Investigation on instability mechanism and control of abandoned roadways in coal pillars recovery face: A case study

The abandoned roadways (ARs) in front of the longwall face catastrophic instability will seriously hamper mining progress, which is a complicated process related to the stress environment, the roadway section, and the mechanical properties of the surrounding rock. The cusp catastrophe theory is empl...

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Main Authors: Dong Zhang, Jianbiao Bai, Rui Wang, Min Deng, Shui Yan, Qiancheng Zhu, Hao Fu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: KeAi Communications Co., Ltd. 2025-02-01
Series:Underground Space
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2467967424000801
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author Dong Zhang
Jianbiao Bai
Rui Wang
Min Deng
Shui Yan
Qiancheng Zhu
Hao Fu
author_facet Dong Zhang
Jianbiao Bai
Rui Wang
Min Deng
Shui Yan
Qiancheng Zhu
Hao Fu
author_sort Dong Zhang
collection DOAJ
description The abandoned roadways (ARs) in front of the longwall face catastrophic instability will seriously hamper mining progress, which is a complicated process related to the stress environment, the roadway section, and the mechanical properties of the surrounding rock. The cusp catastrophe theory is employed to establish a state identification model for the irregular coal pillar-roof system (CPRS) formed by the ARs and re-mining entries. To begin, the state discrimination equation (Δp) for the gradual CPRS is derived, and the critical value at which the system transitions into an unstable state under quasi-static conditions is determined. The results indicated that when 16.49 m ≤ L ≤ 22.63 m (L denotes the equivalent span of the intersection roof) and 0 < Re ≤ 2.61 m (Re denotes the width of the elastic zone within the triangular coal pillar), the triangular CPRS is inherently unstable. Similarly, for trapezoidal CPRS configurations where the length Lm (the span of the right-angled trapezoid roof in the propulsion direction) varies from 4.0 to 12.60 m, the system is unstable as well. Subsequently, the model was further enhanced by accounting for the impact of the Pc (advance stress increment load), where a critical criterion for the catastrophic instability of the CPRS was proposed, which represented the external energy required to transition the CPRS from an unstable state to catastrophic instability in different mining stages. After that, the stability degree of the irregular coal pillar was categorized, and a coupling zoning control technology was applied to CPR operations. Field monitoring results demonstrated the effectiveness of the zoning control technology, providing valuable guidance for similar mining practices.
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spelling doaj-art-7a692eddb54444a8bbd9e42a25b4936a2025-08-20T02:36:59ZengKeAi Communications Co., Ltd.Underground Space2467-96742025-02-012011913910.1016/j.undsp.2024.05.001Investigation on instability mechanism and control of abandoned roadways in coal pillars recovery face: A case studyDong Zhang0Jianbiao Bai1Rui Wang2Min Deng3Shui Yan4Qiancheng Zhu5Hao Fu6State Key Laboratory for Fine Exploration and Intelligent Development of Coal Resources, School of Mines, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, ChinaState Key Laboratory for Fine Exploration and Intelligent Development of Coal Resources, School of Mines, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China; Corresponding authors.Mining Engineering and Geology College, Key Laboratory of Xinjiang Coal Resources Green Mining (Xinjiang Institute of Engineering), Ministry of Education, Urumqi 830023, China; Corresponding authors.State Key Laboratory for Fine Exploration and Intelligent Development of Coal Resources, School of Mines, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, ChinaState Key Laboratory for Fine Exploration and Intelligent Development of Coal Resources, School of Mines, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, ChinaState Key Laboratory for Fine Exploration and Intelligent Development of Coal Resources, School of Mines, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, ChinaState Key Laboratory for Fine Exploration and Intelligent Development of Coal Resources, School of Mines, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, ChinaThe abandoned roadways (ARs) in front of the longwall face catastrophic instability will seriously hamper mining progress, which is a complicated process related to the stress environment, the roadway section, and the mechanical properties of the surrounding rock. The cusp catastrophe theory is employed to establish a state identification model for the irregular coal pillar-roof system (CPRS) formed by the ARs and re-mining entries. To begin, the state discrimination equation (Δp) for the gradual CPRS is derived, and the critical value at which the system transitions into an unstable state under quasi-static conditions is determined. The results indicated that when 16.49 m ≤ L ≤ 22.63 m (L denotes the equivalent span of the intersection roof) and 0 < Re ≤ 2.61 m (Re denotes the width of the elastic zone within the triangular coal pillar), the triangular CPRS is inherently unstable. Similarly, for trapezoidal CPRS configurations where the length Lm (the span of the right-angled trapezoid roof in the propulsion direction) varies from 4.0 to 12.60 m, the system is unstable as well. Subsequently, the model was further enhanced by accounting for the impact of the Pc (advance stress increment load), where a critical criterion for the catastrophic instability of the CPRS was proposed, which represented the external energy required to transition the CPRS from an unstable state to catastrophic instability in different mining stages. After that, the stability degree of the irregular coal pillar was categorized, and a coupling zoning control technology was applied to CPR operations. Field monitoring results demonstrated the effectiveness of the zoning control technology, providing valuable guidance for similar mining practices.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2467967424000801Abandoned roadwaysInstability mechanismCusp catastrophe theoryPier column supportHydraulic fracture
spellingShingle Dong Zhang
Jianbiao Bai
Rui Wang
Min Deng
Shui Yan
Qiancheng Zhu
Hao Fu
Investigation on instability mechanism and control of abandoned roadways in coal pillars recovery face: A case study
Underground Space
Abandoned roadways
Instability mechanism
Cusp catastrophe theory
Pier column support
Hydraulic fracture
title Investigation on instability mechanism and control of abandoned roadways in coal pillars recovery face: A case study
title_full Investigation on instability mechanism and control of abandoned roadways in coal pillars recovery face: A case study
title_fullStr Investigation on instability mechanism and control of abandoned roadways in coal pillars recovery face: A case study
title_full_unstemmed Investigation on instability mechanism and control of abandoned roadways in coal pillars recovery face: A case study
title_short Investigation on instability mechanism and control of abandoned roadways in coal pillars recovery face: A case study
title_sort investigation on instability mechanism and control of abandoned roadways in coal pillars recovery face a case study
topic Abandoned roadways
Instability mechanism
Cusp catastrophe theory
Pier column support
Hydraulic fracture
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2467967424000801
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