Numerical simulation of roof cavings in several Kuzbass mines using finite-difference continuum damage mechanics approach

An essential stage of mine design is an estimation of the steps of the first and periodic roof caving in longwall mines. Generally, this is carried out using the field experience and can be much enhanced by numerical simulation. In this work, the finite-difference method was applied coupled with the continuum damage mechanics(CDM) approach to simulate the stress-strain evolution of the rock mass with the underground opening during coal extraction. The steps and stages of roof caving were estimated relying on the numerical simulation data, and they were compared with the field data from several operating mines in the south of the Kuznetsk Basin, Russia. The dependence of the first roof caving step in simulation linearly correlates with field data. The results correspond to the actual roofs of longwall panels of the flat-dipping coal seams and the average rate of face advancement is approximately 5 m/day.     

Systematic principles of surrounding rock control in longwall mining within thick coal seams

Effective surrounding rock control is a prerequisite for realizing safe mining in underground coal mines.In the past three decades, longwall top-coal caving mining(LTCC) and single pass large height longwall mining(SPLL) found expanded usage in extracting thick coal seams in China. The two mining methods lead to large void space left behind the working face, which increases the difficulty in ground control.Longwall face failure is a common problem in both LTCC and SPLL mining. Such failure is conventionally attributed to low strength and high fracture intensity of the coal seam. However, the stiffness of main components included in the surrounding rock system also greatly influences longwall face stability.Correspondingly, surrounding rock system is developed for LTCC and SPLL faces in this paper. The conditions for simultaneous balance of roof structure and longwall face are put forward by taking the stiffness of coal seam, roof strata and hydraulic support into account. The safety factor of the longwall face is defined as the ratio between the ultimate bearing capacity and actual load imposed on the coal wall.The influences provided by coal strength, coal stiffness, roof stiffness, and hydraulic support stiffness,as well as the movement of roof structure are analyzed. Finally, the key elements dominating longwall face stability are identified for improving surrounding rock control effectiveness in LTCC and SPLL faces.     

房柱式开采的矿压显现规律及顶板监测

通过理论分析和现场实例，对房柱式采煤的矿压显现规律及其特点进行了探讨。研究表明，房柱式开采时直接顶呈悬顶式周期性垮落；老顶初次垮落步距较常规开采大，且失稳定然；矿压显现强烈，且受煤柱回收顺序的影响。根据现场实际，实施了以顶板垮落步距分析和顶板动态实测相结合的顶板稳定性监测，取得了较好的效果。     

下分层综放工作面上覆岩层结构特征

我国综放开采技术是在分层综采技术的基础上发展起来的,对于一直采用分层综采的一些大型厚煤层生产矿井,面临着顶分层采后下分层综放开采技术问题,这个问题与一次采全厚整层综放开采矿压显现有所不同.下分层综放开采时,二次垮落的直接顶岩层碎胀系数较小,垮落带高度与采高的比值将增加,造成顶分层开采时下位老顶岩层垮落后转化为规则垮落带,成为下分层综放工作面的上位直接顶,促使下分层综放工作面的老顶“砌体梁”式平衡结构向更高层位岩层发展.上位直接顶岩块强度较高、块度较大,容易形成“岩-矸”半拱式平衡结构.该结构的周期性失稳和垮落,造成采场出现小的周期来压现象;而“砌体梁”平衡结构的周期性失稳和垮落,将导致采场出现大的周期来压现象.     

Investigation of overburden behaviour for grout injection to control mine subsidence

This paper describes a field and numerical investigation of the overburden strata response to underground longwall mining, focusing on overburden strata movements and stress concentrations. Subsidence related high stress concentrations are believed to have caused damage to river beds in the Illawarra region, Australia. In the field study, extensometers, stressmeters and piezometers were installed in the overburden strata of a longwall panel at West Cliff Colliery. During longwall mining, a total of 1000 mm tensile deformation was recorded in the overburden strata and as a result bed separation and gaps were formed. Bed separation was observed to start in the roof of the mining seam and gradually propagate toward the surface as the longwall face advanced. A substantial increase in the near-surface horizontal stresses was recorded before the longwall face reached the monitored locations. The stresses continued to increase as mining advanced and they reached a peak at about 200 m behind the longwall face. A numerical modelling study identified that the angle of breakage (i.e., the angle of the boundary of caved zone) behind the longwall face and over the goaf was 22–25° from vertical direction. This is consistent with the monitoring results showing the high gradient of stresses and strains on the surface 150–320 m behind the mining face.     

巨厚砾岩层下综放采场矿压显现规律

巨厚砾岩层下综放采场矿压显现规律研究对于采场围岩控制和安全生产具有重要的现实意义.采用理论分析和义马矿区千秋煤矿矿压观测方法进行研究,得出结论为:综放工作面围岩可控程度属于难控围岩,即采场顶底板围岩控制困难.选出了ZF7000-18/28型放顶煤基本支架及其综放面合理配套设备;现场观测研究了综放面矿压显现规律,得出了采场顶板来压步距、来压强度等参数.采场矿压显现明显,不同区域来压具有不一致性.顶板周期来压时支架循环末工作阻力最大值为4 307.70 kN,为支架额定工作阻力的61.54%.因此,采场支架可靠性能较高,现场应用试验效果显著,矿井实现了"一井一面"生产模式,推动了安全高效矿井建设.     

Challenges of mining the first right-handed longwall panel in a new reserve block in Pittsburgh Seam

In this paper, the mining experience and challenges for the first right-handed longwall panel in the Pittsburgh Seam are introduced. The longwall headgate T-junction experienced very high face convergence(up to 61 cm), accompanied by roof sag, floor heave, and rib loading. The headgate convergence was so large that, in a few places, it threatened longwall retreat and ultimately required the bottom to be re-graded. Different underground instruments, such as a roof scope, de-gas drill, tell-tale, laser meter,and borehole pressure Cell(BPC), were employed to explore the roof geology and to monitor the entry convergence and the stress changes in the pillar. In addition, the impact of other geologic factors, such as large overburden depth, laminated sandstone roof geology, soft floor, and large headgate equipment,were also analyzed. Subsequently, geotechnical solutions were provided to avoid or mitigate the impact of these challenging geologic factors.     

Underground ground control monitoring and interpretation,and numerical modeling,and shield capacity design

Mine or longwall panel layout is a 3D structure with highly non-uniform stress distribution. Recognition of such fact will facilitate underground problem identification/investigation and solving by numerical modeling through proper model construction. Due to its versatility, numerical modeling is the most popular method for ground control design and problem solving. However numerical modeling results require highly experienced professionals to interpret its validity/applicability to actual mining operations due to complicated mining and geological conditions. Underground ground control monitoring is routinely performed to predict roof behavior such as weighting and weighting interval without matching observation of face mining condition while the mining pressures are being monitored, resulting in unrealistic interpretation of the obtained data on mining pressure. The importance of ground control pressure monitoring and simultaneous observation of mining and geological conditions is illustrated by an example of shield leg pressure monitoring and interpretation in an U.S. longwall coal mine: it was found that the roof strata act like a plate, not an individual block of the size of a shield dimension, as commonly assumed by all researchers and shield capacity is not a fixed property for a longwall panel or a mine or a coal seam. A new mechanism on the interaction between shield's hydraulic leg pressure and roof strata for shield loading is proposed.     

采场老顶初次来压时的稳定性分析

本文用光弹试验、梁理论和几何分析法等力学方法,分析了采场老顶初次来压时镶嵌块体结构的稳定性问题,给出了老顶初次来压的失稳判据。     

Monitoring strata behavior due to multi-slicing top coal caving longwall mining in steeply dipping extra thick coal seam

For studying the strata behavior due to multi-slicing top coal caving longwall mining along-the-strike direction in steeply dipping extra thick coal seams,the shield support pressures of the upper and lower slices of panel 37220 in Dongxia Coal Mine were monitored using the KJ513 dynamic monitoring system.The set up rooms adopted the "horizontal line-arc segment-inclined line" form and used different types of shield supports.The results show that the strata pressure of upper slice panel 37220-1 changed slightly along the strike direction,while along the dip direction it exhibited strong to weak pressure from bottom to top.The first weighting interval of lower slice panel 37220-2 was about 60.8 m,and the average periodic weighting interval were about 22.6 m.The strata behavior of panel 37220-2 exhibited a spatiotemporal characteristic in that periodic weighting occurred first in the middle-upper part,followed by the middle and upper parts,arc segment,and finally the lower part.During the periodic weighting,the weighting interval and intensity also exhibited strong space characteristics.The average dynamic load coefficient was 1.48 and the maximum lateral load of the side shield was 20-25 MPa.     

Coal mine roof rating(CMRR), rock mass rating(RMR) and strata control:Carborough Downs Mine,Bowen Basin,Australia

The rock mass rating(RMR) has been used across the geotechnical industry for half a century. In contrast,the coal mine roof rating(CMRR) was specifically introduced to underground coal mines two decades ago to link geological characterization with geotechnical risk mitigation. The premise of CMRR is that strength properties of mine roof rock are influenced by defects typical of coal measures stratigraphy.The CMRR has been used in longwall pillar design, roof support methods, and evaluation of extended cuts,but is rarely evaluated. Here, the RMR and CMRR are applied to a longwall coal mine. Roof rock mass classifications were undertaken at 67 locations across the mine. Both classifications showed marked spatial variability in terms of roof conditions. Normal and reverse faulting occur across the mine, and while no clear relationships exist between rock mass character and faulting, a central graben zone showed heterogeneous rock mass properties, and divergence between CMRR and RMR. Overall, the CMRR data fell within the broad envelope of results reported for extended cuts at Australian and U.S. coal mines. The corollary is that the CMRR is useful, and should not be used in isolation, but rather as a component of a strata control programme.     

倾斜长壁工作面老顶岩层破断规律的研究

本文利用弹性基础梁理论,研究了倾斜长壁工作面老顶岩梁的运动和破断规律,分别对仰斜开采和俯斜开采条件下老顶岩层断裂的位置和条件、老顶来压步距等进行了分析.研究表明,倾斜长壁开采时老顶岩梁的初次断裂过程有三种类型,并给出了相应的计算公式。同时分析了煤层倾角和顶板条件对老顶断裂和矿压显现的影响。     

Influence of Lithological Characters of Coal Bearing Formation on Stability of Roof of Coal Seams

Lithology is one of the important factors influencing the stability of roof of coal seams. In order to investigate this, the phenomenon of underground pressure and distribution of pressure were studied by using the local observation and simulation test with similar materials. The observation results show that the distance of initial weighting and periodic weighting of the mudstone roof is shorter than that of sandstone roofs. The sandstone roof with a high strength has a longer distance of initial weighting and periodic weighting, the abutment stress on the working face is big and the height of caving and fracture zone is high. The peak point of abutment stress in the sandstone roof is near to the working face and the pressure bump is inclined to occur. The result is contrary to that in case of the mudstone roof with a low strength. While in the transition zone of nipped sandstone, roof rock-mass is broken and is poor in stability, therefore, it is difficult to hold the roof.     

Structure and deformation measurements of shallow overburden during top coal caving longwall mining

Mining induced pressures are strong and overburden failure areas are large in top coal caving longwall mining, which constrains high production and safety mining. By employing the combination of the full view borehole photography technique and the seismic CT scanner technique, the deformation and failure of overlying strata of fully mechanized caving face in shallow coal seam were studied and the failure development of overburden was determined. Results show that the full view borehole photography can reveal the characteristics of strata, and the seismic CT scanner can reflect the characteristics of strata between the boreholes. The combined measurement technique can effectively determine the height of fractured and caved zones. The top end of the caved zone in Yangwangou coal mine employing the top coal caving longwall mining was at the depth of 171 m and fractured zone was at the depth of 106-110 m. The results provide a theoretic foundation for controlling the overburden strata in the shallow buried top coal caving panel.     

复杂条件下上提蹬空工作面矿压显现特征研究

为了解决蹬空对巷道围岩变形影响严重等问题,针对张集矿1410（1）工作面复杂的地质条件,采用计算机数值模拟（UEDC）系统和现场工程实践相结合的方法,对工作面推进不同距离时上覆岩层垮落形态、初次来压步距、周期来压步距、液压支架受力以及巷道围岩的变形特征进行研究。研究表明：工作面老顶初次来压步距约为32 m左右,周期来压步距约为16 m左右。工作面液压支架所需支撑的最大岩层高度约为25m。在工作面每天正常推进8m的情况下,工作面压架的危险性较小。     

Discrete modeling of a longwall coal mine gob for CFD simulation

One area of concern in longwall coal mines is the active gob directly behind the longwall face, where high concentrations of methane are likely to accumulate and active roof caving occurs. Using computational fluid dynamics(CFD) to simulate gas flows in and through the gob, most researchers have represented the entire gob as a porous medium governed by Darcy's law. However, Darcy-type porous flow may not be applicable for the highly porous and unconsolidated fringes of the gob. In addition, porous medium models do not allow for representative combustion modeling to simulate in-gob ignition and flame propagation. This study presents a hybrid approach to modeling the gob using CFD: the outer part of the gob is modeled as discrete objects that simulate coarse rock rubble, while the gob center is modeled as a porous medium.     

Rock mechanical investigation of strata loading characteristics to assess caving and requirement of support resistance in a mechanized powered support longwall face

Longwall mining is one of the most acclaimed and widely used in underground method for coal extraction. The interaction of powered supports with the roof is the key issue in strata mechanics of longwall mining. Controlled caving of rock mass is a prerequisite pro thriving exploitation of coal deposits by longwall retreat with caving technique and support resistance has evolved as the most promising and effective scientific tool to predict various aspects related to strata mechanics of such workings. Load density,height of caving block, distance of fractured zone ahead of the face, overhang of goaf and mechanical strength of the debris above and below the support base have been found to influence the magnitude of load on supports. Designing powered support has been attempted at the different countries in different methods. This paper reviews the mechanism of roof caving and the conventional approaches of caving behaviour and support resistance requirement in the context of major strata control experiences gained worldwide. The theoretical explanation of the mechanism of roof caving is still continuing with consistently improved understanding through growing field experiences in the larger domain of geo-mining conditions and state-of-art strata mechanics analysis and monitoring techniques.     

Fractal characterization for the mining crack evolution process of overlying strata based on microseismic monitoring technology

In order to study the evolution laws during the development process of the coal face overburden rock mining-induced fissure,we studied the process of evolution of overburden rock mining-induced fissures and dynamically quantitatively described its fractal laws,based on the high-precision microseismic monitoring method and the nonlinear Fractal Geometry Theory.The results show that:the overburden rock mining-induced fissure fractal dimension experiences two periodic change processes with the coal face advance,namely a Small→ Big→ Small process,which tends to be stable;the functional relationship between the extraction step distance and the overburden rock mining-induced fissure fractal dimension is a cubic curve.The results suggest that the fractal dimension reflects the evolution characteristics of the overburden rock mining-induced fissure,which can be used as an evaluation index of the stability of the overburden rock strata,and it provides theoretical guidance for stability analysis of the overburden rock strata,goaf roof control and the support movements in the mining face.     

Investigations on longwall mining subsidence impacts on Pennsylvania highway alignments

Over 600 longwall panels have been mined in Pennsylvania in the last 50 years. Of those 600 panels, 25 panels undermined interstates highways. Despite this quantity of panels, much is still unknown regarded the detailed effects of undermining highways. The Gateway Mine, the Emerald Mine, and the Cumberland Mine undermined I-79 with 17 panels in 1982–1989 and in 2003–2008, respectively; Mine 84 undermined I-70 with 4 panels in 1987–2000. Through the examination of the panels that undermined I-70 and I-79, it is possible to determine which factors have most impacted the highway alignments. In some locations, the highway intersects with panels at angles ranging from 45° to 80°; and at the others, it runs between two panels, which simulates the effect of gateroads on the subsidence. The panel width to overburden ratio varies between 0.64 and 1.7, meaning that the interstates were influenced by both subcritical and supercritical subsidence basins. The face advance rates and overburden depths also vary between the panels. Unfortunately, specific information detailing highway impacts associated with unique characteristics of the subsidence basins are limited. In this paper, using the profile function model and influence function model within the surface deformation prediction system(SDPS), the effects of overburden,panel size, and orientation of the road on the highway can be indirectly assessed.     

工作面顶板周期来压灾变预测和拓扑预测

工作面顶板周期来压是矿井灾害之一．本文用灰色系统理论的灾变预测和拓扑预测对工作面顶板周期来压进行了研究,并利用义马跃进煤矿支柱载荷的观测数据和工作面顶板周期来压的关系对工作面顶板周期来压进行预测,得出了精度较高的预测结果,为工作面顶板周期来压的预测提供了新的思路．