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In underground coal mining, high abutment loads caused by the extraction of coal can be a major contributor to many rock mechanic issues. In this paper, a large-scale physical modeling of a 2.6 × 2.0 × 1.0 m entry roof has been conducted to investigate the fundamentals of the fracture mechanics of entry roof strata subjected to high abutment loads. Two different types of roof, massive roof and laminated roof, are considered. Rock bolt system has been taken into consideration. A distinct element analyses based on the physical modeling conditions have been performed, and the results are compared with the physical results. The physical and numerical models suggest that under the condition of high abutment loads, the massive roof and the laminated roof fail in a similar pattern which is characterized as vertical tensile fracturing in the middle of the roof and inclined shear fracturing initiated at the roof and rib intersections and propagated deeper into the roof. Both the massive roof and the laminated roof collapse in a shear sliding mode shortly after shear fractures are observed from the roof surface. It is found that shear sliding is a combination of tensile cracking of intact rock and sliding on bedding planes and cross joints. Shear sliding occurs when the abutment load is much less than the compressive strength of roof. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

D-bolt is a type of energy-absorbing rock bolt. It is made of a smooth steel bar with anchors spaced along the bolt length. A typical section between adjacent anchors is approximately 1-m long, but it can be adjusted to adapt to the rock conditions. The bolt is fully encapsulated with either cement or resin grout in a borehole. The anchors are firmly fixed into the grout, while the smooth bolt sections can freely deform to absorb deformation energy. Full-scale static pull tests were carried out at different testing facilities in two laboratories. The tests show that a smooth bolt section between anchors may elongate by 110-167 mm depending on the section length. Field trials of the D-bolt were conducted in deep metal mines. The measurements showed that the D-bolts were equally loaded within every anchor-between section, avoiding load peaks and premature bolt failure due to stress concentrations caused by fracture/joint opening. The field trials of rebar and D-bolts in a largely deformed mine tunnel showed that the D-bolts behaved satisfactorily, with only a few failed bolts, while a number of the rebar bolts failed at the thread. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, dynamic test results of D-bolts are presented. The rock bolt specimens studied are 20 and 22 mm in diameter and 0.8-1.5 m in section length. The bolts were tested at an impact velocity of 5.4-6.2 m/s and with impact energy varying from 10 to 60 kJ. In total, over 50 drop tests were conducted during a period of three years. The dynamic tests show that a D-bolt section of 22 mm × 1.5 m can sustain an impact of 56 kJ of a dynamic impact and absorb 60 kJ of energy prior to failure. The maximum impact energy of the 22 mm bolt is thus 37 kJ/m of bolt and the maximum energy absorption is 40 kJ/m. The displacement of the D-bolt increases linearly with the impact energy. A theoretical solution has been obtained for the relationship between the impact energy and the displacement of the bolt. It states that the energy absorption of a D-bolt section is proportionally related to the volume of the bolt section and the tensile strength and ultimate strain of the bolt material. It was also found that the magnitude of the impact energy determines whether or not the bolt fails, while the impact momentum determines how long the impact lasts. The impact duration increases linearly with momentum as long as the bolt shank does not fail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]