Part of Module-2-MN-2102, UNDERGROUND COAL MINING METHODS, Feb2022-Prof Singam Jayanthu

Part of Module-2-MN-2102
UNDERGROUND COAL MINING METHODS
Feb2022-Prof Singam Jayanthu
EXTRACTION OF PILLARS AND LOGWALL MINING

1. 0 INTRODUCTION
After pillars are formed during the development stage of bord and pillar working,
coal from the pillar are taken out and eventually part of pillar or total pillar is taken
out. This is called pillar extraction or depillaring. Extraction of pillars in a panel
should be completed within the incubation period. Pillar extraction can be done
with caving or stowing.

2. 0 EXTRACTION OF PILLARS

2.1 Depillaring with caving

In this method coal pillar is extracted and the roof is allowed to break and collapse,
thus filling the void (called goaf) created due to removal of coal pillar. This is
allowed when no important structure on the surface has to be protected and where
surface subsidence can be allowed.

2.2 Depillaring with stowing

It involves extraction of pillar in association with filling up the goaf with
incombustible material. This has to be adopted when important surface structures
such as buildings, rivers, roads, railways, tanks, reservoirs, etc. above the working
have to be protected. Some other circumstances that would require depillaring with
stowing to be followed include: (a) Seam with fire above the seam under
extraction, (b) Seam prone to spontaneous heating, (c) Seam liable to bump, (d)
Full extraction of thick seams (> 6m thick), (e) Presence of water-bearing strata
above the coal seam being extracted, (f) Existence of marketable seams above or
below the seam to be extracted, and (g) Government restrictions imposed to protect
the surface above the working.

3. 0 PREPARATORY ARRANGEMENTS BEFORE DEPILLARING

Preparatory works that are required before start of depillaring operation can
broadly be divided into two categories: (a) Permissions from different agencies,
and (b) Preparatory arrangement at the mine.

4. Permissions from different agencies

This includes mandatory permission from the Director General of Mines Safety
(DGMS) without which depillaring cannot start (Regulation 113(a) of the Coal
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 Part of Module-2-MN-2102, UNDERGROUND COAL MINING METHODS, Feb2022-Prof Singam Jayanthu

Mines Regulation 2006), permission from Railways if railway is likely to be

affected, permission from district authority if District Board roads and building
may be affected, permission for and execution of diversion of power and telephone
lines and aerial ropeways, and approval for rehabilitation plan from local and
higher level authority.

4.1 Preparatory arrangement at the mine

This includes updating the mine plan with respect to position and status of
boreholes, staple pits, thickness of barriers, geological disturbances like faults and
dykes, goaf areas, mining operations of adjacent mines; dewatering of water
logged area which may become a safety risk during and after depillaring; ensuring
adequate stock of timber, firefighting equipment and safety apparatus, explosives;
framing of systematic support rule, ensuring enough stock of material for isolation
stopping and stowing (if depillaring with caving is practiced).

5. 0 PLANNING A DEPILLARING OPERATION

To reduce accumulation of stress and therefore to ensure stability of the workings,
some of the important requirements that have to complied during a depillaring
operation are given below.
1. No pillars shall be reduced or split in such a manner as to reduce the
dimensions of resultant pillars below those required under Regulation 112 of
Coal Mines Regulation 2006. No gallery shall be heightened beyond a
height of 3m (Regulation 113(3a), CMR 2006).
2. Splitting or reduction of pillars or heightening of the galleries shall be
restricted to a maximum of 4 pillars when the pillar extraction in a district
just begins; subsequently this should be restricted to a maximum distance of
2 pillars ahead of the pillar that is being extracted (Regulation 113(3b),
CMR 2006).
3. When depillaring with caving is practiced, roof exposure should be kept to
minimum so that excess roof load in depillaring district is not transferred to
pillars out bye. If required, induced caving may be adopted to bring down
the goaf at regular intervals (Regulation 113(5), CMR 2006).
4. The size of the panel should be such that depillaring can be completed
within the incubation period of the coal seam.
5. Up to a seam thickness of 4.8m, extraction can be done in one lift. For seams
thicker than this multi-lift extraction along with hydraulic sand stowing
should be followed.

6. 0 SPLITTING OF PILLARS

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 Part of Module-2-MN-2102, UNDERGROUND COAL MINING METHODS, Feb2022-Prof Singam Jayanthu

The pillars formed during development are split into small pillars by driving
galleries through these. Small pillars thus formed are called stook and the galleries
are called split or split gallery (Figure 1). The stooks are extracted one by one.
Extraction at shallow depth (say < 100m) is carried out without splitting of pillars
as the pillars formed during development are very small. Generally, pillars with
size more than 18m x 18m are split into two stooks. A pillar of 30m x 30m is
typically divided into 4 stooks by driving two split galleries, one along dip-rise
direction and other along strike direction. Width of the split galleries cannot exceed
the width of the development gallery at that depth (Regulation 113(3b), CMR
2006).
In case of dip-rise splits, the extraction proceeds in the strike direction. It results in
less haulage distance, better control of roof caving. However, stowing up to the
roof is not possible in this case. Extraction proceeds along dip-rise in case of strike
split. In this case stowing up to the roof is possible; however, haulage distance is
more. For depillaring with caving, a dip-rise split that results in extraction of level
slices, is preferred as it ensures better caving of roof than a level split with
extraction of dip-rise slices.

7. 0 LINE OF EXTRACTION
A line passing through corners of all stooks under extraction at a time is called line
of extraction or line of face. Right alignment of line of extraction reduces roof
control problems during depillaring. A diagonal ( Fig 1) or step diagonal line of
extraction gives better protection because some portions of each pillar contribute
towards roof support of the working places and therefore is very common in
practice. A diagonal line of face makes close to 45 o to the dip direction. Step
diagonal line of extraction may be arranged to have two solid stooks in between
the stooks under extraction to take care of roof support problem in case of bad roof
condition. In special cases steep diagonal line of face or even straight line of face is
maintained.

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 Part of Module-2-MN-2102, UNDERGROUND COAL MINING METHODS, Feb2022-Prof Singam Jayanthu

Fig 1: Line of extraction in depillaring

8. Stook extraction sequence

Figure 2 shows sequence and direction of stook extraction under varying roof
condition. Extraction of stooks starts from the split/main gallery remote from the
goaf so that coal in the stook between goaf and the miner gives protection to the
miner against the roof fall in goaf. For safety point, a rib of coal about 1m thick is
left against goaf. When extraction of coal from the stook is finished and the area is
about to be abandoned, rib coal is robbed to a maximum extent possible without
compromising safety. Supports are provided at the goaf edge and the area is fenced
off. At any point of time in a depillaring district usually 3 to 4 stooks are under
extraction.

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 Part of Module-2-MN-2102, UNDERGROUND COAL MINING METHODS, Feb2022-Prof Singam Jayanthu

 
Fig 2. Extraction of stook under different roof condition

9.0 STEP, STEEP AND STRAIGHT FACES OF EXTRACTION

The figures below show the lines of extractions. Each panel is assumed to have 16
pillars. The number assigned to each pillar indicates the sequence of its extraction.
Arrow mark indicates the direction of face advance.

 In case of step diagonal extraction the line of extraction at any time is more
inclined towards the strike of the seam. One solid stook intervenes between two
stooks under extraction at a time, thus giving providing better roof support. As
stook extraction proceeds, these intervening stooks come under high roof pressure
and their crushing provides warning of roof weighing taking place. Sometimes it
may be designed to have two solid stooks (instead of usually one) between stooks
under extraction.

A line of extraction inclined more towards dip of the seam is called steep diagonal
line of extraction. However, it is usually not practiced.

When the line of extraction runs parallel to the dip or strike of the seam, it is called
straight line of extraction. A straight line of extraction is adopted to facilitate

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mechanisation of coal winning and transport. If conveyors are the mode of

transport of coal in depillaring district, then straight line of face reduces the
number of conveyors and conveyor maneuvering becomes easy. It facilitates
mechanisation if the pillars are extracted following longwall system. A line of
extraction parallel to the strike provides the advantage of goaf getting submerged
from stowing water/mine water if the depillaring proceeds from dip to rise. 

10.0 PRECAUTIONS NEED TO BE TAKEN BEFORE AND DURING THE

DEPILLARING
The precautionary measures to be followed during planning and execution of the
depillaring operation include the following:
Rate of depillaring should be such that all the pillars inside the panel must be
extracted within the incubation period of the coal seam.
Mine plan should be updated with respect to position and status of boreholes,
staple pits, thickness of barriers, geological disturbances like faults and dykes, goaf
areas, mining operations of adjacent mines, etc.
If necessary dewatering of water logged area, which may become a safety risk
during and after depillaring, may be carried out.
Adequate stock of timber, firefighting equipment and safety apparatus must be
maintained.
Systematic support rule should be framed and approved by DGMS.
Enough stock of material for isolation stopping and stowing (if depillaring with
caving is practiced) must be maintained.

10.1 Precautions against fire

 Depillaring should proceed from dip to rise so that goaf can be submerged in
water. This will prevent heating of coal buried in the goaf.
 In case of shallow seams, cracks from the surface may connect with the
depillaring area below. These will act as conduits for supply of oxygen to
the depillaring area and will aggravate the heating of coal. To prevent this,
cracks have to be blanketed with layers of sand or earth.
 Attempts should be made to leave unmined coal, as less as possible, in the
depillaring district.
 Proper design of isolation stoppings should be followed.

10.2 Precautions against inundation

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 Part of Module-2-MN-2102, UNDERGROUND COAL MINING METHODS, Feb2022-Prof Singam Jayanthu

 Inaccurate plans have been the major cause of accident due to inundation.
Therefore enough allowance should be made in deciphering the location and
status of water body or water logged area nearby the depillaring district.
 Advance boreholes must be drilled when the depillaring zone approaches to
within 60m of the water logged area.
 Unless the pumping capacity is adequate to take care of exigencies, no
depillaring should be done below an overlying water bearing strata.
 There must be adequate parting (including the factor of safety) between the
depillaring zone and the water logged area above for the depillaring to be
done.
 No depillaring operation should be carried out below the areas which are
likely to subside below the highest flood level of river/stream.

11.0 LONGWALL MINING
History of longwall mining in India is briefly discussed. It includes description of
early longwall faces of the major collieries that provided the first information
about the method in Indian geomining condition. Present scenario about
mechanized longwall faces running in Indian coal mines is also presented.
Different elements of a longwall mining system are described. The basic variations
of longwall systems and face layouts are described and the condition in which each
of these systems is applicable is discussed. Geomining parameters that control the
layout of a longwall face are briefly discussed.

Important parameters controlling length of a longwall face, gate road width and
panel dimension are outlined. Single entry and double entry longwall working are
described. Some of the special variations of longwall methods such as retreat Z
system, integrated advanced and retreat system, longwall retreat with pilot heading,
in line rip and rip behind the face are discussed.
Longwall system, in terms of coal extraction system at the face, method of loading
and transport of coal at the face and outbye and support system, is explained. Strata
control issues that include categorization of immediate roof according to their
stability, requirement of support resistance and time weighted average resistance,
main roof and its role in stability are discussed. Different types of powered
supports used in longwall faces are described.

A case study of conventional longwall system is presented to appreciate the

important parameters such as face length, production rate, OMS, etc. of a
conventional longwall system. Case study of Moonidih mine is presented to
explain the layout, production and operation of a mechanized longwall face along

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with the requirements of face machineries, ventilation, transport, support system

and manpower.

A graduate mining engineer, after going through this module, will be able to
describe a brief history of longwall coal mining in India, explain variations of
longwall methods, outline strata control problems associated with longwall mining,
design the support and transport system at a longwall face, and design parameters
that control the safety and productivity longwall mining.

11.1 INTRODUCTION
Gradual emergence if longwall mining in India is briefly discussed along with the
major collieries where running of longwall mining provided the first information
about its efficiency in Indian geomining condition. Present scenario about
mechanized longwall faces running in Indian coal mines is presented. Seam
characteristics and associated geological features that favour application of
longwall mining are discussed. Geomining information of some early longwall
faces are presented.

11.2 HISTORY OF LONGWALL MINING

Although longwall mining in India dates back to 1906-07 experiences with caved
longwall faces came only in the early sixties with coal cutting machine. Anderton
shearer along with TCR props were introduced in the Chinakuri mine (No. 1 and 2
pit) in the early sixties. Between 1970 and 1982 some 38 caved longwall faces had
been worked out in Jharia, Raniganj, Karanpura and Korba coalfields. Pioneering
trial with longwall caving using individual props was tried in a major experiment
with inclined slicing/sub-level caving in Sirka seam at Gidi ‘A’ colliery, under the
erstwhile NCDC in the late sixties. Valuable experiences with caved longwall
faces were gained at Moonidih colliery between 1973 and 1980 with individual
supports, which served in a large measure to bolster the confidence in longwall
caving. About 17 caved longwall faces using individual friction props under a
depth of cover of 220 to 400 m in XVII Top seam, including the working of a
double unit caving longwall face on the advancing system were worked out.
Like conventional caving longwall system, conventional longwall with stowing
had been practiced successfully in a number of coal mines in India out of which
Chinikuri, Parbelia, Ranipur, Bagdigi, Sudamdih, Chasnala, Jitpur ,Surakachhar,
Bhurkunda, etc. are worth to mention. Both the single slicing and multi-slicing
systems with stowing were practiced with conventional system of working. Face
supporting was done with the help of either wooden props and bars or hydraulic
props with steel link bars, or friction props with steel link bars. Wooden cogs were
also erected judiciously along the goaf edges. Coal wining was done either by
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undercutting with coal cutting machine, drilling, blasting or by solid blasting or by

shearer (Chinakuri, Jitpur and Ranipur collieries) or plough (East Katras and
Jamadoba collieries). Out of the numerous problems, the non-availability of
stowing material, high transporting cost of sand and very high production cost, etc.
are worth to mention. Presently a number of conventional multi-slicing longwall
faces with stowing system are being practiced in Chinakuri, Jitpur, and other
collieries in India.

Presently, China has very good mechanized longwall faces which are producing an
average 45000 tonne per day and there is the potential to achieve more than 50000
tonne of coal per day.

13.0 APPLICABLE CONDITION FOR LONGWALL MINING

TECHNOLOGY
The longwall mining can be applied effectively under the following conditions:
a)      Seams up to 5.5 m thickness (maximum upto 6 m) can be worked in one
slice. Thicker seams must be worked in slices of 2 to 3 m thick. The lower limit
lies about 40 cm.
b)      Seams dipping between 00 and 900. Favorable for face mechanization,
however are flat and moderately inclined seams.      
c)      Coals of medium hardness. Very friable and soft coals are less suitable as
also very hard coal.
d)      Seams having immediate roof not too strong or very weak. Subsidence of
roof must take place uniformly on stowed pack or it breaks regularly with the
caving method of roof control.
e)      Uniformly thick seams.
f)       Seams having strong floors. Softer and heaving floors as well as undulating
floors are not suitable.
g)      Seams having less geological disturbances.
h)      Seams with dirt bands, but free from hard dirt bands.
i)        Seams lying at great depths (> 500m) where bord and pillar mining may not
be a suitable choice due to excessive pressure on walls.
j)        Seams liable to spontaneous heating as the face advance rate is very high.
k)      Gassy seams which require meticulous planning of ventilation.
l)        Multiple seam mining etc.
m)    Seams needing mechanisation for large planned outputs.
Salient features of some early mechanized longwall faces worked in India are
given below (Table 1).
Table 1. Geomining data of early longwall faces in India
Colliery Coal Dip of Extracti Face Goaf Average Remarks
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seam productio
the coal on lengt contro
(Coalfield) (thicknes n (tonnes
seam height h l
s) per day)
First
shearer
Chinakuri Disherga 1 in 4.6 Stowi
1.52m 183m 400 face
(Raniganj) rh (3.6m) to 1 in 5 ng
worked in
India
First
powered
Moonidih XVII top Cavin support
1 in 7 1.75m 150m 600
(Jharia) (1.75m) g face
worked in
India
Upper
Cavin
Pathakhera workable 1 in 7 1.5m 104m 800 -
g
(1.5m)
1163
First
(Max
powered
GK-7 output on
support
Incline Cavin a single
III (10m) 1 in 7 3.0m 110m face in
(Godavari g day on
Godavari
Valley) 13.11.198
Valley
3 was
Coalfield
2010t)
1619(Max
VK-7
1 in 7.5 output on
Incline Top seam Cavin
to 1 in 2.8m 120m a single  
(Godavari (11m) g
10 day was
Valley)
4061t)
(From Principles and practices of modern coal mining by R. D. Singh, page 208)

14.0 ELEMENTS OF A LONGWALL FACE

 Various elements of a longwall face are described below: 
 Face: A long solid coal front joining two gate roads from which coal is
extracted.
 Main/Mother gate: The roadway used for transport of coal from the face and
for the intake air.

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 Tail/Supply gate: The roadway usually used for transport of material to/from
the face and for the return air.
 Stable: Space prepared at the ends of the face to accommodate machine to
cut the face.
 Goaf line/Break line: The line beyond which the roof is intended to cave
inside the goaf.
 Face conveyor: The conveyor installed on the face to transport coal from the
face towards gate roads.
 Stage loader: The conveyor which receives coal from the face conveyor for
its transport out bye through transport system in gate roads.
 Gate belt conveyor: The conveyor installed in gate (usually main gate) road
for transport of coal received from face conveyor to the surface/pit bottom.
 Span: The width of the working space from the goaf line support to the face.
 Face supports: The supports used on the face.
 Breaker row supports: The supports at the goaf edge.

14.0 VARIATIONS OF LONGWALL SYSTEMS
There are three basic methods:
A. Longwall advancing: In this case the gate roads are not fully developed.
Both the longwall face and gate roads are advanced simultaneously (Figure 3).

Figure 3. Advancing longwall face (R. D. Singh, 1997)

B. Longwall retreating: In this case both the gate roads are fully advanced
upto the predetermined location close to panel boundary and connected to

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form longwall face. This results in formation of a fully connected longwall

panel
C. Combined longwall advancing-retreating: It is the combination of both
the advancing and retreating longwall system.

14.1 Advantage of advancing longwall system

 Since gate roads are not required to be developed up to the panel boundary
for formation of a longwall face, production may be start early. This will
cause lower gestation time and quicker return on investment. 
 Panel development takes less time and capital investment for forming a
longwall panel is less as compared to a retreating longwall system.
 Advancing longwall system works efficiently with the stowing system of
roof control.

14.2 Disadvantages of advancing longwall system
 Panel is not completely probed for geological disturbances such as fault,
folds etc. which may cause uncertainty of complete extraction of the panel.
 More face manpower is necessary in the panel for coal extraction at face,
development, gate road supporting etc.
 Panel ventilation is complicated.
 Longwall face progress and therefore production depends upon the
advancement of the gate roads.
 Drivage of gate roads are difficult, and not safe if drilling and blasting
methods are used.
 Gate roads stand in the disturbed ground; supporting is time consuming and
difficult. Gate road packings must be very efficient to control air and gas
leakages.
 More dust is produced in the face due to gate road drivages.
 Face end support systems are complex.
 Production of coal is less as compared to the retreating longwall system.
14. 3 Advantages of retreating longwall face
 With retreating longwall, gate roads stand in undisturbed ground and as a
result maintenance costs are less. There is less risk of damage of the roads
by the pressure wave preceding the face.
 Drivage of gate roads in advance contributes to better knowledge of faults
and other geological disturbance in the panel and it is, therefore, possible to
take them into account in planning for production. In extreme case, an
excessive faulted panel can be abandoned.

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 Drivage of gate roads can be carried out with the most modern fast road
heading machines with the highest rates of drivage. Due to elimination of
short-firing with road-heading machines, the roads stand well.
 The rate of face advance does not depend on the progress of gate road
drivage. For this reason face advance and face outputs are higher than an
advancing face.
 As roads are driven before commencement of coal wining, less dust is
carried into the face along with the ventilating air current.
 Soft shale roof and floor do not present any problem.
 Ventilation of face is better with retreating face than with advancing face as
air is confined to the face. There is no air loss in the goaf.
 The use of retreating method in staggered faces makes it possible to work
several adjacent seams simultaneously without causing serious damage to
roadways of the overlying seams.
 Face-end support systems are less complex than on an advancing longwall.

14. 4 Disadvantages of retreating longwall face
 Development of a district takes time. With the development of fast heading
machines, the time for developing a district has considerably decreased and
it is now possible for development work to keep pace with face
replacements.
 A large amount of capital must be invested for gate road drivages.
 The removal of methane from sources other than mined coal and coal face
poses the greatest obstacle to the general adoption of the method. The total
methane emission in retreating system is certainly not greater than that
which would have been obtained with the advancing method, but in the case
of the advancing face the gas escapes through the gate-side packs, if they are
not airtight into the tail gate. In the retreating method, it may change the
ventilation current near the top (tail gate end) of the face. The concentration
of methane in the goaf can be eliminated by draining it through a pipeline
which is then abandoned or by bleeder airways on the boundary of the panel
so as to provide a back exit for positive drainage of goaf.
 Retreating faces work efficiently with the caving method of roof control.

15.0 VARIOUS LAYOUTS OF LONGWALL FACES
Generally, longwall faces have to variations: single unit face or double unit face.
15.1 Single unit face
In a single unit face, work is concentrated only at one face at a time. Two gate
roads serve this face
15. 2 Double unit face
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In case of a double unit face, simultaneously coal extraction is carried out in two
faces adjacent to each other. Central gate is used for transport of coal from both the
faces through a common conveyor. Material is supplied through each of the other
gates of both the faces (Figure 4).
 

Figure 4. Double unit longwall face with caving

The advantages of a double unit face include: (a) reduced haulage cost, and (b) less
loss of coal which would have occurred due to coal left between two faces. The
disadvantages include: (a) difficulty in ventilation may occur because dip face
requires descensional ventilation and rise face requires ascensional ventilation, and
(b) central gate comes under more roof pressure and may require heavy repair.
Dip side face leads the rise side face in case of filling of goaf by hydraulic sand
stowing as it facilitates the drainage of water from rise side face. This is not a
mandatory requirement in case of caving faces.Variable parameters include the
following:

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Width and length of the panel, extraction thickness, method of working, interaction
of working, number and sequence of workings of the coal seams, direction of
extraction, rate of extraction, shape and dimension of roadways, type of roadway
support, method and rate of developments, numbers and width of pillars between
panels, working in the adjoining area, stress zones in and around the longwall
panel. Some of the variable parameters are discussed below:

16.0 LENGTH OF LONGWALL FACE

It depends upon the different parameters such as seam thickness, nature of roof,
nature of floor, method of coal wining (advancing/retreating/retreat-advancing),
tectonic disturbances, inclination of seam, emission of firedamp, temperature,
production of dust, production time at face, safety of workers, degree of
supervision, rate of gate side packing, type of goaf treatment (stowing/caving),
targeted production, average rate of development and support, height of extraction,
entry system (single/double/multiple entry system), entry cross-section size, panel
length, barrier pillar width, machine design parameters (effective web of the cutter
loader, speed of the cutter loader, support center spacing, etc.), environmental
efficiency factor, machine available time, and cost. Some of these parameters are
briefly discussed below:

Production target: If in a mine production is only achieved in two shifts with third
shift earmarked as maintenance shift, more than one longwall face is required to
have continuous flow of coal. This decides the output to be achieved from each
face, length of face and advance per day.
Development work: In thin seams, floor and roof stone has to be cut in gate roads
to make sufficient height for person to work. In longwall advancing face can
advance only after the gate roads are advanced. These development works limit the
advance. Long faces may be required so that in spite of development work the
desired output is achieved.

Rate of stowing: The coal output and face advance is linked with rate of stowing as
the unpacked goaf edge must not lag much behind the face.

Capacity of face machineries: Capacity of shearers and length and capacity of face
conveyors and gate conveyors are limiting factors in deciding face length for
achieving a planned target.

Capital available for face mechanisation: With shearer, powered supports,

armoured conveyors, dust suppression system, etc., a longwall face is highly

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capital intensive. Therefore capital available for mechanisation is one of the

important factors that decides the length of a longwall face.
In India generally the average length of a highly mechanized longwall face is 150
m whereas average norms of a longwall face length in Europe is 200 m but in both
Germany and in U.K. it is increasing by 250 to 300 m. Presently average length of 
highly productive longwall faces in China varies from 400m to 450m.

17.0 GATE ROAD WIDTH

Gate road width depends primarily upon the following factors:
Depth of the seam: Generally rectangular gate road preferred at small/shallow
depth whereas an arched opening is more stable at great depth. Depth also
influences the rate of panel development and the amount of maintenance required.
Seam thickness: If seam thickness is more, the entire gate road can be developed in
coal and can be made wider.
Local geology: The rock type and physical properties of immediate roof and floor
decides the stability of the gate road and therefore the width of gate road is
influenced by these parameters.
Besides these other factors that must be considered while designing gate road
width are the interaction of multiple seam and previously mined-out area, access
cost and supporting cost, deformation and closure of the gate roadways, entry
system such as single, double or triple entry gate roads, etc.
Location of head and tail gate roads depends upon the geological disturbances like
fault, zone of weakness, intense shear zone due to old workings, etc.

18.0 PANEL LENGTH

The length of the panel depends upon the following factors:
1. Geological condition permits/restricts the length of the panel. In USA panel
length varies from 300-1800 m, in China it can go up to 450m and in India
more typically the length is about 150m.
2. Incubation period and the amount of goaf treatment practiced.
3. Depth of working
4. Geotechnical parameters (the rock type, floor, and coal seam, geological
disturbances)
5. Seam thickness, height of extraction, method of working, etc.
6. Working environment: rate of face advance is hindered due to gassiness,
water ingress, etc.
7. Rate of development of the gate roads and the development time
8. Type of face mechanization.
9. Maintenance cost of the gate roads (retreating longwall is less expensive
than advancing longwall panels).
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 Part of Module-2-MN-2102, UNDERGROUND COAL MINING METHODS, Feb2022-Prof Singam Jayanthu

BIBLIOGRAPHY
1 Das, S. K. (1994). Modern coal mining technology. Lovely Prakashan,
Dhanabad.
2 Deshmukh, D. J. (1987). Elements of Mining Technology, Vol. I.
Vidyasewa Prakashan, Nagpur.
3 Singh, R. D. (1997). Principles and practices of modern coal mining.
New age international (P) Limited, New Delhi.
4 The Coal Mines Regulations 2017.

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