A Multi-method Approach for Estimating the Failure Depth of Coal Seam Floor in a Longwall Coal Mine in China

Determining the failure depth of coal seam floor is necessary for safe mining operations, especially when the coal seam is located above confined aquifers with high water pressure. Geomechanical, geophysical, and hydrogeological data collected during the longwall mining of the first working face of coal seam no. 16 in the Nantun coal mine, Shandong Province, China, were used to calculate the failure depth of the coal seam floor above the Ordovician limestone confined aquifer. The multiple method approach employed by this study made use of the plastic sliding theory, empirical formulas, water injection test, and numerical simulation. Multiple methods can compensate for and validate each other and also overcome the intrinsic limitations of any single method. The results showed that the most appropriate value of the failure depth of the coal seam floor in the mine was 14.6 m and this value proved useful for knowing the effective thickness of water pressure-resistant layer below the coal seam. The failure depth also proved to be an important parameter when preventing groundwater flow into the mine from the coal seam floor.