Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
5.5
2.8
Journals
Processes
Special Issues
Advanced Processes in Mining Safety and Disaster Prevention: From Gas...
share announcement

Advanced Processes in Mining Safety and Disaster Prevention: From Gas Extraction to Fire/Dust Control

A special issue of Processes (ISSN 2227-9717). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2026 | Viewed by 1619

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Hao Xu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. College of Safety and Environmental Engineering, Shandong University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266590, China
2. China Coal Technology Engineering Group, Chongqing Research Institute, Chongqing 400037, China
3. China Academy of Safety Science and Technology, Beijing 100012, China
Interests: coal; gas; coalbed methane; gas transport; desorption and diffusion; crack propagation; discrete element method; fluid-solid coupling
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Qing Ma

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Resource and Safety Engineering School, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
2. State Key Laboratory of Hydroscience and Engineering ,Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Interests: rock mechanics; cusp catastrophe theory; acoustic emission; elastic energy dissipation ratio; early warning model
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Yipeng Song

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Management Science and Engineering, Shandong Technology and Business University, Yantai, China
Interests: longwall gob; spontaneous ignition; coal self-heating; numerical modeling; fire prevention and prediction
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Qiang Xu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Mines, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China
Interests: green mining; coal mine underground reservoir; coal pillar dam; waterrock interaction; mining-induced stress

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Numerical modeling and analysis is a core driver for technological advancement in mining engineering, underpinning mining design, disaster prevention, and efficient resource development—with direct links to engineering safety, production efficiency, and environmental sustainability. Enabled by these tools, researchers and engineers can now better address complex geological and engineering challenges, precisely analyzing mining impacts on the stability and interactions between engineering systems and the natural environment.

Technological progress spans scales: from deep mine design and open-pit slope stability to underground cavern response simulation and mining-induced environmental issues like subsidence or groundwater changes. Diverse approaches include constitutive modeling for varied geological bodies (fractured formations, multiphase media); discrete/finite/boundary element methods for simulating excavation, support, and blasting; AI-driven parameter optimization; and IoT-integrated real-time model calibration. In complex scenarios, it offers a cost-effective, often sole feasible means to evaluate new technologies under extreme conditions (e.g., deep high-stress environments).

This Special Issue, “Advanced Processes in Mining Safety and Disaster Prevention: From Gas Extraction to Fire/Dust Control” will showcase cutting-edge research—either leveraging numerical tools for system analysis or developing novel models/methods tailored to field-specific challenges.

Topics include but are not limited to:

  • Prevention and control of dynamic disasters in mines;
  • Development of numerical models for gas migration and seepage in coal seam pore-fracture structures, including characterization of micro-macro pore-fracture properties and their impact on gas/liquid transport mechanisms;
  • Numerical simulation of deep coalbed methane extraction processes, including optimization of extraction parameters and prediction of production efficiency;
  • Numerical analysis of coal mine gas disaster prevention and control technologies, such as gas drainage, gas outburst prediction, and gas explosion simulation;
  • Modeling and simulation of permeability enhancement technologies for low-permeability coal seams, including hydraulic fracturing (process, fracturing fluid, proppant, temporary plugging agent), with focus on fracture propagation and permeability evolution;
  • Optimization analysis of mine ventilation systems using numerical models, including airflow distribution, pollutant dispersion, and energy consumption optimization;
  • Numerical investigation of multi-field coupling (mechanical, thermal, hydraulic, chemical, gas) characteristics in coal and rock masses, especially under deep mining conditions;
  • Development of numerical models for coal mine dust pollution control, including dust generation, transport, and capture efficiency of dust control measures;
  • Numerical simulation of water injection in deep low-permeability coal seams for disaster prevention, including moisture migration, coal mass modification, and impact on gas control;
  • Evaluation of reinforcement materials and equipment effectiveness for disaster prevention;
  • Development of numerical models and analysis methods for mine disaster monitoring, early warning, and emergency rescue, including integration of monitoring data into predictive models;
  • Simulation platforms, algorithms, software tools, and verification methods specifically tailored for numerical modeling in coal mining engineering;
  • Application of numerical models in technical and economic analysis, safety (risk) assessment, environmental impact analysis, and whole-life cycle evaluation of mining engineering systems, with emphasis on resource utilization efficiency and supply chain optimization.

Thank you for your attention. We welcome your contributions to advance numerical modeling in mining engineering, and coal mining applications.

Dr. Hao Xu
Dr. Qing Ma
Dr. Yipeng Song
Dr. Qiang Xu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Processes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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 2400 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.

Keywords

  • rock burst
  • coal
  • gas
  • coalbed methane
  • gas transport
  • crack propagation
  • discrete element method
  • fluid-solid coupling
  • dynamic disasters in mines

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (4 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

20 pages, 4923 KB  
Article
Evolution Law and Stability Control of Energy–Plastic Zone of Surrounding Rock After Secondary Mining in Narrow Pillar Roadway in Thick Seam
by Kun Lv, Zhigang Deng, Jicheng Feng, Mingqi Jia, Xiangye Wu, Aoran Ma and Zhihai Ji
Processes 2025, 13(10), 3152; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13103152 - 2 Oct 2025
Viewed by 305
Abstract
To address the stability control challenges of narrow coal pillar roadways along goaf-sides affected by thick coal seam secondary mining, this study investigates the 51507 track gateway in Liuyuanzi Coal Mine through theoretical analysis, numerical simulation, and field testing. The research focuses on [...] Read more.
To address the stability control challenges of narrow coal pillar roadways along goaf-sides affected by thick coal seam secondary mining, this study investigates the 51507 track gateway in Liuyuanzi Coal Mine through theoretical analysis, numerical simulation, and field testing. The research focuses on stress evolution and energy distribution characteristics during secondary mining extraction. Key findings include the following: (1) Under the superimposed influence of goaf-side abutment pressure and secondary mining front abutment pressure, roadway surrounding rock exhibits regional asymmetric characteristics in energy dissipation. (2) Within 10 m ahead of the secondary mining face, the coal pillar experiences intense energy dissipation and plastic zone penetration, leading to bearing structure failure. (3) The energy mechanism reveals that asymmetric dissipative energy distribution drives plastic zone expansion. Accordingly, an integrated control strategy combining differentiated support (bolts/cables + tension-type opposite anchor cables + hydraulic props) with coal pillar grouting modification was developed. Field implementation demonstrated effective control of surrounding rock deformation within 200 mm. This study provides theoretical foundations and technical references for roadway stability control under similar mining conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Processes in Mining Safety and Disaster Prevention: From Gas Extraction to Fire/Dust Control)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 2193 KB  
Article
Microscopic Mechanism of Moisture Affecting Methane Adsorption and Desorption in Coal by Low-Field NMR Relaxation
by Qi Li, Lingyun Zhang, Jiaqing Cui, Guorui Feng, Zhiwei Zhai and Zhen Li
Processes 2025, 13(10), 3113; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13103113 - 28 Sep 2025
Viewed by 301
Abstract
Moisture in coal seams significantly impacts methane adsorption/desorption, yet its microscopic mechanism in intact coal remains poorly characterized due to methodological limitations. This study introduces a novel approach that integrates low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR) with volumetric analysis to quantify, in real-time, the [...] Read more.
Moisture in coal seams significantly impacts methane adsorption/desorption, yet its microscopic mechanism in intact coal remains poorly characterized due to methodological limitations. This study introduces a novel approach that integrates low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR) with volumetric analysis to quantify, in real-time, the effect of moisture on methane dynamics in intact coal samples. The results quantitatively demonstrate that micropores (relative specific surface area > 700 m2/cm3) are the primary adsorption sites, accounting for over 95% of the stored gas. Moisture drastically reduces the adsorption capacity (by ~72% at 0.29 MPa and ~57% at 1.83 MPa) and inhibits the desorption process, evidenced by a strong linear decrease in desorption ratio (DR) (R2 = 0.906) and a sharp exponential drop in the initial desorption rate (R2 = 0.999) with increasing moisture content. The findings provide a mechanistic understanding that is crucial for optimizing coalbed methane (CBM) recovery and enhancing strategies for outburst prevention and methane emission mitigation. The results reveal distinct adsorption and desorption features of intact coal compared with coal powder, which can be useful in total methane utilization and mining safety enhancement. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Processes in Mining Safety and Disaster Prevention: From Gas Extraction to Fire/Dust Control)
►▼ Show Figures

Graphical abstract

21 pages, 8973 KB  
Article
Research on the Mechanical Properties and Failure Mechanism of Lignite Affected by the Strain Rate Under Static and Dynamic Loading Conditions
by Jiang Yu, Hongfa Ma, Linlin Jin, Feng Wang, Dawei Yin, Xiao Qu, Chenghao Han, Jicheng Zhang and Fan Feng
Processes 2025, 13(10), 3054; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13103054 - 24 Sep 2025
Viewed by 282
Abstract
Coal seams, as critical components of open-pit mine slopes, are subjected to both quasi-static and dynamic loading disturbances during mining operations, with their mechanical properties directly influencing the slope stability. Consequently, to clarify the mechanical properties and failure mechanisms of coal seams affected [...] Read more.
Coal seams, as critical components of open-pit mine slopes, are subjected to both quasi-static and dynamic loading disturbances during mining operations, with their mechanical properties directly influencing the slope stability. Consequently, to clarify the mechanical properties and failure mechanisms of coal seams affected by the strain rate under the static–dynamic loading conditions, the mineral composition and meso-structural characteristics of lignite were analyzed in this study, and uniaxial compression tests with different quasi-static loading rates and dynamic compression tests with different impact velocities were conducted. The results indicate that there is an obvious horizontal bedding structure in lignite, which leads to differences in mechanical response and failure mechanism at different strain rates. Under the quasi-static loading, lignite exhibits significantly lower strain-rate sensitivity than compared to dynamic impact conditions. The Poisson’s ratio difference between the bedding matrix and the lignite will produce interfacial friction, which gradually decreases with the increase in the distance from the interface, thus promoting the transformation of lignite from multi-crack tensile shear mixed fracture to single-crack splitting failure. Under the dynamic impact conditions, low-impact velocities induce stress wave reflection at bedding interfaces due to wave impedance disparity between the matrix and lignite, generating tensile strains that result in bedding-plane delamination failure; at higher velocities, incomplete energy absorption by the rock specimen leads to fragmentation failure of lignite. These findings are of great significance for the stability analysis of open-pit slopes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Processes in Mining Safety and Disaster Prevention: From Gas Extraction to Fire/Dust Control)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

21 pages, 16433 KB  
Article
Numerical Simulation of Multiphase Dust Transport Law and Scaled Model Testing of Spray Suppression Mechanism in Tunnel Blasting
by Fayi Deng, Kaifu Ren, Guofeng Wang, Yongqiao Fang, Jiayu Zhou and Heng Zhang
Processes 2025, 13(9), 2959; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13092959 - 17 Sep 2025
Viewed by 348
Abstract
Tunnel construction in western China is developing towards deeper burial, larger cross-sections, and longer distances. Dust and other pollutants generated during drill-and-blast construction endanger construction safety and workers’ health, making research on their migration and dust removal measures of great significance. This paper, [...] Read more.
Tunnel construction in western China is developing towards deeper burial, larger cross-sections, and longer distances. Dust and other pollutants generated during drill-and-blast construction endanger construction safety and workers’ health, making research on their migration and dust removal measures of great significance. This paper, based on the Zimuyan Tunnel, studies the dust migration characteristics and water mist dust removal schemes through three-dimensional numerical simulation (ICEM CFD modeling, Fluent analysis), 1:20 model tests, and on-site monitoring. The results show that eddies form at the working face in the later stage of ventilation, and dust exhibits vertical stratification due to differences in particle size; the nozzle angle and flow rate significantly affect the dust removal efficiency, and reasonable adjustment can improve the efficiency while reducing the impact on airflow; notably, both nozzle angle and flow rate affect in-tunnel airflow. The conclusion is that the distance of the air duct outlet should be adjusted to reduce the pressure difference to avoid eddies, and the nozzle angle and flow rate should be moderately adjusted to optimize the dust removal effect. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Processes in Mining Safety and Disaster Prevention: From Gas Extraction to Fire/Dust Control)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-4
Back to TopTop