PapersFlow Research Brief
Geoscience and Mining Technology
Research Guide
What is Geoscience and Mining Technology?
Geoscience and Mining Technology is a field encompassing advancements in mining technology, safety measures, and risk assessment for coal mining, including water inrush prevention, coal seam stability analysis, fuzzy comprehensive evaluation, directional drilling, geological conditions evaluation, gas outburst control, and numerical simulation.
The field contains 69,507 works focused on mining safety and rock mechanics. Key areas include empirical strength criteria for rock masses and gas storage in coal seams. Research addresses coal oxidation and spontaneous combustion risks in underground mining.
Topic Hierarchy
Research Sub-Topics
Coal Mine Water Inrush Prediction
This sub-topic develops models for predicting water inrush risks in coal mines using geological, hydrological, and monitoring data. Researchers apply fuzzy evaluation, neural networks, and numerical simulation for early warning systems.
Coal and Gas Outburst Mechanisms
This sub-topic investigates the physical mechanisms, precursor identification, and prevention of coal and gas outbursts. Researchers study stress distribution, gas desorption, and outburst-prone coal properties through lab experiments and field monitoring.
Coal Seam Stability Assessment
This sub-topic covers methods for evaluating roof stability, pillar design, and floor heave in coal seams. Researchers develop rock mechanics criteria, numerical modeling, and fuzzy comprehensive evaluation techniques.
Directional Drilling in Coal Mining
This sub-topic focuses on technologies for horizontal and directional drilling in coal seams for gas drainage and exploration. Researchers optimize trajectory control, real-time monitoring, and drilling fluid systems.
Numerical Simulation in Coal Mining
This sub-topic applies finite element, discrete element, and fluid-structure coupling simulations to coal mining scenarios. Researchers model strata behavior, support systems, and multi-field coupling under complex geological conditions.
Why It Matters
Geoscience and Mining Technology directly supports safer underground coal mining operations by providing tools for risk assessment and stability analysis. Hoek and Brown (1980) introduced an empirical strength criterion for rock masses using uniaxial compressive strength and parameters m and s, which has guided design in tunneling and mining with 1623 citations. Brady and Brown (1986) detailed rock mechanics principles for underground mining, aiding stability predictions in 1341 cited works. Gray (1987) modeled gas storage and movement in coal seams, essential for preventing gas outbursts, as seen in 702 citations. These methods reduce incidents like water inrush and coal seam failures in industrial mining, with Jiang (2005) highlighting deep mining challenges through tests and simulations in 554 cited studies.
Reading Guide
Where to Start
"Empirical Strength Criterion for Rock Masses" by Hoek and Brown (1980), as it provides a foundational nonlinear criterion for rock strength using basic parameters, essential for understanding mining stability.
Key Papers Explained
Hoek and Brown (1980) establish the empirical strength criterion for rock masses, which Brady and Brown (1986) extend to practical underground mining mechanics. Gray (1987) builds on these by modeling gas dynamics in coal seams relevant to stability. Mogi (1971) complements with triaxial fracture data, while Jiang (2005) applies principles to deep mining challenges.
Paper Timeline
Most-cited paper highlighted in red. Papers ordered chronologically.
Advanced Directions
Current work emphasizes deep mining rock mechanics, as in Jiang (2005), with focus on high-stress stability from lab and in-site tests. No recent preprints available, so frontiers remain in numerical simulation of gas outbursts and water inrush under described keywords.
Papers at a Glance
| # | Paper | Year | Venue | Citations | Open Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Empirical Strength Criterion for Rock Masses | 1980 | Journal of the Geotech... | 1.6K | ✕ |
| 2 | Rock mechanics for underground mining | 1986 | Tunnelling and Undergr... | 1.3K | ✓ |
| 3 | Theory and Application of Infinite Series | 1972 | — | 953 | ✕ |
| 4 | Reservoir Engineering in Coal Seams: Part 1—The Physical Proce... | 1987 | SPE Reservoir Engineering | 702 | ✕ |
| 5 | Fracture and flow of rocks under high triaxial compression | 1971 | Journal of Geophysical... | 672 | ✕ |
| 6 | Coal oxidation at low temperatures: oxygen consumption, oxidat... | 2003 | Progress in Energy and... | 659 | ✕ |
| 7 | STUDY ON ROCK MECHANICS IN DEEP MINING ENGINEERING | 2005 | Chinese journal of roc... | 554 | ✕ |
| 8 | Estimation of underground temperatures from the silica content... | 1966 | American Journal of Sc... | 553 | ✓ |
| 9 | Granular Computing: Perspectives and Challenges | 2013 | IEEE Transactions on C... | 541 | ✕ |
| 10 | A review of research on spontaneous combustion of coal | 2020 | International Journal ... | 413 | ✓ |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the empirical strength criterion for rock masses?
Hoek and Brown (1980) proposed a nonlinear criterion using uniaxial compressive strength of intact rock and dimensionless parameters m and s. Parameter m varies with rock type and interblock angle. The criterion applies to rocks and rock masses in mining stability assessments.
How does gas move in coal seams?
Gray (1987) describes coal seams as reservoirs differing from porous gas reservoirs in gas storage and permeability. Gas movement involves physical processes unique to coal structure. This model informs risk assessment for gas outbursts.
What causes coal oxidation at low temperatures?
Wang et al. (2003) examined oxygen consumption, oxidation products, reaction mechanisms, and kinetic modeling. The study details processes leading to spontaneous combustion risks. Findings support safety evaluations in coal mining.
What rock mechanics issues arise in deep mining?
Jiang (2005) identifies problems from deep mining engineering addressed by theoretical studies, lab tests, and in-site tests. Key difficulties include rock stability under high stress. Results guide engineering practices.
What is known about spontaneous combustion of coal?
Onifade and Genc (2020) reviewed research on spontaneous combustion mechanisms and prevention. The work covers factors influencing ignition in coal seams. It aids in developing safety measures for mining operations.
How do rocks fracture under high triaxial compression?
Mogi (1971) used triaxial compression to study fracture and flow under differing principal stresses. Experiments revealed stress state effects on yielding. This informs geotechnical risk assessments.
Open Research Questions
- ? How can empirical strength parameters m and s be refined for varying geological conditions in deep coal seams?
- ? What physical processes govern gas outburst prediction beyond coal seam reservoir models?
- ? How do low-temperature oxidation kinetics evolve in different coal types under mining stresses?
- ? What triaxial stress thresholds trigger rock mass failure in underground mining environments?
- ? How do deep mining rock mechanics challenges scale with increasing depth based on numerical simulations?
Recent Trends
The field holds 69,507 works with no specified 5-year growth rate.
Recent reviews like Onifade and Genc on spontaneous combustion reflect ongoing safety focus, building on Wang et al. (2003) oxidation studies.
2020No preprints or news from last 12 months indicate steady emphasis on established rock mechanics and risk models.
Research Geoscience and Mining Technology with AI
PapersFlow provides specialized AI tools for Engineering researchers. Here are the most relevant for this topic:
AI Literature Review
Automate paper discovery and synthesis across 474M+ papers
Paper Summarizer
Get structured summaries of any paper in seconds
Code & Data Discovery
Find datasets, code repositories, and computational tools
AI Academic Writing
Write research papers with AI assistance and LaTeX support
See how researchers in Engineering use PapersFlow
Field-specific workflows, example queries, and use cases.
Start Researching Geoscience and Mining Technology with AI
Search 474M+ papers, run AI-powered literature reviews, and write with integrated citations — all in one workspace.
See how PapersFlow works for Engineering researchers