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Application of an Improved Flow-Stress-Damage Model to the Criticality Assessment of Water Inrush in a Mine: a Case Study

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Abstract

This paper presents a case study of water inrush on a mine working face from roof strata. The flow-rock failure process analysis (F-RFPA2D) code with an improved flow-stress-damage (FSD) model was adopted to perform the failure and coupling analysis. The improved FSD model was used to represent the permeability variation at the four stages (elastic, damaged, cracked, and crack closure) of the rock failure process. The fracture initiation, propagation, and coalescence in the stressed strata and the seepage field evolution in the stress field are represented visually during the whole process of water inrush. The failure zone with high permeability induced by mining disturbance becomes the water-conducting zone after full excavation of the coal seam. The height of the water-conducting zone obtained in this study is in reasonable accordance with that predicted by an empirical formula. It is definitely clarified that the water inrush from the roof strata is induced by the failure zone full of vertical coalesced mine fractures. It is unlikely that roof accidents resulting in water inrush would occur if the water-conducting zone does not grow upwards into the aquifer. The main task for mine extraction under a confined aquifer is to locate the aquifer and find the maximum height of the water-conducting zone, which is very important for mine construction and support design.

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Abbreviations

H :

maximum height of failure zone

M :

excavated seam thickness

a, b :

coefficients depending upon the stratum lithology

c :

mean square deviation

\( \phi \) :

Weibull’s distribution function

s :

strength or elastic modulus of a certain single element

s 0 :

mean value of the element parameters for the whole specimen

m :

homogeneity index

\( \sigma _{ij} \) :

total stress in the ij-plane

\( X_j \) :

body force in the jth direction

\( \varepsilon _{ij} \) :

strain in the ij-plane

\( u_i \) :

displacement in the ith direction

\( \sigma ^{\prime}_{ij} \) :

effective stress in the ij-plane

p :

pore pressure

α :

coefficient of pore-fluid pressure

λ :

Lamé coefficient

G :

shear modulus

δ ij :

Kronecker constant

k :

coefficient of permeability

Q :

Biot constant

k i :

initial coefficient of permeability

ξ, β :

material constants

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by NSFC (Nos. 50490273, 50774082, 50674083 and 40638040).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory for Geomechanics and Deep Underground Engineering, School of Architecture and Civil Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, 221008, Xuzhou City, Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of China

    H. Q. Zhang, Y. N. He & L. J. Han

  2. Center for Rock Instability and Seismicity Research, Dalian University of Technology, 116622, Dalian City, Liaoning Province, People’s Republic of China

    C. A. Tang

  3. Department of Geology, Utah State University, Logan, UT, 84322-4505, USA

    Bashir Ahmad

Authors
  1. H. Q. Zhang
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  2. Y. N. He
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  3. C. A. Tang
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  4. Bashir Ahmad
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  5. L. J. Han
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Correspondence to H. Q. Zhang.

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Zhang, H.Q., He, Y.N., Tang, C.A. et al. Application of an Improved Flow-Stress-Damage Model to the Criticality Assessment of Water Inrush in a Mine: a Case Study. Rock Mech Rock Eng 42, 911–930 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-008-0004-2

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