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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Hazards and Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2023) | Viewed by 16644

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Chaolin Zhang

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Guest Editor

School of Safety Engineering, China University of Mining & Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China
Interests: coal and rock dynamic disaster mechanism and control; gas extraction and utilization in coal mines; CO₂-ECBM and geological storage; safety monitoring big data analysis

Prof. Dr. Shoujian Peng

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

School of Resource and Safety Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400044, China
Interests: coal and rock dynamic disaster mechanism and control; multi-field coupling theory of unconventional natural gas extraction, rock mechanics theory and its engineering applications

Dr. Bobo Li

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

College of Mining, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China
Interests: fundamental research in rock mechanics; development and exploitation of unconventional natural gas; disaster prevention of mines

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Coal is one of the most important energy resources in the world. With the gradual depletion of shallow coal resources, it has become an inevitable trend to seek resources from deeper underground. Due to increases in mining intensity and mining depth, in situ stress and gas pressure are rising, significantly changing the physical and mechanical properties of coal and rock mass, and resulting in the frequent occurrence of coal and rock dynamic disasters, including coal and gas outbursts, rock bursts, composite dynamic disasters, etc. Therefore, the effective prevention and control of coal and rock dynamic disasters has become an important premise to ensure the safe, sustainable, stable, and green development of the coal industry. This Special Issue aims to provide an opportunity to researchers around the globe to conduct a broad scientific and technological discussion on advances in mine safety science and engineering. We hope that this collection might improve the prevention and control level of coal and rock dynamic disasters, and ensure the sustainable development of coal mines. Possible topics for discussion include, but are not limited to: basic experiments; large-scale physical simulation experiments; numerical simulation studies; theoretical analysis and field tests of coal and rock dynamic disasters; and prevention and control methods for coal and rock dynamic disasters, e.g., gas extraction, hydraulic fracturing, CO₂-ECBM, etc. Original research and review articles are both welcome.

Dr. Chaolin Zhang
Prof. Dr. Shoujian Peng
Dr. Bobo Li
Guest Editors

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Keywords

coal and rock dynamic disaster
rock mechanics and gas seepage
gas extraction and utilization
coal seam hydraulic fracturing
CO₂-ECBM and geological storage
physical simulation and numerical simulation
evolution process and disaster-causing mechanisms
disaster prevention and control measures
risk identification and evaluation
safety monitoring and early warning

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Published Papers (9 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 3637 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Development Law of Overlying Strata’s Broken Fissure Based on Bored Imaging by Big Data Analysis

by Xianmeng Zhang, Jingchun Wang, Dan Feng and Minghao Wang

Sustainability 2023, 15(6), 4703; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15064703 - 7 Mar 2023

Viewed by 1034

Abstract

This paper aims to provide the basis of the parameters and data interpretation for some important problems, such as the identification of the type of overlying strata and the analytical calculation, where the coal mine is employed as the object of the study. Particularly, the rock structure and fracture development characteristics of the overlying strata were observed, and the development conditions of the fracture zone were counted. By utilizing the on-site stress data, the inclination of the broken zone based on the rock fracture theory was calculated. The study shows that the distribution of the mining fissure is related to the rock and integrity degree of the strata, and that the native maximum expansion angle of fissure is 70.54°. With mining influence, small angle native shallow fissures will be bound to expansion, and the deep-mined fissure extension will be developed in the same direction. Moreover, it is easy to form the abscission layer, and then eventually form the fracture zone. The research results of this paper will not only provide an important foundation for the engineering practice, but also benefit the study of the simultaneous extraction of coal and gas. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Mine Safety Science and Engineering)

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21 pages, 13548 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Experimental Study on Mechanical Properties and Stability Analysis of Structural Plane under Unloading Normal Stress

by Feng Jiao, Jiang Xu, Shoujian Peng, Meixin He and Xinrui Zhang

Sustainability 2022, 14(23), 15656; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142315656 - 24 Nov 2022

Viewed by 1117

Abstract

Excavation in rock induces the unloading of stress in excavation-disturbed zones and can cause the structural plane to reach shear failure due to the unloading of normal stress. Unloading normal stress tests of a regular sawtooth structural plane were conducted in this study to investigate the influence of the unloading velocities (v) and asperity angles (θ) on mechanical properties and the stability of the structural plane. The average value of normal displacement (D_u₁) and the shear displacement of unloading (D_su) gradually increases with an increase in θ and D_u₁ accounts for 59.70%, 31.81%, and 18.60% of the height of a single asperity under different θ. However, D_u₂, D_s, and the unloading capacity (Δσ_n) gradually decreased. Moreover, D_s account for 24.52%, 11.61%, and 7.4% of the length of a single asperity, respectively. With an increase in θ and v, three-dimensional (3D) morphology parameters and normal deformation energy (U_n) decreased gradually, indicating that the damage degree of the structural plane increases. The analysis of the evolution of the gap width of the structural plane at the initial point, unloading point, and instability point indicates that the greater the θ or the smaller the v, the lower would be the likelihood for the structural plane to be damaged. Concurrently, its instability is more sudden and the impact tendency is stronger. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Mine Safety Science and Engineering)

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24 pages, 8362 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Effect of Pore Pressure on the Mechanical Behavior of Coal with Burst Tendency at a Constant Effective Stress

by Xiaobo Liu, Kangsheng Xue, Yong Luo, Kun Long, Yanan Liu and Zhiming Liang

Sustainability 2022, 14(21), 14568; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142114568 - 5 Nov 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2008

Abstract

The mechanical evolution of coal is evident when the pore pressure and the surrounding stress alone influence it. However, the evolution of the mechanical response of saturated coal under the coupling effect of pore pressure and confining pressure needs further investigation. This study identifies the mechanical behaviors of burst tendency dry and saturated coal under the stress condition where confining and pore pressure simultaneously increase but keep the constant difference by conducting a series of triaxial compressions on high burst tendency dry and saturated coal samples. The results show that the elastic modulus (E) and strength (σ_peak) of dry coal increase from 3.4 to 4.8 GPa and 78.5 to 92.6 MPa, respectively, and the macro shear failure angle decreases from 64.2° to 56.5° when the confining pressure increases from 9 to 15 MPa. However, these parameters show the opposite evolution law when the pore pressure increases. Furthermore, the E and σ_peak of saturated coal decrease from 3.84 to 2.75 GPa and 73.4 to 60.3 MPa, respectively, and the macro shear failure angle of saturated coal increases from 64.7° to 72.4° when the confining pressure and pore pressure increase simultaneously. The coefficient μ is proposed to reveal the evolution of strength at the effective confining pressure. Furthermore, the Mohr–Coulomb failure criterion, including μ, is ameliorated for application in coal under pore pressure conditions. In addition, a model was developed to reveal the effect of a pore-rich layer on the angle of macrocracks, which was confirmed by acoustic emission. The research reveals the mechanical behavior of coal under high pore pressure. Improved Mohr–Coulomb criterion criteria provide new guidance and vision for the analysis of coal instability in high pore pressure coal seams. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Mine Safety Science and Engineering)

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11 pages, 33851 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Kinetic Analysis of Thermal Decomposition Process of Emulsion Explosive Matrix in the Presence of Sulfide Ores

by Fuqiang Yang, Yong Guo, Yong Lai, Yidu Hong and Shuaiqi Yuan

Sustainability 2022, 14(18), 11614; https://doi.org/10.3390/su141811614 - 15 Sep 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1792

Abstract

This study aims to characterize the whole reaction process of (i) emulsion explosive matrix and sulfide ores, and (ii) ammonium nitrate and pyrite by the thermodynamics analysis method. A series of experiments were carried out at atmospheric pressure from 25 °C to 350 °C at four heating rates (3, 5, 10, and 15 K/min) and the Coats–Redfern method was applied to calculate the apparent activation energy of samples at different heating rates. The results show that the thermogravimetric (TG) curve of sulfide ores and emulsion explosive matrix can be divided into four stages: the water evaporation stage, the dynamic balance stage, the thermal decomposition stage, and the extinguishment stage. However, the thermal decomposition process of ammonium nitrate and pyrite can be divided into the dynamic balance stage, the thermal decomposition stage, and the burnout stage. The ignition temperature (T₀) and maximum peak temperature (T_m) of the samples increased with the heating rate, but the shape of the TG/DTG (Derivative Thermogravimetric) curve was not affected. The results show that the reaction process of sulfide ores and emulsion explosive matrix is similar to the reaction process of pyrite and ammonium nitrate. The thermal stability of emulsion explosive matrix decreases when sulfide ores are added. By contrast, when pyrite is added, the thermal stability of the ammonium nitrate decreases more significantly. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Mine Safety Science and Engineering)

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21 pages, 10584 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Investigation of Shear Mechanical Behavior and Slip Weakening Characteristics of Rough Joints in Rock Mass

by Peng Kong, Luyi Xing, Chuanwei Xu, Yanqing Liu and Zhongteng Zhang

Sustainability 2022, 14(15), 9654; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14159654 - 5 Aug 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1333

Abstract

The surface morphology of a structural plane is an important factor affecting the shear mechanical behavior of a structural plane. A direct shear test of a rough structural plane is carried out, and the shear mechanical behavior and slip weakening characteristics of a structural plane under different levels of roughness and normal stress conditions are studied; the normal stress conditions ranged from 2 MPa to 14 MPa. The results show that the shear strength and shear stress drop of a rough structure increase as the normal stress and roughness levels also increase. The higher the roughness level, or the greater the normal stress level, the more elastic energy the structural plane accumulates before shear failure. Once the shear stress is great enough and shear failure occurs, the shear slip of the rough structural plane shows obvious stick slip characteristics, and it releases more energy. Under high normal stress conditions, the convex body of the structural plane is damaged earlier in the process of direct shear, and the duration of convex body damage and failure is longer. After direct shear, the roughness of the structural plane decreases exponentially as normal stress levels increase. The shear slip of the structural plane, which has a significant degree of roughness under high normal stress conditions, shows a significant number of slip weakening characteristics, which is the main reason that the stick slip of the structural plane releases a lot of energy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Mine Safety Science and Engineering)

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17 pages, 5532 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Study of the Air Leakage Mechanism and the Suitable Gas Drainage Volume with the Upper Tunnel

by Chao Zhang, Tingxiang Chu, Shanjun Liu and Xin Ni

Sustainability 2022, 14(14), 8614; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14148614 - 14 Jul 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1193

Abstract

Gas drainage in an upper tunnel effectively prevents the gas overrun of the working face. However, the upper tunnel gas drainage quickly leads to air leakage and increases the risk of spontaneous coal combustion in the goaf. To reveal the influence of an upper tunnel gas drainage on the spontaneous combustion of coal in the goaf, the formation of an air leakage channel, the gas emission, and the distribution of the intuitive combustion danger area were studied through a numerical simulation and field measurement. The results indicated that the effective drainage section of the upper tunnel was behind the working face within a certain distance, and the air leakage mode presented the stereoscopic air leakage characteristics of high and low positions coexisting in the goaf. The spontaneous combustion danger area distribution increased gradually with the gas drainage volume increasing. However, the gas concentration in the upper corner decreased with the extraction quantity. Then a safe gas drainage volume was determined by comparing and analyzing the coal gas emission and spontaneous combustion with different extraction quantities. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Mine Safety Science and Engineering)

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18 pages, 2653 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Unified Solution for Surrounding Rock of Roadway Considering Seepage, Dilatancy, Strain-Softening and Intermediate Principal Stress

by Zhigang Yuan, Jintao Zhao, Shuqing Li, Zehua Jiang and Fei Huang

Sustainability 2022, 14(13), 8099; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14138099 - 2 Jul 2022

Cited by 40 | Viewed by 1848

Abstract

The analytic solution for surrounding rock of roadway is of significance for stability analysis and roadway support. However, analytical solution for surrounding rock of roadway which took influences of water seepage, strain softening, dilatancy and intermediate principal stress all into account did not receive much reporting. To promote research in this aspect, a mechanical model simultaneously considering water seepage, strain softening, rock dilatancy, and intermediate principal stress was established based on porous elastoplastic mechanics, and then unified analytical solution for surrounding rock of roadway was obtained. Based on an example, influences of water seepage, strain softening, rock dilatancy, residual cohesion and intermediate principal stress on surrounding rock of roadway were thoroughly investigated using single factor analysis. The obtained results are as follows: radii of plastic zones and surface displacement of roadway would increase exponentially with water pressure increasing and their magnitudes are greater than corresponding values without water seepage considered; with softening modulus increasing, peak circumferential stress location would slightly shift to deeper surrounding rock, while broken zone radius and surface displacement of roadway would increase in a decay velocity; rock dilatancy has little effect on peak circumferential stress and plastic softening zone radius, while broken zone radius and surface displacement of roadway increase linearly with dilatancy coefficient α1 increasing indicating their magnitudes are overestimated if associated flow rule is adopted; with weighted coefficient increasing, stress components in plastic zones at the same distance from roadway center would increase, while radii of two plastic zones and surface displacement of roadway are reduced, i.e., self-bearing capacity of rock is enhanced considering intermediate principal stress effect compared to Mohr–Coulomb criterion; with residual cohesion increasing, peak circumferential stress remains unchanged, while stress components in plastic zones at the same distance from roadway center would increase and radii of two plastic zones decrease significantly. The above results implicated that water seepage effect should be carefully considered for roadway stability under groundwater environment; strain-softening and flow rule of rock should be reasonably analyzed and chosen to accurately predict surface displacement and broken zone radius of roadway; rock bolt length should be increased with softening modulus increasing, while it can be decreased with intermediate principal stress effect considered; grouting measure is an effective measure to improve roadway stability. In short, the research provides a theoretical basis and some practical engineering implication for roadway support. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Mine Safety Science and Engineering)

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16 pages, 4218 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Thermodynamics of Imidazolium-Based Ionic Liquids for Inhibiting the Spontaneous Combustion of Sulfide Ore

by Jiaxin Tian, Kai Pan, Zhihui Lang, Rui Huang, Wenrui Sun, Hanyu Chu, Haotong Ren, Lingyu Dong, Yawen Li, Haining Wang and Hui Liu

Sustainability 2022, 14(13), 7915; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14137915 - 29 Jun 2022

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2372

Abstract

Spontaneous combustion of sulfide ore is one of the most common disasters in the process of ore mining, storage, and transportation, which can lead to a series of safety and environmental problems, thus affecting sustainable development in society. In this paper, four imidazolium-based ionic liquids: [BMIM][I], [BMIM][BF₄], [EMIM][BF₄], and [BMIM][NO₃], were selected for inhibition experiments with sulfide ores to reveal the inhibition performance of ionic liquids against spontaneous combustion. The results show that the main products from the reaction were Fe₂O₃ and SO₂, produced during the process of oxidation and spontaneous combustion and that the reaction moves towards a higher temperature under the action of ionic liquid, indicating that ionic liquids have a significant inhibition effect on the spontaneous combustion of sulfide ore. At the same temperature, the apparent activation energies of the samples treated with ionic liquids were all greater than those of the control samples, indicating that imidazolium-based ionic liquids can effectively reduce the spontaneous combustion tendency of sulfide ores. In addition, compared with other ionic liquids, [BMIM][NO₃] had a more pronounced inhibition effect, with the activation energies of both ore samples maximally increased by 8.4% and 10.2% after [BMIM][NO₃] treatment. This is due to the ability of [BMIM][NO₃] to better isolate the samples from oxygen in the air and reduce the effective collisions between active molecules, thus inhibiting and retarding the spontaneous combustion of sulfide ores. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Mine Safety Science and Engineering)

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15 pages, 6504 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Study on the Dip Angle Effect of Asymmetric Deformation and Failure of the Gob-Side Coal–Rock Roadway in Gently Inclined Coal Seam

by Lin Gao, Xinyu Zhan, Pandong Zhang, Zhijie Wen, Zhenqian Ma, Dezhong Kong, Xiangtao Kang and Sen Han

Sustainability 2022, 14(12), 7299; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14127299 - 15 Jun 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1967

Abstract

In order to reveal the influence law of coal seam dip angle on the stability of the surrounding rock of the gob-side coal–rock roadway in a gently inclined coal seam (GCRGICS), the deformation characteristics of the surrounding rock under four different coal seam dip angles of this kind of roadway were studied by field investigation, theoretical analysis and numerical simulation. The results showed that, with the increase of the coal seam dip angle, the amount of the roadway roof subsidence and the deformation of the upper and lower side arc triangle coal along the coal–rock interface increased, and the maximum deformation was 479 and 950 mm, respectively, and the maximum slip deformation area gradually shifted from the upper side arc triangle coal to the lower side arc triangle coal. The asymmetric deformation characteristics of the surrounding rock became more and more obvious. The asymmetric deformation rate of the GCRGICS showed a V-shaped variation relationship with the coal seam dip angle, when the coal seam dip angle was 10°, the asymmetric deformation rate was the minimum, only 1.1%. The plastic zone of the surrounding rock expanded with the increase of the coal seam dip angle, and the new extension range was mainly located in the roof area of the roadway. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Mine Safety Science and Engineering)

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