Chapters authored
Polish Experience in Shaft Deepening and Mining Shaft Hoist Elongation
Deepening of active mine shaft comprises number of specific an very difficult operations, because it calls for use of untypical devices securing hoist operation in the shaft, as well as special technology tailored to actual technology of the deepened shaft face. The Leon IV shaft at the Rydułtowy mine is one of the last mining shafts deepened in Polish coal mining from the surface, and then deepened and finally equipped with mine shaft hoist installation. This investment will allow for the construction of the exploitation level of 1150 m and the availability of further coal extraction up to a depth of 1200 m. It will guarantee the possibility of exploitation of over 65 million tons of coal and continuous operation of the mine until 2040. At the same time, for the first time in the Polish hard coal mining industry, a flexible guiding of the mining cage and skips was used, which in comparison with rigid guiding is a much cheaper solution and has many other advantages. The chapter presents most important problems and technical solution implemented during construction and deepening of the Leon IV Shaft at Rydułtowy Coal Mine in Poland.
Part of the book: Mining Techniques
Polish Experiences in Handling Water Hazards during Mine Shaft Sinking
The geological structure of most Polish mining regions is rich in groundwater, making shaft sinking difficult. In recent years, more than a dozen shafts, some almost 700 m deep, have been sunk in Poland using various methods of water hazard elimination. The vast majority of shafts that pass through aquifer formations have been sunk using artificial rock freezing, waterproof tubing, and concrete lining. Generally, this system has proven to be very effective. However, there have been cases of complications during sinking, including occasional flooding. This paper presents two cases of highly problematic flooding in shaft sunk using the freezing method, both leading to considerable construction delays and a significant increase in shaft sinking costs. The first case involved water inflow into the bottom section of the R-XI shaft at KGHM with rocks near the melting point of ice. In the other case, problems occurred passing through an Albian layer in the S. 1.3 shaft sunk for the Lubelski Węgiel Bogdanka S.A. mining corporation, where the freezing process was carried out while it was necessary to heat the rocks in the upper part of the shaft to protect the final lining from damage.
Part of the book: Mining Techniques
Optimization Directions for Monitoring of Ground Freezing Process for Grzegorz Shaft Sinking
Grzegorz shaft is the first mine shaft sunk in 21st century in Silesian Coal Basin in USA of ground freezing method. Work carried out by Shaft Sinking Company (PBSz S.A.) is characterized by high level of innovativeness. Geophysical measurements were conducted to find directions of optimization of ground freezing process and its monitoring. Data gathered during research is a starting point for finding directions of optimization of particular fields during Grzegorz shaft sinking, as well as to be used in future similar ventures. Proposed solutions might have bring real improvements for safety and effectiveness of work and also for economic factors. Conducted tests and analysis aim at improvement of monitoring of shape, size and quality of frozen rock mass column in a safe and reliable manner.
Part of the book: Computational Optimization Techniques and Applications
Digital Twin of the Mining Shaft and Hoisting System as an Opportunity to Improve the Management Processes of Shaft Infrastructure Diagnostics and Monitoring
The following chapter presents a concept of a virtual model of a mine shaft equipped with a hoisting system for the purpose of improving the processes of diagnostics management of shaft infrastructure and its monitoring. The chapter presents a proposal of improvement of broadly known processes such as: diagnostics and monitoring of shaft infrastructure using digital models of 3D structures, the BIM and Digital Twin idea. Implementation of such systems in the operating mine working was presented together with expected results of monitoring. As the presented solution is currently only a concept, development of such system in real application is necessary to asses real benefits of application of Digital Twin system.
Part of the book: Data Science, Data Visualization, and Digital Twins