Improvement of Continuous Lateral Surface Mining Method for Coal Extraction from Closed Mines’ Pillars

closed mines' coal pillars surface mining and its advantages in land
intensity, dust emissions, maximizing coal extraction, and
overburden transporting costs. While inclined and steep coal seam
strata in the pillars are widely exploited with land
deepening longitudinal mining method, this article substantiates the
choice of modification of block-and-layer continuous lateral mining
method for different kinds of coal deposits. The aim of the study is
to specify the modifications of the method proposed, define the
stages of their carrying out, and emphasize the advantages over
deepening longitudinal method of coal pillars surface mining. The
basic principle of the proposed continuous lateral method of mining
the coal pillars is limiting the final depth of quarry by the vertical
height of the first floor of the underground mine workings. The
continuous lateral mining method is detailed in the article in three
modifications (for development coal seams strata of high
medium thickness, as well as distanced separate coal seams), which
advantages are low land intensity and dust emission from the dump.
Attention is also paid to the economic benefits of the block
layer continuous lateral method of mining coal pillar
mines, whereby the overburden transporting costs can be
significantly reduced, while limitations of the proposed mining
method concern specific sites of closed mines that make up a small
part of the coal pillars extracted by surface mining toda
Keywords
coal pillars, surface mining, lateral mining method
land saving
© 2020 by the authors. Submitted for possible open access publication under the terms and conditions
of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Improvement of Continuous Lateral Surface Mining
Method for Coal Extraction from Closed Mines’ Pillars
continuous lateral method of
closed mines' coal pillars surface mining and its advantages in land
intensity, dust emissions, maximizing coal extraction, and
overburden transporting costs. While inclined and steep coal seam
exploited with land-and-cost intensive
deepening longitudinal mining method, this article substantiates the
layer continuous lateral mining
method for different kinds of coal deposits. The aim of the study is
the modifications of the method proposed, define the
stages of their carrying out, and emphasize the advantages over
deepening longitudinal method of coal pillars surface mining. The
basic principle of the proposed continuous lateral method of mining
oal pillars is limiting the final depth of quarry by the vertical
height of the first floor of the underground mine workings. The
continuous lateral mining method is detailed in the article in three
modifications (for development coal seams strata of high and
medium thickness, as well as distanced separate coal seams), which
advantages are low land intensity and dust emission from the dump.
Attention is also paid to the economic benefits of the block-andlayer continuous lateral method of mining coal pillars of closed
mines, whereby the overburden transporting costs can be
significantly reduced, while limitations of the proposed mining
method concern specific sites of closed mines that make up a small
part of the coal pillars extracted by surface mining today