Underground Mining of Thick Coal Seams
T. S. COCHRANE, Manager, Mining Research Centre, Mines Branch, Department of Energy, Mines and Resources , Ottawa, Canada
The success or failure of coal mining operations in Western Canada may hinge on the ability to extract thick coal under a variety of geological and mining circumstances and conditions. The paper presents, in who-where what- how pattern, the current status of underground mining of thick coal seams based on a review of foreign technical literature. The underground production of coal from what are considered to be thick seams is over 300 million tons per year. Methods of mining have evolved, through years of trials and tribulations, capable of meeting the requirements of a modern mine: high bulk outputs from a limited number of mining faces by concentrating in the horizontal (mechanization) and in the vertical (increased working lift).
Mots Clés:
Coal, Coal seams, Development, Developments, France, France, Karaganda Basin, Mining and Petroleum Technology, spontaneous combustion, Thick Coal Seam, Mines Branch, mining, Production, Systems
