Abstract
Thick-hard roof fracturing presents a significant challenge for disaster prevention in longwall mining. This study investigates the 15,311 south working face and develops a mechanical model to analyze energy release during both initial and cyclic roof fracturing, along with the associated disaster mechanisms. Results indicate that total energy release increases with mining depth, roof thickness, and tensile strength, but decreases with the thickness of the immediate roof. The energy released during initial main roof fracturing is more than twice that of cyclic fracturing. Based on site geology, directional long-drilling fracturing parameters for the thick-hard fine sandstone roof were determined, with a single-point water injection of 20 m³ and a fracturing point spacing of 15 m. Following the “energy mitigation-structural weakening-stress regulation” principle, a “fixed-length drilling-hydraulic fracturing” model was implemented. On-site monitoring showed maximum movements in the tailgate of 236 mm in coal pillar gangs, 135 mm in solid coal, and 287 mm in roof-floor convergence. The initial pressure step decreased from 45 m to 18 m, and average cyclic pressure steps were reduced by 35% compared with a non-fractured face. The proposed scheme effectively facilitated safe and efficient mining under a thick-hard roof.
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The datasets used and/or analysed during the current study available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
All authors contributed to this article. The authors express their sincere gratitude to the 1890 Coal Mine of Xinjiang Coking Coal Group for the invaluable support provided during the Engineering application of this study. Additionally, the constructive feedback provided by the editor and anonymous reviewers has greatly benefited the quality of this article.
Funding
This research was funded by the National Key Research and Development Program Young Scientists Project, grant number 2024YFC2910600; the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Tianchi Elite Talent Innovation Leadership Program, grant number 2024XGYTCYC03; the Xinjiang Tianshan Talent Training Program for Young Top-notch Talents, grant number 2024TSYCCX0051; the Urumqi City Hongshan Sci-Tech Innovation Elite Talents Youth Top Talents Program, grant number B241013004; Central Government Guided Local Science and Technology Development Fund Project, grant number ZYYD2026QY16; the Key R&D Program of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, grant number 2024B03017-1; the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Key R&D Project Task Special-Department and Department Linkage Project, grant number 2022B01051-3; the Xinjiang Institute of Engineering Doctoral Start-up Fund, grant number 2023XGYBQJ14; Independent Project of the Key Laboratory of Xinjiang Coal Resources Green Mining, Ministry of Education, grant number KLXGY-Z2603; and the Science and Technology Plan Project of Kekedala City, the Fourth Division of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, grant number 2025ZR005.
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Conceptualization, Rui Wang., Haosen Wang; methodology, Rui Wang., Haosen Wang; software, Rui Wang., Haosen Wang. and Weiguang Zhang.; validation, Weiguang Zhang; formal analysis, Rui Wang., Haosen Wang. and Qiang Zhang.; data curation, Weiguang Zhang., Qiang Zhang; writing-original draft preparation, Rui Wang., and Haosen Wang.; writingreview and editing, Rui Wang., and Haosen Wang; project administration, Weiguang Zhang. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
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Wang, R., Zhang, Wg., Wang, Hs. et al. Ground control strategies for longwall top-coal caving panel in extra-thick coal seams with thick-hard roof. Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-44269-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-44269-y
