Mechanism investigation on coal and gas outburst: An overview

Coal and gas outburst is a frequent dynamic disaster during underground coal mining activities.After about 150 years of exploration,the mechanisms of outbursts remain unclear to date.Studies on outburst mechanisms worldwide focused on the physicochemical and mechanical properties of outburst-prone coal,laboratory-scale outburst experiments and numerical modeling,mine-site investigations,and doctrines of outburst mechanisms.Outburst mechanisms are divided into two categories:single-factor and multi-factor mechanisms.The multi-factor mechanism is widely accepted,but all statistical phenomena during a single outburst cannot be explained using present knowledge.Additional topics about outburst mechanisms are proposed by summarizing the phenomena that need precise explanation.The most appealing research is the microscopic process of the interaction between coal and gas.Modern physical-chemical methods can help characterize the natural properties of outburst-prone coal.Outburst experiments can compensate for the deficiency of first-hand observation at the scene.Restoring the original outburst scene by constructing a geomechanical model or numerical model and reproducing the entire outburst process based on mining environment conditions,including stratigraphic distribution,gas occurrence,and geological structure,are important.Future studies can explore outburst mechanisms at the microscale.

Mechanism and monitoring and early warning technology for rockburst in coal mines

On the basis of the massive amount of published literature and the long-term practice of our research group in the field of prevention and control of rockburst,the research progress and shortcomings in understanding the rockburst phenomenon have been comprehensively in-vestigated.This study focuses on the occurrence mechanism and monitoring and early warning technology for rockburst in coal mines.Results showed that the prevention and control of rockburst had made significant progress.However,with the increasing mining depth,several unre-solved concerns remain challenging.From the in-depth research and analysis,it can be inferred that rockburst disasters involve three main problems,i.e.,the induction factors are complicated,the mechanism is still unclear,and the accuracy of the monitoring equipment and multi-source stereo monitoring technology is insufficient.The monitoring and warning standards of rockburst need to be further clarified and im-proved.Combined with the Internet of Things,cloud computing,and big data,a study of the trend of rockburst needs to be conducted.Further-more,the mechanism of multiphase and multi-field coupling induced by rockburst on a large scale needs to be explored.A multisystem and multiparameter integrated monitoring and early warning system and remote monitoring cloud platform for rockburst should be explored and developed.High-reliability sensing technology and equipment and perfect monitoring and early warning standards are considered to be the de-velopment direction of rockburst in the future.This research will help experts and technicians adopt effective measures for controlling rock-burst disasters.

Surface microtopography and micromechanics of various rank coals

For a long time,coalbed gas has brought about various problems to the safety of coal mine production.In addition,the mining of gas and coalbed methane(CBM)has attracted much attention.The occurrence and migration of CBM are believed to be closely related to the micro-surface properties of coal.To further explore the characteristics of CBM occurrence and migration,in this study,the micro-surface topography,adhesion,and elastic modulus of five metamorphic coals were measured by atomic force microscopy(AFM).The results show that the microtopography of coal fluctuates around 40 nm,reaching a maximum of 66.5 nm and the roughness of the surface decreases with the increase of metamorphism.The elastic modulus of coal micro-surface varies from 95.40 to 9626.41 MPa,while the adhesion varies from 15.08 to 436.22 nN,and they both exhibit a trend of"M"shape with the increase of metamorphism.Furthermore,a high correlation exists between adhesion and microtopography fluctuation.In most cases,the adhesion is larger in the concavity area and smaller in the convexity area.The research results may provide a new method for revealing the occurrence and migration of CBM and ensure efficient and safe CBM exploitation.