In-Seam Seismic Applications in Coal Mining
Summary
In-seam seismic techniques have become indispensable tools for delineating geological structures, assessing stress distributions and identifying potential hazards within coal seams. By generating and analysing controlled seismic waves directly within the coal layer, practitioners can detect faults, collapse columns, water-bearing strata and other anomalies that compromise mine safety and efficiency. The principal methods involve P-wave velocity profiling to infer stress changes, channel-wave analysis for high-resolution imaging of seam interfaces, scattered-wave imaging to resolve small-scale heterogeneities and hybrid transmission-reflection approaches for quantitative fault evaluation. Advances in numerical modelling, machine-learning–driven feature extraction and tomographic inversion have enhanced the resolution and reliability of in-seam surveys, enabling proactive risk management in deep and ultra-thick coal deposits. Globally, these applications support safer extraction, reduced downtime, optimised roadway development and informed mine design under complex geological conditions.
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In-Seam Seismic Applications in Coal Mining publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in in-seam seismic applications in coal mining across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
P-wave: Primary compressional seismic wave used to assess velocity anomalies and stress variations in coal seams.
Channel wave: A mode trapped within the coal seam whose dispersion and velocity characteristics provide high-resolution information about seam thickness and anomalies.
Scattered-wave imaging: Technique that isolates waves scattered by small-scale geological features to enhance detection of faults, collapse columns and fluid pathways.
Dispersion: Frequency-dependence of wave velocity, indicating variations in seam properties and aiding the identification of abnormal bodies.
Tomographic inversion: Computational method that reconstructs a spatial velocity model from seismic travel-time data, used for detailed imaging of subsurface structures.
References
- Detection of geological anomalies in coal mining working faces using a scattered-wave imaging method. Journal of Petroleum Exploration and Production Technology (2023).
- Identification and Application of Wave Field Characteristics of Channel Waves in Extra-Thick Coal Seams. Applied Sciences (2024).
- Quantitative Evaluation of Faults by Combined Channel Wave Seismic Transmission-Reflection Detection Method. Minerals (2022).
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