Simulation of the coal mine ventilation with account for gob areas

Abstract

Mine ventilation network models are widely used in underground coal mining in Russia. The models cover a variety of practical problems ranging from simple air distribution in active mine workings to changes in the static air pressure gradient associated with complex technological or hazardous processes occurring in mines. Isolated gob areas are integral parts of ventilation networks in coal mines. The most commonly used underground coal extraction technology in Russia is the longwall mining. A gob forms when a coal seam is extracted, and the upper layers of the rock cave in. Gobs are isolated from active mine entries with seals, but there is always air leakages from active faces inducing the air circulation in isolated areas. Gobs join different coal seams and often become the sources of underground fires. Therefore, the inclusion of gobs in mine ventilation network models would help contain accidents and eliminate the caused damage. The study uses the method of representative elementary volumes to incorporate a porous medium into mine ventilation network models. Quadratic resistances are assigned to the edges of the model, where Kirchhoffs laws are valid. The aerodynamic resistances of the gob edges are calculated using the Ergun equation. The proposed method has been used to evaluate pressure gradients in the gob area of the Raspadskaya mine. Several scenarios of the aerodynamic resistance variation in the active mine workings surrounding the gob area, such as partial flooding and drilling of boreholes from the surface, have been simulated, and the corresponding changes in pressure gradients have been analyzed.