An assessment of coal pillar system stability criteria based on a mechanistic evaluation of the interaction between coal pillars and the overburden

Coal pillar design has historically assigned a factor of safety(Fo S) or stability factor(SF) according to their estimated strength and the assumed overburden load acting on them. Acceptable Fo S values have been assigned based on past mining experience or a statistical link between Fo S and probability of failure(Po F). Pillar width-to-height(w/h) ratio has long been established as having a material influence on both pillar strength and its potential failure mode. However, there has been significant disagreement on using both factor of safety(Fo S) and w/h as part of pillar system stability criterion, as compared to using Fo S in isolation. This paper will argue that there are valid technical reasons to bring w/h ratio into system stability criteria(other than its influence on pillar strength), as it is related to the post-failure stiffness of the pillar, as measured in situ, and its interaction with overburden stiffness. When overburden stiffness is also brought into pillar system stability considerations, two issues emerge. The first is the width-todepth(W/D) ratio of the panel and whether it is sub-critical or super-critical from a surface subsidence perspective. The second relates to a re-evaluation of pillar Fo S based on whether the pillar is in an elastic or non-elastic(i.e., post-yield) state in its as-designed condition, as this is relevant to maintaining overburden stiffness at the highest possible level. The significance of the model is the potential to maximise both reserve recovery and mining efficiencies without any discernible increase in geotechnical risk, particularly in thick seams and higher depth of cover mining situations. At a time when mining economics are, at best, marginal, removing potentially unnecessary design conservatism is of interest to all mine operators and is an important topic for discussion amongst the geotechnical community.

Composite active control system of roof and side truss cable for large section coal roadway in fold coal pillar area

In order to solve the surrounding rock control problem of large section gangue replacement roadway under complicated conditions, this paper analyzed the impact to the roadway controlling produced by the geological conditions such as high ground stress, folded structure tilted roof asymmetry and soft wall rock, and built the tilt layered roof structural mechanics model to clarify the increase span mechanism of the weak coal instability. Then, we proposed the combined control system including roof inclined truss cable, coal-side cable-channel steel and intensive bolt support. And then by building the structural mechanics model of roof inclined truss cable system, the support principle was described. Besides, according to this model, we deduced the calculation formula of cable anchoring force and its tensile stress. Finally surrounding rock control technology of large section roadway in fold coal pillar area was formed. Field practice shows that the greatest roof convergence of gangue replacement roadway is 158 mm and coal-side deformation is 243 mm. Roadway deformation is controlled effectively and technical support is provided for replacement mining.

Synergistic instability of coal pillar and roof system and filling method based on plate model

The security challenges from room and pillar gobs include land subsidence, spontaneous combustion of coal pillars and mine flood caused by gob water. To explore the instability mechanism of room and pillar gob, we established a mechanical model of elastic plate on elastic foundation in which pillars and hard roofs were considered as continuous Winkler foundations and elastic plates, respectively. The synergetic instability of pillar and roof system was analyzed based on plate bending theory and catastrophe theory. In addition, mechanical conditions and math criterion of roof failure and overall instability of coal pillar and roof system were given. Through analyzing both advantages and disadvantages of some technologies such as induced caving, filling, gob sealing and isolation, we presented a new filling method named box-filling, in view of box foundation theory, to control the disasters of ground collapse, water inrush and mine fire. In a gob's treatment project in Ordos, safety assessment and filling design of a room and pillar gob have been done by the mechanical model. The results show that the gob will collapse when the pillars' average yield band is wider than 0.93 m, and box-filling can control land collapse, mine flood and mine fire economically and efficiently. So it is worth to study further and popularize.

Analysis on stability of pillar and stiff roof system in the gob area

Based on the open stope method,the stability of the gob area was decided bypillars and stiff roof.Therefore,it was dispensable to leave pillars with long-term strengthand enough size to support the stiff roof during mining activities.Based on the miningconditions of Baixiang wollastonite mine in Changxing County of Zhejiang,while consideringpillars with different shape,irregular size,and distribution,the load imposed on the pillarswas analyzed,and the safety coefficient was calculated in order to determine theirsupport status.The strength of stiff roof was calculated by means of analytical solution-theory of rectangle thin plate rested on elastic foundation.The system stability ofpillar and stiff roof was analyzed according to the proportion of the total cross section areaof pillars to the stiff roof area above the mined area.

Instability criterion for the system composed of elastic beam and strain-softening pillar based on gradient-dependent plasticity

A mechanical model is proposed for the system of elastic beam and strain-softening pillar where strain localization is initiated at peak shear stress. To obtain the plastic deformation of the pillar due to the shear slips of multiple shear bands, the pillar is divided into several narrow slices where compressive deformation is treated as uniformity. In the light of the compatibility condition of deformation, the total compressive displacement of the pillar is equal to the displacement of the beam in the middle span. An instability criterion is derived analytically based on the energy principle using a known size of localization band according to gradient dependent plasticity. The main advantage of the present model is that the effects of the constitutive parameters of rock and the geometrical size of structure are reflected in the criterion. The condition that the derivative of distributed load with respect to the deflection of the beam in the middle span is less than zero is not only equivalent to, but also even more concise in form than the instability criterion. To study the influences of constitutive parameters and geometrical size on stability, some examples are presented.

Estimating shear strength of high-level pillars supported with cemented backfilling using the HoekeBrown strength criterion

Deep metal mines are often mined using the high-level pillars with subsequent cementation backfilling(HLSCB)mining method.At the design stage,it is therefore important to have a reasonable method for determining the shear strength of the high-level pillars(i.e.cohesion and internal friction angle)when they are supported by cemented backfilling.In this study,a formula was derived for the upper limit of the confining pressure σ3max on a high-level pillar supported by cemented backfilling in a deep metal mine.A new method of estimating the shear strength of such pillars was then proposed based on the Hoek eBrown failure criterion.Our analysis indicates that the horizontal stress σhh acting on the cemented backfill pillar can be simplified by expressing it as a constant value.A reasonable and effective value for σ3max can then be determined.The value of s3max predicted using the proposed method is generally less than 3 MPa.Within this range,the shear strength of the high-level pillar is accurately calculated using the equivalent MohreCoulomb theory.The proposed method can effectively avoid the calculation of inaccurate shear strength values for the high-level pillars when the original HoekeBrown criterion is used in the presence of large confining pressures,i.e.the situation in which the cohesion value is too large and the friction angle is too small can effectively be avoided.The proposed method is applied to a deep metal mine in China that is being excavated using the HLSCB method.The shear strength parameters of the high-level pillars obtained using the proposed method were input in the numerical simulations.The numerical results show that the recommended level heights and sizes of the high-level pillars and rooms in the mine are rational.

Key technology study on pillar mining under the system of room and pillar mining

Taken taifeng coal mine in Mongolia for example, discussed the stability and controllability about advance pillars which locate at the front of working face and makes simulation on pillar with the software UDEC3.1. The failure styles of advance pillars are shear failure and compression failure through analyzing the stability of advance pillars. The paper concludes that can protect advance pillars from shear failure by controlling coefficient of volumetric expansion of mining field rock and supports＇ working resistance and can also protect it from compression failure by advance supporting, increasing setting pressure and working resistance. Two advance pillars are influenced and the main failure form is compression failure through the numerical simulation.

Investigation of stress-induced progressive failure of mine pillars using a Voronoi grain-based breakable block model

The Voronoi grain-based breakable block model(VGBBM)based on the combined finite-discrete element method(FDEM)was proposed to explicitly characterize the failure mechanism and predict the deformation behavior of hard-rock mine pillars.The influence of the microscopic parameters on the macroscopic mechanical behavior was investigated using laboratory-scale models.The field-scale pillar models(width-to-height,W/H=1,2 and 3)were calibrated based on the empirically predicted stress-strain curves of Creighton mine pillars.The results indicated that as the W/H ratios increased,the VGBBM effectively predicted the transition from strain-softening to pseudo-ductile behavior in pillars,and explicitly captured the separated rock slabs and the V-shaped damage zones on both sides of pillars and conjugate shear bands in core zones of pillars.The volumetric strain field revealed significant compressional deformation in core zones of pillars.While the peak strains of W/H=1 and 2 pillars were relatively consistent,there were significant differences in the strain energy storage and release mechanism.W/H was the primary factor influencing the deformation and strain energy in the pillar core.The friction coefficient of the structural plane was also an important factor affecting the pillar strength and the weakest discontinuity angle.The fracture surface was controlled by the discontinuity angle and the friction coefficient.This study demonstrated the capability of the VGBBM in predicting the strengths and deformation behavior of hard-rock pillars in deep mine design.

Pillar effect induced by ultrahigh phosphorous/nitrogen doping enables graphene/MXene film with excellent cycling stability for alkali metal ion storage

Graphene's large theoretical surface area and high conductivity make it an attractive anode material for potassium-ion batteries(PIBs).However,its practical application is hindered by small interlayer distance and long ion transfer distance.Herein,this paper aims to address the issue by introducing MXene through a simple and scalable method for assembling graphene and realizing ultrahigh P doping content.The findings reveal that MXene and P-C bonds have a "pillar effect" on the structure of graphene,and the P-C bond plays a primary role.In addition,N/P co-doping introduces abundant defects,providing more active sites for K^(+) storage and facilitating K^(+) adsorption.As expected,the developed ultrahigh phosphorous/nitrogen co-doped flexible reduced graphene oxide/MXene(NPrGM) electrode exhibits remarkable reversible discharge capacity(554 mA hg^(-1) at 0.05 A g^(-1)),impressive rate capability(178 mA h g^(-1) at 2 A g^(-1)),and robust cyclic stability(0.0005% decay per cycle after 10,000 cycles at 2 A g^(-1)).Furthermore,the assembled activated carbon‖NPrGM potassium-ion hybrid capacitor(PIHC) can deliver an impressive energy density of 131 W h kg^(-1) and stable cycling performance with 98.1% capacitance retention after5000 cycles at 1 A g^(-1).Such a new strategy will effectively promote the practical application of graphene materials in PIBs/PIHCs and open new avenues for the scalable development of flexible films based on two-dimensional materials for potential applications in energy storage,thermal interface,and electromagnetic shielding.

Numerical and theoretical study of load transfer behavior during cascading pillar failure

To further study the load transfer mechanism of roofemulti-pillarefloor system during cascading pillar failure(CPF),numerical simulation and theoretical analysis were carried out to study the three CPF modes according to the previous experimental study on treble-pillar specimens,e.g.successive failure mode(SFM),domino failure mode(DFM)and compound failure mode(CFM).Based on the finite element code rock failure process analysis(RFPA^(2D)),numerical models of treble-pillar specimen with different mechanical properties were established to reproduce and verify the experimental results of the three CPF modes.Numerical results show that the elastic rebound of roofefloor system induced by pillar instability causes dynamic disturbance to adjacent pillars,resulting in sudden load increases and sudden jump displacement of adjacent pillars.The phenomena of load transfer in the roofemulti-pillarefloor system,as well as the induced accelerated damage behavior in adjacent pillars,were discovered and studied.In addition,based on the catastrophe theory and the proposed mechanical model of treble-pillar specimen edisc spring group system,a potential function that characterizes the evolution characteristics of roof emulti-pillarefloor system was established.The analytical expressions of sudden jump and energy release of treble-pillar specimenedisc spring group system of the three CPF modes were derived according to the potential function.The numerical and theoretical results show good agreement with the experimental results.This study further reveals the physical essence of load transfer during CPF of roof emulti-pillarefloor system,which provides references for mine design,construction and disaster prevention.

Experimental studies on pillar failure characteristics based on acoustic emission location technique

Acoustic emission （AE） technique is a useful tool for investigating rock damage mechanism, and is used to study the temporal-spatial evolution process of microcracks during the similar pillar material experiment. A combined AE location algorithm was developed based on the Least square algorithm and Geiger location algorithm. The pencil break test results show that the location precision can meet the demand of microcrack monitoring. The 3D location of AE events can directly reflect the process of initiation, propagation and evolutionary of microcracks. During the loading process, stress is much likely concentrated on the area between pillar and roof of the specimen, where belongs to danger zone of macroscopic failure. When rock reaches its plastic deformation stage, AE events begin to decrease, which indicates that AE quiet period can be seen as precursor characteristic of rock failure.

Predicting pillar stability for underground mine using Fisher discriminant analysis and SVM methods

The purpose of this study is to apply some statistical and soft computing methods such as Fisher discriminant analysis （FDA） and support vector machines （SVMs） methodology to the determination of pillar stability for underground mines selected from various coal and stone mines by using some index and mechanical properties, including the width, the height, the ratio of the pillar width to its height, the uniaxial compressive strength of the rock and pillar stress. The study includes four main stages： sampling, testing, modeling and assessment of the model performances. During the modeling stage, two pillar stability prediction models were investigated with FDA and SVMs methodology based on the statistical learning theory. After using 40 sets of measured data in various mines in the world for training and testing, the model was applied to other 6 data for validating the trained proposed models. The prediction results of SVMs were compared with those of FDA as well as the measured field values. The general performance of models developed in this study is close; however, the SVMs exhibit the best performance considering the performance index with the correct classification rate Prs by re-substitution method and Pcv by cross validation method. The results show that the SVMs approach has the potential to be a reliable and practical tool for determination of pillar stability for underground mines.

Pillar植入系统联合鼻部手术治疗OSAHS 38例疗效分析

目的探讨Pillar植入系统联合鼻部手术治疗阻塞性睡眠呼吸暂停低通气综合征(OSAHS)的效果。方法选取2006年7至2008年11月本科OSAHS患者38例,38例均同期行Pillar植入系统治疗和鼻部手术,术前及术后6个月均行多导睡眠呼吸监测(polysomnography,PSG),对术前及术后的PSG结果(包括AHI、LSaO2)进行统计学分析。结果术后6个月进行PSG监测,治愈10例,好转17例,减轻7例,无效4例,总有效率达89.5%;所有患者无手术并发症发生。结论Pillar植入系统联合鼻部手术治疗单纯型鼾症(primary snoring,PS)及轻-中度OSAHS可取得良好效果。

微创经椎弓根Pillar植入治疗胸腰椎压缩性骨折疗效及相关并发症分析

目的 ：探讨经椎弓根pillar植入治疗胸腰椎压缩性骨折的临床效果及相关并发症。方法 ：回顾分析2010年1月～2013年4月采用微创经椎弓根pillar置入治疗胸腰椎压缩性骨折患者27例的临床疗效。手术前后进行疼痛强度视觉模拟评分（visual analogue scale,VAS）、Oswestry功能障碍指数（Oswestry disability index,ODI）、伤椎前缘高度比值、矢状面指数（伤椎前缘高度/伤椎后缘高度×100%）、伤椎Cobb′s角。结果：27例患者共植入54枚椎体支柱块,均获得6～26个月的随访,平均手术时间为（47.6±8.5）min,平均术中失血量（28.4±12.3）ml。术后CT证实17例患者椎弓根皮质有破裂,其中外侧皮质破裂15例,内侧皮质破裂2例,其中1例患者因内侧壁破裂引起下肢神经症状,经治疗后缓解。术后1周及末次随访时VAS评分、ODI值、椎体前缘高度比值、矢状面指数值及伤椎Cobb′s角与术前比较差异均具有统计学意义（P〈0.05）,而术后1周与末次随访时比较差异无统计学意义（P〉0.05）,椎体支柱块未发生移位或塌陷。结论：微创经椎弓根pillar置入是治疗胸腰椎压缩骨折一种安全、有效、可行的方法,严格掌握手术适应证、术中规范操作可降低并发症的发生。

Pillar植入术治疗阻塞性睡眠呼吸暂停综合征病人的观察和护理

[目的]探讨Pillar植入术治疗阻塞性睡眠呼吸暂停综合征(OSAS)的护理及术后随访。[方法]46例鼾症病人经我导睡眠仪(PSG)监测分为轻至中度OSAS(28例)、重度OSAS(6例)和单纯鼾症(12例)3组,行Pillar植入术,并给予全面的身心护理和健康教育,术前及术后1个月和6个月均进行鼾声视觉类比量表(VAS)评分和PSG监测。[结果]术后随访6个月,Pillar植入系统对于轻至中度OSAS病人和单纯鼾症病人打鼾的改善显著,而对于重度OSAS病人疗效较差。28例轻至中度OSAS病人治愈4例,显效10例,有效5例,无效9例,总有效率达67.9%,呼吸紊乱指数(AHI)由术前的每小时17.03次±10.63次到术后6个月降至每小时11.17次±9.52次;6例重度OSAS病人有效1例(1/6),AHI由术前每小时62.93次±9.21次降至每小时55.42次±13.77次,46例病人术后无并发症。[结论]Pillar植入系统对于治疗鼾症可以有效地改善打鼾,对于睡眠呼吸暂停的改善轻至中度OSAS病人的疗效较好,而重度OSAS病人的疗效较差。而做好Pillar手术的护理,可帮助病人顺利完成手术治疗,减轻他们术前的忧虑和术后的痛苦,获得满意效果,提高生活质量。

Integration system research and development for three-dimensional laser scanning information visualization in goaf

An integration processing system of three-dimensional laser scanning information visualization in goaf was developed. It is provided with multiple functions, such as laser scanning information management for goaf, cloud data de-noising optimization, construction, display and operation of three-dimensional model, model editing, profile generation, calculation of goaf volume and roof area, Boolean calculation among models and interaction with the third party soft ware. Concerning this system with a concise interface, plentiful data input/output interfaces, it is featured with high integration, simple and convenient operations of applications. According to practice, in addition to being well-adapted, this system is favorably reliable and stable.

经皮Pillar植入椎体内治疗胸腰椎压缩性骨折的早期护理干预

总结了40例经皮Pillar植入椎体内治疗胸腰椎压缩性骨折患者的早期护理干预经验。包括术前做好早期准备工作,术后切实做好6个第一,做好VAS评分等。认为只有切实做好早期护理干预的各个环节,特别是6个第一,才能促进患者早日康复,重返社会。

Coupling effects of coal pillars of thick coal seams in large-space stopes and hard stratum on mine pressure

Concerning the issue of mine pressure behaviors occurred in fully mechanized caving mining of thick coal seams beneath hard stratum in Datong Mining Area, combined with thin and thick plate theory, the paper utilizes theoretical analysis, similar experiments, numerical simulations and field tests to study the influence of remaining coal pillars in Jurassic system goaf on hard stratum fractures, as well as mine pressure behaviors under their coupling effects. The paper concludes the solution formula of initial fault displacement in hard stratum caused by remaining coal pillars. Experiments prove that coupling effects can enhance mine pressure behaviors on working faces. When inter-layer inferior key strata fractures, mine pressure phenomenon such as significant roof weighting steps and increasing resistance in support.When inter-layer superior key strata fractures, the scope of overlying strata extends to Jurassic system goaf, dual-system stopes cut through, and remaining coal pillars lose stability. As a result, the bottom inferior key strata also lose stability. It causes huge impacts on working face, and the second mine pressure behaviors. These phenomena provide evidence for research on other similar mine strata pressure behaviors occurred in dual-system mines with remaining coal pillars.

Heavy rockbursts due to longwall mining near protective pillars:A case study

Rockburst represents a very dangerous phenomenon in deep underground mining in unfavourable conditions such as great depth, high horizontal stress, proximity of important tectonic structures, and unmined pillars. The case study describes a recorded heavy rockburst in the Czech part of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin, which occurred during longwall mining near the protective pillar. The artificial dividing of geological blocks and creation of mining protective pillars(shaft pillars, crosscut pillars etc.) is a dangerous task in light of rockbursts occurring mainly due to overstressing of remaining pillars. A simple model of this situation is presented. Natural and mining conditions are analysed and presented in detail as well as registered seismicity during longwall mining in the area. Recorded rockbursts in the area of interest are described and their causes discussed. Many rockbursts near protective pillars were recorded in this mining region. Methodical instructions for rockburst prevention in proximity of protective pillars as well as for gates driving were devised based on the evaluation of rockburst causes. The paper presents these principles for prevention.

Stability and control of room mining coal pillars-taking room mining coal pillars of solid backfill recovery as an example

The stability of room mining coal pillars during their secondary mining for recovering coal was analyzed. An analysis was performed for the damage and instability mechanism of coal pillars recovered by the caving mining method. During the damage progression of a single room coal pillar, the shape of the stress distribution in the pillar transformed from the initial stable saddle shape to the final arch-shaped distribution of critical instability. By combining the shapes of stress distribution in the coal pillars with the ultimate strength theory, the safe-stress value of coal pillar was obtained as 11.8 MPa. The mechanism of instability of coal pillar groups recovered by the caving mining method was explained by the domino effect. Since the room coal pillars mined and recovered by the traditional caving mining method were significantly influenced by the secondary mining during recovery, the coal pillars would go through a chain-type instability failure. Because of this limitation, the method of solid backfilling was proposed for mining and recovering room coal pillars, thus changing the transfer mechanism of stress caused by the secondary mining(recovery) of coal pillars. The mechanical model of the stope in the case of backfilling and recovering room coal pillars was built. The peak stress values inside coal pillars varied with the variance of backfilling ratio when the working face was advanced by 150 m. Furthermore, when the critical backfilling ratio was 80.6%, the instability failure of coal pillars would not occur during the solid backfill mining process. By taking Bandingliang Coal Mine as an example, the coal pillars' stability of stope under this backfilling ratio was studied, and a project scheme was designed.