Influence Of Geological Structure On Failure Around Certain Types Of Underground Excavations

This chapter reviews the early stages of a study designed to investigate the physical behavior of the coal measure rocks around longwall panels over a relatively large area. The aim of the work is to attempt to explain a directional tendency for a certain type of underground fracture. The geological structure of the area is reasonably uniform but the effect of some local anomalies is also discussed. Although some definite tendencies have been recorded, the results so far achieved need confirmation by further experiments. The chapter deals first with some in-situ strain measurements carried out in longwall panels and continues with a discussion of the relationships between induced fractures and the natural variations in the structure of the rock mass. Finally, some light is shed upon the gas outburst phenomenon although eradication of the hazard is far from assured. STRESS AROUND A LONGWALL PANEL Considerable progress has been made during the last few years towards the determination of the mechanism of failure of small samples of rock under varying environmental conditions. Much more laboratory testing needs to be done in this field but an even greater amount of study needs to be devoted to the extrapolation of laboratory phenomena to failure around underground excavations. The problem is made more difficult because the stress redistribution around an excavation is often difficult to define, particularly when part of the rock mass fails and a