Paper contribution

Assessment of mine stability during selective coal seam extraction with backfill into the mined-out space

Dmytro Malashkevych; Iryna Kovalevska; Maksym Snihur

Proceedings
EUROCK 2026
Pages
1023-1031
Submitted
28 January 2026
Accepted
15 June 2026
Published
12 August 2026

Summary

Abstract

This article is devoted to studying the effect of backfilling the mined-out space during selective extraction of a thin coal seam on mine stability. The aim of the research is to develop a geomechanical model and assess the stress-strain state of the rock mass, considering the formation of a backfill massif in the mined-out space of the longwall. The research object is the mining and geological conditions of seam C8n at the “Zakhidno-Donbaska” mine, PJSC “DTEK Pavlogradvuhillya”, Ukraine. Numerical modeling was conducted using the ANSYS software package, which allowed for identifying the patterns of vertical and horizontal stress distribution in the coal-bearing massif and evaluating the reduction in stress concentration zones. Stress field diagrams around the longwall entry were obtained for traditional extraction technology with full caving and selective extraction technology with backfill into the mined-out space. The results showed that the use of backfill material reduces vertical stresses by up to 1.8 times, horizontal stresses by up to 2.7 times, and decreases the stress-strain zones by 60-80%. This contributes to reduced deformations of mine workings, improved stability, and the creation of conditions for their reuse.

Contributors

Authors

  1. Dmytro Malashkevych Dnipro University of Technology, Ukraine ORCID 0000-0002-8494-2489
  2. Iryna Kovalevska Dnipro University of Technology, Ukraine
  3. Maksym Snihur Dnipro University of Technology, Ukraine

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References

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