Advances in Sustainable Coal Mining: Waste Reuse, Coal Oxidation, Spontaneous Combustion Prevention, and Machine Learning

Dear Colleagues,

The global transition toward sustainable energy systems has intensified the need to re-evaluate conventional coal mining practices through integrating cleaner technologies and resource-efficient strategies. While renewable energy sources continue to expand, coal remains a vital component of the energy mix in many economies. This underscores the importance of developing innovative approaches that reduce environmental impacts while enhancing operational efficiency and safety.

Sustainable coal mining systems require a multidisciplinary framework that integrates advanced engineering solutions, environmental management practices, and intelligent technologies. Adopting clean coal technologies, efficient resource utilization methods, and data-driven decision-making tools can significantly improve the sustainability performance of coal mining operations.

In addition to mining operational improvements, sustainable coal mining increasingly depends on waste reuse and value creation, including the beneficiation and utilization of coal ultrafines and discards, fly ash, bottom ash, and gasification ash to reduce environmental liabilities. Converting coal-related residues into coal-to-carbon materials and engineered construction products (e.g., carbon–ceramic composites) provides practical routes to achieving resource efficiency and circular economy outcomes. This Special Issue also welcomes data-driven and machine learning approaches that accelerate process optimization, risk reduction (including oxidation and spontaneous combustion prevention), and performance prediction across coal mining and residue valorization systems.

This Special Issue will bring together high-quality research contributions addressing emerging challenges and propose innovative solutions regarding sustainable coal mining. We welcome original research articles, review papers, and case studies that focus on improving safety, productivity, environmental performance, and energy efficiency in coal mining systems.

Scope and Topics

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Low-emission mining practices;
• Coal oxidation behavior and spontaneous combustion prevention;
• Energy-efficient ventilation and cooling systems (ventilation-on-demand, VAM integration);
• Waste minimization, reuse, and circular economy approaches;
• Methane and fugitive emissions management (VAM, drainage, utilization, monitoring);
• Resource optimization in mining operations;
• AI/ML for predictive safety and sustainability (oxidation risk, emissions, ventilation optimization, equipment reliability);
• Mine-to-mill optimization and energy efficiency;
• Sustainable mine planning and operational strategies;
• Monitoring, sensing, and real-time decision-support systems;
• Coal and mining waste valorization into value-added materials (ash/by-products to construction materials and carbon products).

Dr. Moshood Onifade
Dr. Samson Oluwaseyi Bada
Dr. Manoj Khandelwal
Prof. Dr. Xuan-Nam Bui
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Mining is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.