Study of the Stability Control of the Rock Surrounding Double-Key Strata Recovery Roadways in Shallow Seams

The stability control of the rock surrounding recovery roadways guarantees the safety of the extraction of equipment. Roof falling and support crushing are prone to occur in double-key strata (DKS) faces in shallow seams during the extraction of equipment. Therefore, this paper focuses on the stability control of the rock surrounding DKS recovery roadways by combining field observations, theoretical analysis, and numerical simulations. First, pressure relief technology, which can effectively release the accumulated rock pressure in the roof, is introduced according to the periodic weighting characteristics of DKS roofs. A reasonable application scope and the applicable conditions for pressure relief technology are given. Considering the influence of the eroded area on the roof structure, two roof mechanics models of DKS are established. The calculation results show that the yield load of the support in the eroded area is low. A scheme for strengthening the support with individual hydraulic props is proposed, and then, the support design of the recovery roadway is improved based on the time effects of fracture development. The width of the recovery roadway and supporting parameters is redesigned according to engineering experience. Finally, constitutive models of the support and compacted rock mass in the gob are developed with FLAC3D software to simulate the failure characteristics of the surrounding rock during pressure relief and equipment extraction. The surrounding rock control effects of two support designs and three extraction schemes are comprehensively evaluated. The results show that the surrounding rock control effect of Scheme 1, which combines improved support design and the bidirectional extraction of equipment, is the best. Engineering application results show that Scheme 1 realizes the safe extraction of equipment. The research results can provide a reference and experience for use in the stability control of rock surrounding recovery roadways in shallow seams.

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