Risk mitigation for rockfall hazards in steeply dipping coal seam: a case study in Xinjiang, northwestern China

Abstract

Many recent examples have shown that rockfalls can occur in underground steep coal mines. The stratigraphic circumstances, block formation mechanism, and cumulative damage effects of rockfalls in the longwalls of a steeply dipping coal seam (SDCS) make them detrimental to workplace safety. Therefore, this study examined an approach for mitigating rockfall hazards in SDCSs. A passive mesh system was installed to prevent the propagation of rockfalls, which decreased the number of collisions between the falling rocks and mining equipment. The interactions of the falling rocks and passive mesh were studied using a series of full-scale numerical impact tests. The following conclusions could be drawn. The displacement of the mesh increased with the rockfall kinetic energy, showing the characteristic of strain hardening. The peak stress appeared near the contact area between the rockfall and mesh, and it spread to the mesh edge in an X-shaped pattern. Stress concentrations were likely to occur in areas that were in direct contact with the mesh and mesh edges. The displacement of the mesh increased when the incidence angle increased, and the number of mesh cells entering the plastic state increased significantly. The internal energy ratio increased with an increase in the incidence angle, indicating that a greater incidence angle led to a larger amount of kinetic energy being transferred from the block into the internal energy of the passive mesh. Finally, the method was verified by comparing the numerical test with the on-site damaged equipment. The high replacement frequency of a passive mesh system and the annual fatality rate in the longwalls of SDCS were significantly improved. This study provided the design for a drapery mesh system for rockfall disaster prevention, particularly the mitigation of rockfall hazard risks in underground SDCSs.