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Study on Ultimate Strength and Dip Effect of Coal Pillar in Steeply Dipping Coal Seam

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Abstract

The stability of the coal pillar is the basis of safe and efficient mining in the longwall working face of steeply dipping coal seams. Based on a systematic analysis of the deformation and instability of the surrounding rock in the quarry of a steeply dipping coal seam, the structural model of coal pillar for multi-section mining of steeply dipping coal seams is established. The stress distribution of an inclined coal pillar considering the action of shear stress is studied, and a generalized Mohr circle characterizing the stress state of the inclined coal pillar is provided. According to the planar geometric relationship between the stress circle and strength envelope, the calculation equation of strength with an implied inclination angle is proposed, which can help solve the coal pillar safety factor. The influence of coal seam inclination angle, lateral pressure coefficient, width-to-height ratio and other factors on the strength of inclined coal pillar is discussed. The reliability of the theoretical analysis has been tested using on-site engineering examples. The difficulties in controlling the surrounding rocks of the section return airway for inclined coal seam mining are analyzed by using the engineering case in Pansidong coal mine as an example, and the asymmetric surrounding rock coupling support is proven to be a successful support strengthening technology. The research results can provide a reference for the coal pillar strength estimation in steeply dipping coal seams and the control design of surrounding rocks in similar working faces.

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Data Availability

The data used in the field measurement can be obtained from the corresponding author upon request.

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Acknowledgements

This work is supported by the Natural Science Research Project of Anhui Educational Committee (KJ2021A0456), the Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center under Grant No.21KZS215, the Major special projects of science and technology in Shanxi Province (No.20191101016) and Graduate Innovation Fund Project of Anhui University of Science and Technology of China(2020CX1002).\

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Mining Response and Disaster Prevention and Control in Deep Coal Mines, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan, 232001, China

    Qiang Fu, Zhen Wei & Xiang He

  2. Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, Hefei, 230031, China

    Ke Yang

  3. School of Mining Engineering, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan, 232001, China

    Qiang Fu, Ke Yang, Zhen Wei & Xiang He

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  1. Qiang Fu
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  2. Ke Yang
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Correspondence to Ke Yang.

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Fu, Q., Yang, K., Wei, Z. et al. Study on Ultimate Strength and Dip Effect of Coal Pillar in Steeply Dipping Coal Seam. Geotech Geol Eng 41, 3447–3457 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-023-02467-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-023-02467-9

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