Changes of the chemical composition of discharged coal mine water in the Rontok Pond, Upper Silesia, Poland

 The natural process of sulphate reduction takes place in the Rontok Pond. During the reduction the concentration of sulphate in the pond water decreases. The changes of δ³⁴S in the pond water are typical for bacterial reduction. The reduction process in the Rontok Pond causes dissolution of barium and the radium from the pond sediments into the water. Concentrations of barium and ²²⁶Ra in the discharged water from the Silesia Coal Mine are lower than in water flowing out of the Rontok Pond into the Vistula River. The opposite trend is observed for iron and also Zn, Co, Ni, Mn, Al and Cu because of the precipitation of ferric hydroxide in the stream. The reduction process, which causes dissolution of barium and radium in water, can explain the release of these elements into the Vistula River. The dissolution of toxic elements can be reduced by the precipitation of non-toxic deposits on the sediment of Rontok Pond. Received: 3 July 1999 · Accepted: 27 March 2000     

Arsenic and antimony contamination of waters,stream sediments and soils in the vicinity of abandoned antimony mines in the Western Carpathians,Slovakia

Environmental contamination with As and Sb caused by past mining activities at Sb mines is a significant problem in Slovakia. This study is focused on the environmental effects of the 5 abandoned Sb mines on water, stream sediment and soil since the mines are situated in the close vicinity of residential areas. Samples of mine wastes, various types of waters, stream sediments, soils, and leachates of the mine wastes, stream sediments and selected soils were analyzed for As and Sb to evaluate their geochemical dispersion from the mines. Mine wastes collected at the mine sites contained up to 5166 mg/kg As and 9861 mg/kg Sb. Arsenic in mine wastes was associated mostly with Fe oxides, whereas Sb was present frequently in the form of individual Sb, Sb(Fe) and Fe(Sb) oxides. Waters of different types such as groundwater, surface waters and mine waters, all contained elevated concentrations of As and Sb, reaching up to 2150 μg/L As and 9300 μg/L Sb, and had circum-neutral pH values because of the buffering capacity of abundant Ca- and Mg-carbonates. The concentrations of Sb in several household wells are a cause for concern, exceeding the Sb drinking water limit of 5 μg/L by as much as 25 times. Some attenuation of the As and Sb concentrations in mine and impoundment waters was expected because of the deposition of metalloids onto hydrous ferric oxides built up below adit entrances and impoundment discharges. These HFOs contained >20 wt.% As and 1.5 wt.% Sb. Stream sediments and soils have also been contaminated by As and Sb with the peak concentrations generally found near open adits and mine wastes. In addition to the discharged waters from open adits, the significant source of As and Sb contamination are waste-rock dumps and tailings impoundments. Leachates from mine wastes contained as much as 8400 μg/L As and 4060 μg/L Sb, suggesting that the mine wastes would have a great potential to contaminate the downstream environment. Moreover, the results of water leaching tests showed that Sb was released from the solids more efficiently than As under oxidizing conditions. This might partly explain the predominance of Sb over As in most water samples.     

The Wieliczka Salt Mine

Just a few kilometres south of Cracow, in southern Poland, the scenery changes abruptly from the fluvial plain of the Vistula river, mantled by tills and loess deposits of the Pleistocene glaciation, to a boldly undulating topography representing the outermost thrust sheet of the Carpathian mountains. These northern foothills of the Carpathians are known in Poland as the Beskid Mountains. The Carpathian thrust front can be traced from Upper Silesia through Cracow and Przemysl in southern Poland as far as the Ukraine and Romania. At several places along the thrust front, salt deposits have been found, which have been mined over many centuries. One of the best known mines is located at Wieliczka, 15 km south-east of Cracow. The mine is a popular tourist location, but it also illustrates some spectacular geological features.     

滕县、兖州煤田红层的富水性及其对煤炭开采的影响

在滕县、兖州含煤盆地内,上侏罗统红层直接覆盖于二叠、石炭系煤系地层之上,在勘探时期曾被归为隔水层。本文通过现场资料分析和大量室内测试结果,系统研究了本区红层的化学成分和矿物组成、储水空间和分布特征及其红层地下水对煤矿开采的影响。作者得出下列结论:在岩性和构造适宜地段,红层中可以赋存较为丰富的地下水,他们既是许多煤矿的供水水源,又对煤矿的开采构成充水威胁,并通过采动裂隙引发突水事故。     

Upper Silesia,a forgotten region in Central Europe

On the map of Europe, forming the south-western border region of Poland, is to be found the name Silesia, with in many cases its southern part emphasized — Upper Silesia. Any search for statistics as to its exact surface area and population size will be in vain. At the end of World War I, Upper Silesia found itself squeezed between two nationalistically-obsessed peoples, and economically too attractive to both to be allowed to play an idependent political role, as it had for centuries. Upper Silesia was in 1921 divided. After World War II, under the communist centralised power system, a completely colonial robber economy was pursued. Because of the coal production there is now here one of the greatest agglomeration areas in Europe, with an ageing heavy industry and a catastropihcally damaged environment.     

Temporal variation and the effect of rainfall on metals flux from the historic Beatson mine,Prince William Sound,Alaska, USA

Several abandoned Cu mines are located along the shore of Prince William Sound, AK, where the effect of mining-related discharge upon shoreline ecosystems is unknown. To determine the magnitude of this effect at the former Beatson mine, the largest Cu mine in the region and a Besshi-type massive sulfide ore deposit, trace metal concentration and flux were measured in surface run-off from remnant, mineralized workings and waste. Samples were collected from seepage waters; a remnant glory hole which is now a pit lake; a braided stream draining an area of mineralized rock, underground mine workings, and waste piles; and a background location upstream of the mine workings and mineralized rock. In the background stream pH averaged ∼7.3, specific conductivity (SC) was ∼40 μS/cm, and the aqueous components indicative of sulfide mineral weathering, SO₄ and trace metals, were at detection limits or lower. In the braided stream below the mine workings and waste piles, pH usually varied from 6.7 to 7.1, SC varied from 40 to 120 μS/cm, SO₄ had maximum concentrations of 32 mg/L, and the trace metals Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn showed maximum total acid extractable concentrations of 186, 5.9, 6.2 and 343 μg/L, respectively.     

Hydrogeochemistry of abandoned Pb sulphide mines: the mining district of La Carolina (southern Spain)

The impact of past mining activities on the quality of groundwater and surface water has been investigated in the mining district of La Carolina (southern Spain, province of Jaén), a region characterised by the presence of mineralisations of Pb–Ag, Cu and Fe sulphides and Ba sulphates. The chemistry of waters from flooded galleries, shafts and drainage adits has been compared with that of surface waters in the same area. Generally, waters present neutral pH, since carbonates neutralise the acidity produced by the oxidation of Fe-bearing sulphide minerals in the mine impacted water. Despite of this natural attenuation process, in most of the cases, the mine groundwater is of low quality and shows high dissolved SO₄ (up to 3.7 g/l), Fe and Mn contents (tens to hundreds mg/l), exceeding the limit established by the guidelines of the World Health Organization for drinking water. Generally, the surface waters are of the sulphate calcium–magnesium to magnesium types, with moderate mineralisation. Post-rebound mine waters caused degradation of receiving watercourses in which the Fe contents are usually high, with values close to 3 g/l, and the mineralisation is greater as the channels run down in the mining zone. During dry seasons a considerable increase of salts and metals dissolved in stream waters was found, due to the decreasing contributions by run-off in this semiarid region, whereas the abandoned mine discharges remained practically constant.     

The emissions of gases from abandoned mines: role of atmospheric pressure changes and air temperature on the surface

Intrinsic parameters influence abandoned mine gas emissions. Independent of the presence or not of noxious gas in mine voids, meteorological factors influenced directly the gas outflow or inflow. Measurement stations were installed in the exits located in abandoned mines of the iron Lorraine basin, the Lorraine and the north east France coal basins to enhance the gas flow behaviour. Closure methods of the mines and exits from the abandoned mines are quite different. For the first, shafts are associated with adits. Some of them are closed with bars to avoid people entrance into abandoned mine workings, but gas flow is enabled. For the second, there are essentially shafts which are secured. Some of them are equipped with a vent to enable outflow of the mine gas in specific conditions. Mine gas parameters were measured. Besides, external parameters like temperature and atmospheric pressure were monitored. Gas flow can be influenced mainly by the temperature difference between external atmosphere and mine workings (in iron mines, which can be considered as an open system) while atmospheric pressure influences gas flow in the coal mines, which can be considered as closed systems. Modelling has confirmed the differential pressure value measured that exceeds friction losses.     

Control and prevention of gas outbursts in coal mines, Riosa–Olloniego coalfield, Spain

Underground coal mines have always had to control the presence of different gases in the mining environment. Among these gases, methane is the most important one, since it is inherent to coal. Despite of the technical developments in recent decades, methane hazards have not yet been fully avoided. This is partly due to the increasing depths of modern mines, where methane emissions are higher, and also to other mining-related circumstances, such as the increase in production rates and its consequences: difficulties in controlling the increasing methane levels, increasing mechanization, the use of explosives and not paying close attention to methane control systems.The main purposes of this paper are to establish site measurements using some critical parameters that are not part of the standard mining-control methods for risk assessment and to analyze the gas behavior of subvertical coal seams in deep mines in order to prevent gas incidents from occurring. The ultimate goal is the improvement in mining conditions and therefore in safety conditions.For this purpose, two different mines were instrumented for mine control and monitoring. Both mines belong to the Riosa–Olloniego coalfield, in the Asturias Central Basin, Spain and the areas instrumented are mined via subhorizontal sublevels at an actual depth of around 1000 m under the overburden of Mount Lusorio.During this research, a property favoring gas outbursts was site measured for the first time in an outburst-prone coal (8th Coalbed), gas pressure and its variations, which contributed to complete the data available from previous characterizations and to set some guidelines for assessing the potential outburst-prone areas. A gas-measurement-tube set has been designed for measuring gas pressure as well as its variation over time as a result of nearby workings and to calculate permeability.The paper establishes the effect of overlapping of works, but it also shows the efficacy of two preventive measures to be applied: high pressure water infusion and the exploitation of a protective coal seam (7th Coalbed), that must be mined preferably two complete sublevels before commencing the advance in the outburst-prone coalbed. Both measures constitute an improvement in the mining sequence and therefore in safety, and should be completed with a systematic measurement to control the risk: gas pressure in the 8th Coalbed in the area of influence of other workings, to establish the most suitable moment to renew the advance. Further researches could focus on ascertaining the permeability, not only in mined areas but also in areas of the mine that are still not affected by mining work and on tuning more finely the ranges of influence of overstress time and overlap distance of the workings of the 7th Coalbed in the 8th Coalbed.     

Brines in the Carboniferous Sydney Coalfield,Atlantic Canada

Formation waters within Upper Carboniferous sandstones in the sub-sea Prince and Phalen coal mines, Nova Scotia, originated as residual evaporative fluids, probably during the precipitation of Windsor Group (Lower Carboniferous) salts which underlie the coal measures. Salinity varies from 7800 to 176,000 mg/l, and the waters are Na–Ca–Cl brines enriched in Ca, Sr and Br and depleted in Na, K, Mg and SO₄ relative to the seawater evaporation curve. Br:Cl and Na:Cl ratios suggest that the brine composition corresponds to an evaporation ratio of as much as 30. The brines lie close to the meteoric line on H/O isotopic plots but with a compositional range of δ¹⁸O from −4.18 to −6.99 and of δD from −42.4 to −23.5, distant from modern meteoric or ocean water. Mine water composition contrasts with that of nearby salt-spring brines, which are inferred to have originated through dissolution of Windsor Group evaporites by modern meteoric waters. However, a contribution to the mine waters from halite dissolution and from Br in organic matter cannot be ruled out. Present concentrations of several elements in the brines can be explained by water–rock interaction. The original Windsor brines probably moved up into the overlying coal-measure sandstones along faults, prior to the Late Triassic. The high salinity and irregular salinity distribution in the Phalen sandstones suggests that the brines have undergone only modest dilution and are virtually immobile. In contrast, Prince waters show a progressive increase in salinity with depth and are inferred to have mixed with surface waters. Basinal brines from which these modern formation fluids were derived may have been important agents in base-metal and Ba mineralisation from the mid-Carboniferous onwards, as saline fluid inclusions are common in Zn–Pb sulphide deposits in the region.     

Using stable isotopes (δD, δ<Superscript>18</Superscript>O, δ<Superscript>34</Superscript>S and <Superscript>87</Superscript>Sr/<Superscript>86</Superscript>Sr) to identify sources of water in abandoned mines in the Fengfeng coal mining district,northern China

With depleted coal resources or deteriorating mining geological conditions, some coal mines have been abandoned in the Fengfeng mining district, China. Water that accumulates in an abandoned underground mine (goaf water) may be a hazard to neighboring mines and impact the groundwater environment. Groundwater samples at three abandoned mines (Yi, Er and Quantou mines) in the Fengfeng mining district and the underlying Ordovician limestone aquifer were collected to characterize their chemical and isotopic compositions and identify the sources of the mine water. The water was HCO₃·SO₄-Ca·Mg type in Er mine and the auxiliary shaft of Yi mine, and HCO₃·SO₄-Na type in the main shaft of Quantou mine. The isotopic compositions (δD and δ¹⁸O) of water in the three abandoned mines were close to that of Ordovician limestone groundwater. Faults in the abandoned mines were developmental, possibly facilitating inflows of groundwater from the underlying Ordovician limestone aquifers into the coal mines. Although the Sr²⁺ concentrations differed considerably, the ratios of Sr²⁺/Ca²⁺ and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr and the ³⁴S content of SO₄^2? were similar for all three mine waters and Ordovician limestone groundwater, indicating that a close hydraulic connection may exist. Geochemical and isotopic indicators suggest that (1) the mine waters may originate mainly from the Ordovician limestone groundwater inflows, and (2) the upward hydraulic gradient in the limestone aquifer may prevent its contamination by the overlying abandoned mine water. The results of this study could be useful for water resources management in this area and other similar mining areas.     

Chemistry of acid production in black coal mine washery wastes

Column leaching tests on black coal mine washery wastes were performed, to determine the chemistry of acid generation. Coal mine coarse rejects and tailings were subjected to wet and dry cycle dissolution and subsequently column leached. The rates of iron sulphide oxidation and carbonate mineral dissolution were determined based on the drainage chemistry. The kinetic data from column leach experiments are used to predict the time required to deplete the acid producing and acid consuming minerals in the mine wastes. The acid production in the mine rejects was found to depend upon iron chemistry, carbonate chemistry, diffusion of oxygen, and permeability. The chemistry of the drainage from two different coal mines is compared.     

Modeling and monitoring of mine water rebound in an abandoned coal mine complex: Siersza Mine, Upper Silesian Coal Basin, Poland

A variable-volume, head-dependent mine water filling model (MIFIM) has been utilized to simulate the post-abandonment flooding of the Siersza coal mine in the Upper Silesian Coal Basin of southern Poland. It is demonstrated that desaturated pore space in the aquifer adjacent to the mine comprises a significant component of the resaturable mine-related void. The model results are very sensitive to the value of this poorly constrained parameter. Nevertheless, the model successfully predicted the first appearance of mine water in an observation well and its subsequent rise. Despite this apparent success, it is concluded that such modeling approaches generally lack predictive power for mines in permeable, porous host rocks. As real monitoring data accumulate, however, such models can be calibrated and their utility increased.     

Hydrogeochemical characteristics of mine water in the Harz Mountains,Germany

Water samples (springs, creeks, mine adits) from different former mining districts of the Harz Mountains and the nearby Kupferschiefer (copper shale) basin of Sangerhausen were analysed for major ions and trace metals. Due to more intensive water rock interactions including the ore minerals, the mine water concentrations of main components and trace metals are generally higher compared to non mining affected surface waters of the mountain range. Furthermore, the content of major ions in mine water is enriched by mixing processes with saline waters from Permian layers in the Kupferschiefer district and at the deeper levels of the mines in the Upper Harz Mountains. The waters of the different mining districts can be distinguished by trace metal occurrences and concentrations derived from the different ore bodies. Water from the Kupferschiefer mines shows the highest Na, Cl, Cu, Mo and U concentrations, whereas a combination of elevated As and Se concentrations is typical for most of the samples from the mines around St. Andreasberg. However, there are exceptions, and some water samples of all the investigated mining districts do not follow these general trends. Despite the influence of mining activities and ore mineralisation, hydrochemical effects due to rain water dilution can be seen in most of the waters. According to the elevation of the mountain range, higher precipitation rates decrease the ion concentrations in the waters of springs, creeks and mine adits.     

Sensitivity analysis of support safety factor for predicting the effects of contributing parameters on roof falls in underground coal mines

Roof falls accounted for 18.18% of all fatal accidents in Indian coal mines, contributing about 35.29% of all fatal accidents in below-ground operations in 2005. The support safety factor, always preferred in support planning and design of underground coal mines, may be an important predictor for roof falls. In this paper, geotechnical data were collected from 14 roof fall incident places in an underground coal mine, located in the Eastern India, which has bord and pillar method of workings. The mean value of probabilistic support safety factor for the case study mine was found to be 1.24. However, the probability, of the estimated support safety factor of less than or equal to one, was found to be 0.246. Sensitivity analysis was conducted to analyze the effects of the contributing parameters on support safety factor and the likelihood of the roof fall. The multi-variate regression analysis was carried out for the data generated by Monte Carlo method to correlate the contributing factors to support safety factor. It ranked gallery width as the first parameter to control the support safety factor.     

Origin of natural waters and gases within the Upper Carboniferous coal-bearing and autochthonous Miocene strata in South-Western part of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin,Poland

The molecular and stable isotope compositions of coalbed gases from the Upper Carboniferous strata and natural gases accumulated within the autochthonous Upper Miocene Skawina Formation of the D?bowiec-Simoradz gas deposit were determined, as well as the chemical and stable isotope compositions of waters from the Skawina Formation and waters at the top of the Upper Carboniferous strata of the Kaczyce Ridge (the abandoned “Morcinek” coal mine) in the South-Western part of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin. Two genetic types of natural gases within the Upper Carboniferous coal-bearing strata were identified: thermogenic (CH₄, small amounts of higher gaseous hydrocarbons, and CO₂) and microbial (CH₄, very small amounts of ethane, and CO₂). Thermogenic gases were generated during the bituminous stage of coalification and completed at the end of the Variscan orogeny. Degassing (desorption) of thermogenic gases began at the end of late Carboniferous until the late Miocene time-period and extended to the present-day. This process took place in the Upper Carboniferous strata up to a depth of about 550 m under the sealing Upper Miocene cover. A primary accumulation zone of indigenous, thermogenic gases is present below the degassing zone. Up to 200 m depth from the top of the Upper Carboniferous strata, within the weathered complex, an accumulation zone of secondary, microbial gas occurs. Waters within these strata are mainly of meteoric origin of the infiltration period just before the last sea transgression in the late Miocene and partly of marine origin having migrated from the Upper Miocene strata. Then, both methanogenic archaebacteria and their nutrients were transported by meteoric water into the near-surface Carboniferous strata where the generated microbial CH₄ saturated coal seams. Waters within the Miocene strata of the D?bowiec-Simoradz and Zab?ocie are of marine origin, and natural gases accumulated within autochthonous Miocene strata of the D?bowiec-Simoradz gas deposit were most probably generated by microbial processes of on organic matter dispersed within the strata, though some contribution of gases migrating from the Carboniferous coal-bearing strata cannot be excluded.     

潞安矿区井下地应力测量及分布规律研究

在山西潞安矿区的13个煤矿采用小孔径水压致裂地应力测量装置,完成了60个测点的原岩应力测量工作。实测数据表明：潞安矿区55%的测点最大水平主应力大于垂直主应力,由于受埋藏深度与地质构造影响,矿区内各矿地应力值差别较大,但地应力大小总体上属于中等地应力值;潞安矿区最大水平主应力方向从南到北变化较大,构造应力场呈现出多变的形态。在实测数据的基础上,绘制了潞安矿区地应力分布图;分析了地应力随埋藏深度的变化规律、平均水平主应力与垂直主应力的比值与埋藏深度的关系。煤矿井下地应力测量为井田开拓、巷道布置与支护设计等工程实践提供了可靠的基础参数,提高了工程设计的科学性、合理性与可靠性。     

矿井地质动力环境评价方法与冲击地压矿井类型划分研究

冲击地压等矿井动力灾害的发生受多因素影响,是自然地质动力环境条件和开采工程扰动条件耦合作用的结果。冲击地压发生的时间、空间、强度等特征与矿井所处区域地质动力环境有关,由于不同煤田、不同矿区、不同矿井所处的区域地质动力环境存在差异性,致使有些煤矿不具备发生冲击地压的地质动力环境条件,而有些煤矿发生冲击地压的类型也不同。提出矿井地质动力环境评价方法,并构建评价指标体系。在地质动力环境研究中,主要考虑自然地质条件下外部地质体的动力作用对冲击地压的影响效应,确定构造凹地反差强度、矿井区域断块构造运动、断裂构造、构造应力、开采深度、上覆岩层结构特征、本区及邻区判据条件等影响因素为评价指标,根据各因素对矿井的影响程度情况,给出每个因素的不同量化评价值。综合量化评价结果,判定矿井是否具有发生冲击地压的地质动力环境：(1)当综合评价指标值n为0～0.25,表明矿井不具备冲击地压发生的地质动力环境;(2)当综合评价指标值n为>0.25～0.50,矿井具有弱冲击地压发生的地质动力环境;(3)当综合评价指标值n为>0.50～0.75,矿井具有中等冲击地压发生的地质动力环境;(4)当综合评价指标值...     

Performance of a mixed-waste landfill amid geologic uncertainty—learning from a case study: Altamont Hills,California, U.S.A.

The Jharia coalfield is the most important and active minig region; it experiences groundwater inflow and affects groundwater levels in overlying aquifers, and it provides the basis for a conceptual model of the hydrogeological impacts of coal mining. The several sandstone aquifers of the overburden are separated by aquitards that limit vertical hydraulic connection, but the inflow responds to seasonal events and seems to be linked to shallow groundwater behavior. The mine drainage behavior suggests a hydraulic connection between the mine and the shallower groundwater system. The greatest declines are directly above the panels, with an immediate response to coal mining. The inflow is localized by natural and induced fracture zones and is mostly into recent workings. The groundwater behavior is controlled by hydraulic property changes caused by mine-induced fracturing. The hydrological and chemical qualities of the shallow groundwater regime in 13 mining collieries in Mukunda Block have been investigated. Water samples collected from 30 shallow monitoring dug wells were chosen for the study. Rainfall, runoff, and infiltration rates have been calculated in the area. The water-quality plottings were used to interpret the distribution of individual chemical parameters and in predicting the water quality. The underground mine water has been classified as: (1) unconfined groundwater in the calcareous siltstone and sandstone—its composition is Na, Ca, SO₄ and Na-MgHCO₃ with moderate total dissolved solids (TDS) 200–1480 ppm; (2) the deep groundwater originating from the coal seams and associated sediments in the near-surface environments—this is a Na-HCO₃ water with higher TDS; and (3) spoil dump waters are essentially Na-HCO₃ with high TDS. This article presents some hydrologic results and conclusions relating to the hydrogeological and environmental impacts of the coal mining in the Jharia coalfield.     

Mining subsidence and its effect on the environment: some differing examples

 The impact of mining subsidence on the environment can occasionally be very catastrophic, destroying property and even leading to the loss of life. Usually, however, such subsidence gives rise to varying degrees of structural damage that can range from slight to very severe. Different types of mineral deposits have been mined in different ways and this determines the nature of the associated subsidence. Some mining methods result in contemporaneous subsidence whereas, with others, subsidence may occur long after the mine workings have been abandoned. In the latter instance, it is more or less impossible to predict the effects or timing of subsidence. A number of different mineral deposits have been chosen to illustrate the different types of associated subsidence that result and the problems that arise. The examples provided are gold mining in the Johannesburg area; bord and pillar mining of coal in the Witbank Coalfield, South Africa; longwall mining of coal in the Ruhr district; mining of chalk and limestone in Suffolk and the West Midlands, respectively; and solution mining of salt in Cheshire. These mineral deposits have often been worked for more than 100 years and, therefore, a major problem results from abandoned mines, especially those at shallow depth, the presence of which is unrecorded. Abandoned mines at shallow depth can represent a serious problem in areas that are being developed or redeveloped. Abstraction of natural brine has given rise to subsidence with its own particular problems and cannot be predicted. Although such abstraction is now inconsequential in Cheshire, dereliction associated with past subsidence still remains. Received: 21 October 1999 · Accepted: 14 February 2000