Prediction of face advance rate and determination of the operation efficiency in retreat longwall mining panel using rock engineering system

A new approach for prediction of face advance rete (FAR) prior to mining operation and determination of the operation efficiency after mining operation in retreat longwall mining panel is presented based upon the concepts of rock engineering system (RES). For this purpose, six longwall panels considered in Parvadeh-I coal mine. Seven major effective parameters on FAR was selected including coal mine roof rating, gas propagation, safety factor of longwall face, ratio of joint spacing to cutting depth at longwall face, longwall face inclination, panel width, floor rock mass rating. To performance evaluation of the presented model, the relationship between the average vulnerability indexes of advance operation with FAR was determined in considered panels with coefficient of determination (R2) equal to 0.884 that indicate relatively acceptable correlation and compatibility. Investigations of the research indicated that it is possible to determine the actual operation efficiency under fair conditions by a RES-based model. The inevitable reduction of FAR for each longwall panel was determined by presented model that the difference amount between the maximum possible practical face advance rate (FARmpp) and recorded actual face advance rate (FARa) indicate the operation efficiency. Applied approach in this paper can be used to prediction of FAR in retreat longwall mining panel for same conditions that can have many benefits, including better and more accurate planning for the sales market and mine operation. Also, presented method in this paper can be applied as a useful tool to determination of actual operation efficiency for other sections and extraction methods in coal mines.

Proactive reconciliation as a tool for integrating mining and milling operations

Historically, reconciliation has been viewed as a quality test of model estimates as well as a powerful tool for detecting and correcting problems in all stages of mine operations from resource estimation to metal production. If used correctly, reconciliation helps to better predict the life of mine(LOM), improves the adherence of production plans to the respective budget, and allows for effective control of the mining and milling processes. However, the accuracy of reconciliation results requires that all input data must be generated in accordance with the principles of sampling correctness. Furthermore, complete reconciliation systems can become extremely complex and must be carefully analyzed in order to provide realistic and helpful conclusions. Based on these concepts, this paper presents a successful proactive reconciliation system applied to a copper and gold mine in Brazil for monitoring and integrating mining and milling operations.

A developed dual-site Langmuir model to represent the high-pressure methane adsorption and thermodynamic parameters in shale

Comprehending the mechanism of methane adsorption in shales is a crucial step towards optimizing the development of deep-buried shale gas. This is because the methane adsorbed in shale represents a significant proportion of the subsurface shale gas resource. To properly characterize the methane adsorption on shale, which exhibits diverse mineral compositions and multi-scale pore sizes, it is crucial to capture the energy heterogeneity of the adsorption sites. In this paper, a dual-site Langmuir model is proposed, which accounts for the temperature and pressure dependence of the density of the adsorbed phase. The model is applied to the isothermals of methane adsorption on shale, at pressures of up to 30 MPa and temperatures ranging from 40 to 100 ℃. The results show that the proposed model can describe the adsorption behavior of methane on shale more accurately than conventional models, which assume a constant value for the density of adsorbed phase. Furthermore, the proposed model can be extrapolated to higher temperatures and pressures. Thermodynamic parameters were analyzed using correctly derived equations. The results indicate that the widely used, but incorrect, equation would underestimate the isosteric heat of adsorption. Neglecting the real gas behavior, volume of the adsorbed phase, and energy heterogeneity of the adsorption sites can lead to overestimation of the isosteric heat of adsorption. Furthermore, the isosteric heat evaluated from excess adsorption data can only be used to make a rough estimate of the real isosteric heat at very low pressure.

Anomaly detection on displacement rates and deformation pattern features using tree-based algorithm in Japan and Indonesia

Research on strain anomalies and large earthquakes based on temporal and spatial crustal activities has been rapidly growing due to data availability, especially in Japan and Indonesia. However, many research works used local-scale case studies that focused on a specific earthquake characteristic using knowledgedriven techniques, such as crustal deformation analysis. In this study, a data-driven-based analysis is used to detect anomalies using displacement rates and deformation pattern features extracted from daily global navigation satellite system(GNSS) data using a machine learning algorithm. The GNSS data with188 and 1181 continuously operating reference stations from Indonesia and Japan, respectively, are used to identify the anomaly of recent major earthquakes in the last two decades. Feature displacement rates and deformation patterns are processed in several window times with 2560 experiment scenarios to produce the best detection using tree-based algorithms. Tree-based algorithms with a single estimator(decision tree), ensemble bagging(bagging, random forest and Extra Trees), and ensemble boosting(AdaBoost, gradient boosting, LGBM, and XGB) are applied in the study. The experiment test using realtime scenario GNSSdailydatareveals high F1-scores and accuracy for anomaly detection using slope windowing 365 and 730 days of 91-day displacement rates and then 7-day deformation pattern features in tree-based algorithms. The results show the potential for medium-term anomaly detection using GNSS data without the need for multiple vulnerability assessments.

Experimental study on solid particle migration and production behaviors during marine natural gas hydrate dissociation by depressurization

Sand production is one of the main obstacles restricting gas extraction efficiency and safety from marine natural gas hydrate(NGH)reservoirs.Particle migration within the NGH reservoir dominates sand production behaviors,while their relationships were rarely reported,severely constrains quantitative evaluation of sand production risks.This paper reports the optical observations of solid particle migration and production from micrometer to mesoscopic scales conditioned to gravel packing during depressurization-induced NGH dissociation for the first time.Theoretical evolutionary modes of sand migration are established based on experimental observations,and its implications on field NGH are comprehensively discussed.Five particle migration regimes of local borehole failure,continuous collapse,wormhole expansion,extensive slow deformation,and pore-wall fluidization are proved to occur during depressurization.The types of particle migration regimes and their transmission modes during depressurization are predominantly determined by initial hydrate saturation.In contrast,the depressurization mainly dominates the transmission rate of the particle migration regimes.Furthermore,both the cumulative mass and the medium grain size of the produced sand decrease linearly with increasing initial methane hydrate(MH)saturation.Discontinuous gas bubble emission,expansion,and explosion during MH dissociation delay sand migration into the wellbore.At the same time,continuous water flow is a requirement for sand production during hydrate dissociation by depressurization.The experiments enlighten us that a constitutive model that can illustrate visible particle migration regimes and their transmission modes is urgently needed to bridge numerical simulation and field applications.Optimizing wellbore layout positions or special reservoir treatment shall be important for mitigating sand production tendency during NGH exploitation.

Study on Application of Highwall Mining System under Weak Geological Condition in Thailand

The EGAT Mac Moh coal mine is an open-cut coal mine in Thailand that produces about 16 million tons of lignite annually to generate 2,400 MW of electricity. The surface mine pit covers is 4 km by 7 km with mining depths ranging up to 260 m. A large pit slope is formed with the progression of the mining operation. However, massive slides in the pit slope occur often due to the existence weak planes such as faults and bedding, and the weak mechanical properties of the rocks. Hence, 200 m to 300 m boundaries of rock block including coal seams are left in front of faults in order to prevent slides and maintain the stability of the pit slope. As a result, there are significant coal reserves beneath the abandoned area along the pit slope. The focus of this paper is on the applicability and design of the highwall mining for recovering much of the coal left along the pit slope.

Effects of pressure relief holes on coal burst:Insights from true-triaxial unloading tests

Drilling pressure relief is one of the methods to reduce the risk of coal bursts in deep mines.However,the effect of the drill hole orientations has not been studied well enough to understand their impact on the burst failure mechanism.In this study,we investigated two designs of drill hole orientations.The first design includes drill holes located on the upper free face of the rectangular samples and labelled as upper hole(UH)and centre hole(CH)e the long axes of the drill holes are aligned with minor principal stress,s3,direction.The second design includes drill holes at the top(TH)and the side(SH)of the rectangular samples in which the long axes of the drill holes are aligned with the maximum,s1,and intermediate principal stress,s2,directions,respectively.The coal samples with the proposed drill hole orientations were subjected to the true-triaxial unloading coal burst tests.The results show that the drill holes reduce the risk of coal bursts.However,we found that the intensity of coal burst was significantly reduced with the SH-type,followed by the CH-types.We also observed that the coal burst intensity is reduced better for the CH,UH,TH,and SH-type drilling patterns.However,it was found that the orientations of drill holes have little influence on the failure mode(splitting).The acoustic emission(AE)activities for coal with drill holes noticeably decreased,especially for the UH and CH layouts.The drill holes reduced the upper limit of the AE entropy(chaos of microcracks generation).However,regarding reducing the coal burst risk,the TH and SH are less effective than UH and CH.

Proppant transport in rough fracture networks using supercritical CO_(2)

Proppant transport within fractures is one of the most critical tasks in oil,gas and geothermal reservoir stimulation,as it largely determines the ultimate performance of the operating well.Proppant transport in rough fracture networks is still a relatively new area of research and the associated transport mechanisms are still unclear.In this study,representative parameters of rough fracture surfaces formed by supercritical CO_(2) fracturing were used to generate a rough fracture network model based on a spectral synthesis method.Computational fluid dynamics(CFD)coupled with the discrete element method(DEM)was used to study proppant transport in this rough fracture network.To reveal the turning transport mechanism of proppants into branching fractures at the intersections of rough fracture networks,a comparison was made with the behavior within smooth fracture networks,and the effect of key pumping parameters on the proppant placement in a secondary fracture was analyzed.The results show that the transport behavior of proppant in rough fracture networks is very different from that of the one in the smooth fracture networks.The turning transport mechanisms of proppant into secondary fractures in rough fracture networks are gravity-driven sliding,high velocity fluid suspension,and fracture structure induction.Under the same injection conditions,supercritical CO_(2)with high flow Reynolds number still has a weaker ability to transport proppant into secondary fractures than water.Thickening of the supercritical CO_(2)needs to be increased beyond a certain value to have a significant effect on proppant carrying,and under the temperature and pressure conditions of this paper,it needs to be increased more than 20 times(about 0.94 m Pa s).Increasing the injection velocity and decreasing the proppant concentration facilitates the entry of proppant into the branching fractures,which in turn results in a larger stimulated reservoir volume.The results help to understand the proppant transport and placement process in rough fracture networks formed by reservoir stimulation,and provide a theoretical reference for the optimization of proppant pumping parameters in hydraulic fracturing.

Creep characteristics of coal and rock investigated by nanoindentation

In coal mining industry,with the depth growing of coal mines,the creep behaviours of coal and rock can extensively affect the mining safety,coalbed methane recovery and geo-sequestration.To acquire a better insight into their creep characteristics,an efficient and robust researching technique,nanoindentation,was applied to investigate the creep performances of coal and rock samples obtained from two coal mines in the east of China.Creep characteristics were reflected by evaluating the curves of creep depth versus creep time of nanoindentation tests during the load-holding period at the peak load of 30 mN.These curves can be divided into two stages:transient stage and steady stage;and the time of load-holding period of 5 s,which is the dividing point between two stages,can efficiently avoid the influence of creep displacement on the unloading curves.The exponential function can perfectly fit creep curves and Kelvin model can be used to calculate the rheological parameters of coal and rock samples.Calculated results yield values for the creep modulus and viscosity terms of coal and rock.This study also settled a particular emphasis on the selection of the positions of indentations to obtain the rheological properties of mineralogical constituents in heterogonous coal and rock samples and their elastic aftereffect.

Influence of ECAP as grain refinement technique on microstructure evolution, mechanical properties and corrosion behavior of pure aluminum

Pure aluminum samples were processed by equal channel angular pressing（ECAP） up to 10 passes at room temperature. The effects of the ECAP number of passes on the microstructure evolution, the mechanical properties, deformation homogeneity and corrosion behavior of the processed samples were fully investigated. The imposed strain resulted in an obvious reduction in the grain size from 390 μm before ECAP down to 1.8, 0.4, and 0.3 μm after ECAP up to 2, 4 and 10 passes, respectively. The microhardness, deformation homogeneity and tensile strength were increased while the elongation decreased with the increase of ECAP number of passes. Immersion tests, open circuit potential, Tafel polarization, cyclic polarization and potentiostatic measurements in 3.5% Na Cl solution revealed an obvious improvement in the corrosion resistance of ECAP processed samples compared with the as-cast sample. The increase of the number of passes can be used successfully in producing ultra-fine grained（UFG） bulk pure aluminum sample with a high misorientation angle, reasonably high mechanical properties and corrosion resistance.

Assessment of digital image correlation method in determining large scale cemented rockfill strains

A conventional contact method(using linear transducers)and a non-contact method are deployed to measure the axial and lateral deformations of large scale cylindrical cemented rockfill specimens.Experimental works incorporating two pinhole cameras to create one stereovision by digital image correlation shows that the non-contact method is as reliable for testing large cylindrical specimens as measurements done by using linear variable displacement transformer and string potentiometer.Considering this particular large specimen,the experiment resulted in the acceptable mean difference between lateral strain using both methods is 5.1 percent,and 14.5 percent for the axial strain.This occurrence is inevitable due to the heterogeneity of the concrete system and the placement of the monitoring point in digital image correlation method,although the comparison of stress-strain relationship in both methods still indicates a conformity.Based on the results of the present experiments,the authors recommend the noncontact method for a detailed investigation of the material behavior during the uniaxial compressive strength tests.Full field strain measurement enables this digital method to examine local strains near cracks at any point,a very useful tool for studying material deformation behavior.

Effects of fibers on expansive shotcrete mixtures consisting of calcium sulfoaluminate cement,ordinary Portland cement,and calcium sulfate

The mining industry often uses shotcrete for ground stabilization. However, cracking within shotcrete is commonly observed, which delays production schedules and increases maintenance costs. A possible crack reduction method is using expansive shotcrete mixture consisting of calcium sulfoaluminate cement(CSA), ordinary Portland cement(OPC), and calcium sulfate(CS) to reduce shrinkage. Furthermore, fibers can be added to the mixture to restrain expansion and impede cracking. The objective of this paper is to study the effects of nylon fiber, glass fiber, and steel fiber on an expansive shotcrete mixture that can better resist cracking. In this study, parameters such as density, water absorption, volume of permeable voids, unconfined compressive strength(UCS), splitting tensile strength(STS), and volume change of fiber-added expansive mixtures were determined at different time periods(i.e. the strengths on the 28 th day, and the volume changes on the 1 st, 7 th, 14 th, 21 st, and 28 th days). The results show that addition of fibers can improve mixture durability, in the form of decreased water absorption and reduced permeable pore space content. Moreover, the expansion of the CSA-OPC-CS mixture was restrained up to50% by glass fiber, up to 43% by nylon fiber, and up to 28% by steel fiber. The results show that the STS was improved by 57% with glass fiber addition, 43% with steel fiber addition, and 38% with nylon fiber addition. The UCS was also increased by 31% after steel fiber addition, 26% after nylon fiber addition, and16% after glass fiber addition. These results suggest that fiber additions to the expansive shotcrete mixtures can improve durability and strengths while controlling expansion.

Performance comparison of novel chemical agents in improving oil recovery from tight sands through spontaneous imbibition

Tight sands are abundant in nanopores leading to a high capillary pressure and normally a low fluid injectivity.As such,spontaneous imbibition might be an effective mechanism for improving oil recovery from tight sands after fracturing.The chemical agents added to the injected water can alter the interfacial properties,which could help further enhance the oil recovery by spontaneous imbibition.This study explores the possibility of using novel chemicals to enhance oil recovery from tight sands via spontaneous imbibition.We experimentally examine the effects of more than ten different chemical agents on spontaneous imbibition,including a cationic surfactant(C12 TAB),two anionic surfactants(0242 and 0342),an ionic liquid(BMMIM BF4),a high pH solution(NaBO2),and a series of house-made deep eutectic solvents(DES3-7,9,11,and 14).The interfacial tensions(IFT)between oil phase and some chemical solutions are also determined.Experimental results indicate that both the ionic liquid and cationic surfactant used in this study are detrimental to spontaneous imbibition and decrease the oil recovery from tight sands,even though cationic surfactant significantly decreases the oil-water IFT while ionic liquid does not.The high pH NaBO2 solution does not demonstrate significant effect on oil recovery improvement and IFT reduction.The anionic surfactants(O242 and O342)are effective in enhancing oil recovery from tight sands through oil-water IFT reduction and emulsification effects.The DESs drive the rock surface to be more water-wet,and a specific formulation(DES9)leads to much improvement on oil recovery under counter-current imbibition condition.This preliminary study would provide some knowledge about how to optimize the selection of chemicals for improving oil recovery from tight reservoirs.

Gold Characterization by MLA and Technological Tests-Discussion of Sample Preparation and Results

Gold has been present throughout the history of mankind and used to make jewelry and coins, and recently, acquired several industrial uses. The price of gold in international market had a significant increasing, surpassing 100% in the last five years. Thereby, deposits with low levels of gold content, gold with complex associations or in a very fine particle size became exploitable again, allowing new projects and expansion of existing ones. However, for maximum process efficiency is indispensable a deep knowledge of the characteristics of these minerals and their behavior in face of beneficiation processes. Consequently, an accurate routine for mineralogical and technological characterization is essential.

Simulation and optimization approach for uncertainty-based short-term planning in open pit mines

Accuracy in predictions leads to better planning with a minimum of opportunity lost. In open pit mining,the complexity of operations, coupled with a highly uncertain and dynamic production environment,limit the accuracy of predictions and force a reactive planning approach to mitigate deviations from original plans. A simulation optimization framework/tool is presented in this paper to account for uncertainties in mining operations for robust short-term production planning and proactive decision making. This framework/tool uses a discrete event simulation model of mine operations, which interacts with a goalprogramming based mine operational optimization tool to develop an uncertainty based short-term schedule. Using scenario analysis, this framework allows the planner to make proactive decisions to achieve the mine's operational and long-term objectives. This paper details the development of simulation and optimization models and presents the implementation of the framework on an iron ore mine case study for verification through scenario analysis.

Strategic mining options optimization:Open pit mining, underground mining or both

Near-surface deposits that extend to considerable depths are often amenable to both open pit mining and/or underground mining. This paper investigates the strategy of mining options for an orebody using a Mixed Integer Linear Programming(MILP) optimization framework. The MILP formulation maximizes the Net Present Value(NPV) of the reserve when extracted with(i) open pit mining,(ii) underground mining, and(iii) concurrent open pit and underground mining. Comparatively, implementing open pit mining generates a higher NPV than underground mining. However considering the investment required for these mining options, underground mining generates a better return on investment than open pit mining. Also, in the concurrent open pit and underground mining scenario, the optimizer prefers extracting blocks using open pit mining. Although the underground mine could access ore sooner, the mining cost differential for open pit mining is more than compensated for by the discounting benefits associated with earlier underground mining.

Experimental investigation on the nanoindentation viscoelastic constitutive model of quartz and kaolinite in mudstone

The creep behaviors in deep underground engineering structures,especially in soft rocks,have a remarkable impact on the long-term stability of the excavations,which finally leads to the high risk and failure of it.Accordingly,it is essential to recognize the time-dependent deformation through the investigation of this phenomenon.In this study,the creep behaviors of soft rocks were examined to help understand the underlying mechanism of the extended time-dependent deformation.Due to the limited results about the time-dependent properties of the constituents of the rock that reveal their heterogeneity,the targeting nanoindentation technique(TNIT),was adopted to investigate the viscoelastic characteristics of kaolinite and quartz in a two-constituent mudstone sample.The TNIT consists of identifications of mineralogical ingredients in mudstone and nanoindentation experiments on each identified constituent.After conducting experiments,the unloading stages of the typical indentation curves were analyzed to calculate the hardness and elastic modulus of both elements in mudstone.Additionally,the 180 s load-holding stages with the peak load of 50 mN were transformed into the typical creep strain-time curves for fitting analysis by using the Kelvin model,the standard viscoelastic model,and the extended viscoelastic model.Fitting results show that the standard viscoelastic model not only can perfectly express the nanoindentation creep behaviors of both kaolinite and quartz but also can produce suitable constants used to measure their creep parameters.The creep parameters of kaolinite are much smaller than that of quartz,which causes the considerable time-dependent deformation of the soft mudstone.Eventually,the standard viscoelastic model was also verified on the quartz in a sandstone sample.

Complexity analysis of blast-induced vibrations in underground mining: A case study

Blasting in geological bodies is an industrial process acting in an environment characterized by high uncertainties (natural joints, faults, voids, abrupt structural changes), which are transposed into the process parameters (e.g. energetic transfer to rock mass, hole deviations, misfires, vibrations, fly-rock, etc.). The approach to this problem searching for the "optimum" result can be ineffective. The geological environment is marked out by too many uncertainties, to have an "optimum" suitable to different applications. Researching for "Robustness" in a blast design gives rise to much more efficiency. Robustness is the capability of the system to behave constantly under varying conditions, without leading to unexpected results. Since the geology varies from site to site, setting a robust method can grant better results in varying environments, lowering the costs and increasing benefits and safety. Complexity Analysis (C.A.) is an innovative approach to systems. C.A. allows analyzing the Complexity of the Blast System and the criticality of each variable (drilling, charging and initiation parameters). The lower is the complexity, the more robust is the system, and the lower is the possibility of unexpected results. The paper presents the results obtained thanks to the C.A. approach in an underground gypsum quarry (Italy), exploited by conventional rooms and pillars method by drilling and blasting. The application of C.A. led to a reliable solution to reduce the charge per delay, hence reducing the impact of ground vibration on the surrounding structures. The analysis of the correlation degree between the variables allowed recognizing empirical laws as well.

Effects of Anodizing Parameters in Tartaric-Sulphuric Acid on Coating Thickness and Corrosion Resistance of Al 2024 T3 Alloy

2024 T3 is one of aluminium alloys which are widely used in the aircraft structures. Anodizing of alluminium alloy in tartaric-sulphuric acid (TSA) electrolyte is developed to obtain more environmentally-friendly process and to produce anodize layer with better corrosion resistance. In this research work, the influences of anodizing parameters of Al 2024 T3 in TSA on the thickness, weight and corrosion resistance of the anodize layer are studied. Corrosion resistance test was carried out by conducting salt spray test for 336 hours and anodic polarization measurements using potentiostat. Results of three-factor analysis of variance (ANOVA) demonstrated that the most influencing factor that determines the thickness and weight of the anodize layer is temperature, followed by applied voltage, duration of anodizing, voltage-temperature interaction, interaction of temperature-duration of anodizing, interaction of voltage-temperature-duration of anodizing, and interaction of voltage and duration of anodizing. The pit density and corrosion current density (icorr) were found to be dependent on the coating thickness. The anodize layer with a thickness of higher than 3 μm was not experienced to pitting corrosion during 336 hours of salt spray test.

Identifying the most explainable fault ruptured of the 2018 Palu-Donggala earthquake in Indonesia using coulomb failure stress and geological field report

This study investigates the relation between the Coulomb failure stress of the mainshock with the aftershocks sequence following the 2018 Palu-Donggala earthquake in Indonesia.We calculate the Coulomb failure stress using the available coseismic fault models,which had varied moment magnitudes between M_W7.53~M_W7.62.Different interpretations of the fault sources were suggested by previous studies.While two fault models suggested that one inland fault segment ruptured during the earthquake,another fault model proposed that two fault segments ruptured inland of Central Sulawesi and along the coast of Palu bay.We further overlay the positive and negative values of Coulomb failure stress with the reported relocated aftershock.We find that only by conducting Coulomb failure stress analysis,we can not favour the preference of the coseismic fault which explains aftershock distribution.This investigation demonstrates that additional observational data from geological field surveys are required to identify the surface rupture in comparison with the coseismic fault model.