 1959, he was the Deputy Dean of the Peat Faculty. He became an associate professor in 1957 and obtained a Candidate of Technical Sciences degree in 1958. From 1959 to 1964, he was the Dean of the Peat Faculty.

From 1964 to 1965, Pimenov worked as a lecturer at the University of Havana (Cuba). He then returned to BPI, where he was an associate professor and senior researcher at the Research Institute of the Belarusian Polytechnic Institute from 1965 to 1968. From December 13, 1968, to May 15, 1974, he served as the head of the Department of Peat Production Technology. In his later years, he taught courses on Hydrotechnics, Preparation of Peat Deposits, and Nature Conservation.

On July 5, 1979, Pimenov retired voluntarily after being relieved of his duties.

 

Stepan Semenovich Ovchinnikov was born on October 2, 1924, in the village of Verkhnee Krivino, Beshenkovichi district, Vitebsk region. In 1941, he completed his secondary education at the Beshenkovichi secondary school. From June 1941, he was a cadet at the Naval Medical School in Kronstadt and was wounded twice in combat.

From September 1946 to 1951, Ovchinnikov studied at the Peat Faculty of the Belarusian Polytechnic Institute (BPI). From 1951 to 1954, he worked as a graduate student at the Department of Peat Machinery. In September 1952, he became an assistant, then a senior lecturer, and from June 1955, he held the position of associate professor at the Department of Peat Machinery. He obtained the Candidate of Technical Sciences degree in October 1954 and was awarded the title of associate professor in July 1959.

From June 1955, Ovchinnikov served as the Deputy Dean. On October 16, 1964, he was relieved of his duties as Dean. From October 1, 1970, to January 1, 1976, he was the Deputy Dean of the Peat Faculty. From May 16, 1974, to May 10, 1977, he served as the head of the Department of Peat Production Technology.

 

The Department of Peat Fuel Production was renamed to the Department of Open Pit Mining under the leadership of the renowned scientist in the field of modeling and optimization of peat production processes, Dr. Sc., Prof. Boris A. Bogatov in 1977. This transformation was initially aimed at adapting to economic changes in the country and the establishment of an independent Belarusian state, necessitating the training of mining engineers not only for peat but also for the broader mining industry.

Boris Aleksandrovich Bogatov, born on April 1, 1938, in Orekhovo-Zuevo, Moscow region, Russia, graduated from the Moscow Peat Institute in 1960. His career includes significant roles such as senior researcher and head of the briquetting laboratory at the All-Union Scientific Research Institute of the Peat Industry (1960-1964), senior researcher at the laboratory of processes and apparatuses at the All-Union Scientific Research Institute of Synthetic Fibers (1965-1967), associate professor (1967-1971), head of the Department of Higher Mathematics at the Kalinin Polytechnic Institute (1972-1977), and head of the Department of Mining Operations at the Belarusian State Polytechnic Academy (since 1977).

He earned the Candidate of Technical Sciences degree in 1966, associate professorship in 1968, Doctor of Technical Sciences degree in 1974, and professorship in the same year. He is a full member of the Russian Academy of Mining Sciences (1999) and the Belarusian Mining Academy (1966). Since 1996, he has served as President of the Belarusian Mining Academy and has been a member of the Presidium of the Belarusian Professors' Assembly since 1995. He has authored 316 scientific articles and published abstracts, six textbooks, one manual, three monographs, and holds 38 patents.

Under Professor Bogatov's leadership from 1977 to 2005, the department expanded its scope to include new directions in training mining engineers in Belarus, including open pit mining, underground mining, mineral processing, and drilling operations. During his tenure, the department supervised the completion of 10 doctoral and 3 candidate dissertations. It organized the graduation of mining engineers in key areas of mining. From 2005 to 2012, the duties of department head were carried out by Associate Professor Alexander A. Kologrivko, Candidate of Technical Sciences. The department continued to train mining specialists in Belarus and since 2010 has also initiated training in a new field, Mine Surveying.

 Sergey Georgievich Onika graduated from the Krivoy Rog Mining Institute specializing in "Technology and Complex Mechanization of Open Pit Mining of Mineral Deposits" in 1976. He earned his Doctor of Technical Sciences degree in 1996 and was awarded the title of Professor in 2008. Since 2001, he has been working at the department as a professor. From 2012 to 2023, he served as the head of the department. His specialization lies in the development of mineral deposits. His research focuses on safe and efficient technologies for mining operations. Dr. Onika teaches courses such as "Rock Blasting," "Quarry Design," and "Safe Mining Practices." He is the chairman of the educational and methodological association of universities in the mining industry and the chairman of the specialized council for defending dissertations in the field of mining at BNTU. He also serves as an external expert for the Main State Construction Expertise. Dr. Onika is the author of 145 scientific and educational-methodical works, including 2 monographs, 6 textbooks and teaching aids, and 11 inventions.

Alexander Illarionovich Pavlovsky graduated from the Belarusian State University named after V.I. Lenin (Faculty of Geography, specialization in "Geography") in 1981. In 1989, he defended his dissertation for the degree of Candidate of Geographic Sciences. In 2000, he was awarded the academic title of Associate Professor. 

From 1981 to 1993, Pavlovsky worked at the Institute of Geochemistry and Geophysics of the Academy of Sciences of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (AN BSSR) as a junior and then as a research scientist. From 1993 to 1996, he held positions as a senior and then a leading research scientist at the Center for Remote Sensing of the Natural Environment of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus (NAN Belarus). 

From 1996 to 2023, Pavlovsky worked at the Francysk Skaryna Homiel State University as an associate professor, and from 2013 he served as the head of the Department of Geology and Geography. Since 2023, he has continued to work at the university as an associate professor and from 2024 as the head of the department.

His scientific interests include geomorphology, hydrogeology, engineering and Quaternary geology, and rational subsurface use. Pavlovsky teaches courses such as Hydrogeology, Drilling Operations, and Well Development of Mineral Deposits. He is a member of the Presidium of the Belarusian Geographical Society and heads the Homiel Regional Department of the Belarusian Geographical Society. He is also a member of the National Committee on Quaternary Research in Belarus (2018) and the Belarusian group of the International Association of Engineering Geologists. Pavlovsky serves on the editorial board of the journal "Geography." He is the author of more than 280 scientific and educational-methodical works, including 5 monographs and 6 textbooks and teaching aids. He has supervised tasks of State Scientific Research Programs and projects funded by the Belarusian Republican Foundation for Fundamental Research.