Numerical modeling for analyzing thermal surface anomalies induced by underground coal fires

Coal seams burning underneath the surface are recognized all over the world and have drawn increasing public attention in the past years. Frequently, such fires are analyzed by detecting anomalies like increased exhaust gas concentrations and soil temperatures at the surface. A proper analysis presumes the understanding of involved processes, which determine the spatial distribution and dynamic behavior of the anomalies.In this paper, we explain the relevance of mechanical and energy transport processes with respect to the occurrence of temperature anomalies at the surface. Two approaches are presented, aiming to obtain insight into the underground coal fire situation: In-situ temperature mapping and numerical simulation. In 2000 to 2005, annual temperature mapping in the Wuda (Inner Mongolia, PR China) coal fire area showed that most thermal anomalies on the surface are closely related to fractures, where hot exhaust gases from the coal fire are released. Those fractures develop due to rock mechanical failure after volume reduction in the seams. The measured signals at the surface are therefore strongly affected by mechanical processes.More insight into causes and effects of involved energy transport processes is obtained by numerical simulation of the dynamic behavior of coal fires. Simulations show the inter-relation between release and transport of thermal energy in and around underground coal fires. Our simulation results show a time delay between the coal fire propagation and the observed appearance of the surface temperature signal. Additionally, the overall energy flux away from the burning coal seam into the surrounding bedrock is about 30-times higher than the flux through the surface. This is of particular importance for an estimation of the energy released based on surface temperature measurements. Finally, the simulation results also prove that a fire propagation rate estimated from the interpretation of surface anomalies can differ from the actual rate in the seam.     

地下矿产开采对天然气管道工程的安全影响评价

西气东输天然气管道工程途经兖州市,穿越杨庄、杨村、兴隆庄等煤矿矿区,压覆煤层埋深变化较大。该文采用预测法对各煤矿在不同开采条件下分煤层对管道运营安全的危害程度进行了评价分析。通过计算表明,煤矿开采埋深越浅,煤层越厚,对管道危害越严重。兴隆庄煤矿3煤层、杨村煤矿煤16t、煤17开采对管道影响强烈,杨庄煤矿煤16t、煤17开采对管道影响中等,兴隆庄煤矿煤16t、煤17开采对管道运营影响小。     

内蒙古桌子山煤田火区特征及灭火方法探讨

内蒙古自治区桌子山煤田赋存着较为稀缺的煤种一焦煤,煤田内存在的火区不仪烧掉了宝贵的焦性煤炭资源,给煤矿生产带来严重的事故隐患,对当地生态环境也造成极大的破坏。经查明区内有26处子火区,分布面积约760万m^2,通过煤田地质特征、煤质特征、地表指示特征、同位素氡气的浓度相对分布特征、物性特征分析了区内煤层发火原因,根据桌子山煤田火区特点,建议采用浅剥、深灌与覆盖相结合的灭火方法,并对火区进行动态监测。     

含煤层地质环境下地震波场的数值模拟

本文对含低速煤层地质环境下弹性波场多波多分量地震资料进行了二维数值模拟研究,对人工边界反射进行了有效处理,频散效应得到了有效的压制,对几种不同激发与观测排列方式下的弹性波资料进行了模型计算与分析。     

Biomass burning in the tropical savannas of Ivory Coast: An overview of the field experiment Fire of Savannas (FOS/DECAFE 91)

FOS/DECAFE 91 (Fire of Savannas/Dynamique et Chimie Atmosphérique en Forêt Equatoriale) was the first multidisciplinary experiment organized in Africa to determine gas and aerosol emissions by prescribed savanna fires. The humid savanna of Lamto in Ivory Coast was chosen for its ecological characteristics representative of savannas with a high biomass density (900 g m^–2 dry matter). Moreover the vegetation and the climate of Lamto have been studied for more than twenty years. The emission ratios (X/CO₂) of the carbon compounds (CO₂, CO, NMHC, CH₄, PAH, organic acids and aerosols), nitrogen compounds (NO_x, N₂O, NH₃ and soluble aerosols) and sulfur compounds (SO₂, COS and aerosols) were experimentally determined by ground and aircraft measurements. To perform this experiment, 4 small plots (100×100 m) and 2 large areas (10×10 km) were prepared and burnt in January 1991 during the period of maximum occurrence of fires in this type of savanna. The detailed ecological study shows that the carbon content of the vegetation is constant within 1% (42 g C for 100 g of vegetal dry matter), the nitrogen content (0.29 g N for 100 g of dry matter) may vary by 10% and the sulfur content (0.05 g S/100 d.m.) by 20%. These variations of the biomass chemical content do not constitute an important factor in the variation of the gas and particle emission levels. With the emission ratios characteristic of humid savanna and flaming conditions (CO/CO₂ of 6.1% at the ground and 8% for airborne measurements), we propose a set of new emission factors, taking into account the burning efficiency which is about 80%: 74.4% of the carbon content of the savanna biomass is released to the atmosphere in the form of CO₂, 4.6% as CO, 0.2% as CH₄, 0.5% as NMHC and 0.7% as aerosols. 17.2% of the nitrogen content of the biomass is released as NO_x, 3.5% as N₂O, 0.6% as NH₃ and 0.5% as soluble aerosols.     

Particulate content of savanna fire emissions

As part of the FOS-DECAFE experiment at Lamto (Ivory Coast) in January 1991, various aerosol samples were collected at ground level near prescribed fires or under local background conditions, to characterize the emissions of particulate matter from the burning of savanna vegetation. This paper deals with total aerosol (TPM) and carbon measurements. Detailed trace element and polycyclic hydrocarbon data are discussed in other papers presented in this issue.Near the fire plumes, the aerosols from biomass burning are primarily of a carbonaceous nature (C%70% of the aerosol mass) and consist predominantly of submicron particles (more than 90% in mass.) They are characterized by their organic nature (black to total carbon ratio Cb/Ct in the range 3–20%) and their high potassium content (K/Cb0.6). These aerosols undergo aging during their first minutes in the atmosphere causing slight alterations in their size distribution and chemical composition. However, they remain enriched in potassium (K/Cb=0.21) and pyrene, a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, such that both of these species may be used as tracers of savanna burning aerosols. We show that during this period of the year, the background atmosphere experiences severe pollution from both terrigenous sources and regional biomass burning (44% of the aerosol). Daynight variations of the background carbon concentrations suggest that fire ignition and spreading occur primarily during the day. Simultaneous TPM and CO₂ real-time measurements point to a temporal and spatial heterogeneity of the burning so that the ratio of the above background concentrations (TPM/CO₂) varies from 2 to 400 g/kg C. Smoldering processes are intense sources of particles but particulate emissions may also be important during the rapidly spreading heading fires in connection with the generation of heavy brown smoke. We propose emission factor values (EF) for aerosols from the savanna biomass burning aerosols: EF (TPM)=11.4±4.6 and 69±25 g/kg C_{dry plant} and EF(Ct)=7.4±3.4 and 56±16 g C/kg C_{dry plant} for flaming and smoldering processes respectively. In these estimates, the range of uncertainty is mostly due to the intra-fire variability. These values are significantly lower than those reported in the literature for the combustion of other types of vegetation. But due to the large amounts of vegetation biomass being burnt in African savannas, the annual flux of particulate carbon into the atmosphere is estimated to be of the order of 8 Tg C, which rivals particulate carbon emissions from anthropogenic activities in temperate regions.     

卫星遥感在秸秆焚烧监测中的应用

通过对MODIS光谱特征的分析，提出了一种综合运用3S技术进行秸秆焚烧动态监测的资料处理流程和量化判识指标。通过在关中地区2004年麦秸秆焚烧监测中的应用，效果良好，为政府部门迅速、准确地了解全省秸秆焚烧情况，提高预警能力和监督检查的效率提供了科学依据。     

Mechanisms of coal metamorphism: case studies from Paleozoic coalfields

Controls on coal metamorphism can be complex. In this paper, we examine four Paleozoic coalfields: the western Kentucky portion of the Illinois Basin, the Pennsylvania anthracite fields, the South Wales Coalfield, and the Bowen Basin. An increase in temperature with depth of burial is certainly a factor in coal metamorphism. In many coalfields, however, including the coalfields reviewed here, it has become apparent that such a simple mechanism does not explain the coal rank patterns observed. The flow of hydrothermal fluids through the coals has been proposed as a cause of coal metamorphism. Evidence includes inverted rank gradients, elevated CFL as an indicator of brine fluids, isotopic evidence for hydrothermal fluids, and vein and cleat mineral assemblages. In any case, multiple hypotheses must often be evaluated in the examination of any coalfield since the simple paradigm of coal rank increases with a simple increase in temperature with increasing depth does not fit the evidence observed in many cases.     

Coal mining along the Warfield Fault, Mingo County, West Virginia: a tale of ups and downs

Mine development along a 15-mile (24 km) section of the Warfield Fault in Mingo County, West Virginia has broadened the geological understanding of the fault and its related structures. The fault has been exposed in two new road cuts, one in the northeast-trending segment at Neely Branch and one in the eastern east-trending segment at the head of Marrowbone Creek. Both exposures show a well-defined normal fault with a 45° to 55° N dip, juxtaposing sandstone/shale packages from the roof and the floor of the Coalburg seam. The fault is associated with a thin gouge zone, some drag folding, and parallel jointing. Its trace tends to run parallel to the crest of the adjacent Warfield Anticline. Based on underground mine development and detailed core drilling, the vertical offset along the fault plane ranges from a maximum of 240 ft (73 m) in the central part of the area near the structural bend to less than 100 ft (30 m) in western and eastern directions. The fault is located along the relatively steeply dipping (locally in excess of 25%) southern limb of the Warfield Anticline, and appears related to a late phase of extension involving folded Pennsylvanian strata. On a regional scale, the lithological variations across the fault do not suggest any appreciable strike-slip component.Underground room and pillar mines in the Coalburg seam north and south of the fault have been greatly impacted by the Warfield structures. Due to the combined (and opposite) effects of the folding and faulting, the northern mines are located up to 400 ft (125 m) higher in elevation than the southern ones. Overland conveyor belts connect mining blocks separated by the fault. The practical mining limit along the steep slopes toward the fault is around 15%. Subsidiary normal faults with offsets in the 5- to 15-ft (1.5–4.5 m) range are fairly common and form major roof control and production hurdles. Overall, the Warfield structures pose an extra challenge to mine development in this part of the Appalachian Coalfields.     

Surface analysis of pyrite in the No. 9 coal seam, Wuda Coalfield, Inner Mongolia, China, using high-resolution time-of-flight secondary ion mass-spectrometry

The chemical composition of pyrite in coal can be used to investigate its geological and mineralogical origin. In this paper, high-resolution time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) was used to study the chemical composition of various pyrite forms in the No. 9 coal seam (S_t,d=3.46%) from the Wuda Coalfield, Inner Mongolia, northern China. These include bacteriogenic, framboidal, massive, cell-filling, fracture-filling, and nodular pyrites. In addition to Fe⁺ (⁵⁴Fe⁺, ⁵⁶Fe⁺, ⁵⁷Fe⁺), other fragment ions were detected in bacteriogenic pyrites, such as ²⁷Al⁺, Si⁺ (²⁸Si⁺, ²⁹Si⁺, ³⁰Si⁺), ⁴⁰Ca⁺, Cu⁺ (⁶³Cu⁺, ⁶⁵Cu⁺), Zn⁺ (⁶⁴Zn⁺, ⁶⁶Zn⁺, ⁶⁷Zn⁺, ⁶⁸Zn⁺), Ni⁺ (⁵⁸Ni⁺, ⁶⁰Ni⁺, ⁶²Ni⁺), and C₃H₇⁺. TOF-SIMS images show bacteriogenic pyrites are relatively rich in Cu, Zn, and Ni, suggesting that bacteria probably play an important role in the enrichment of Cu, Zn, and Ni during their formation. Intense positive secondary ion fragments from framboidal aggregates, such as ²⁷Al⁺, ²⁸Si⁺, ²⁹Si⁺, AlO⁺, CH₂⁺, C₃H₃⁺, C₃H₅⁺, and C₄H₇⁺, indicate that formation of the framboidal aggregates may have occurred together with clay mineral and organic matter, which probably serve as the binding substance. The intense ions of ²⁸Si⁺ and ²⁷Al⁺ from massive pyrites also suggest that their pores incorporated clay minerals during crystallization. Together with the lowest ²⁸Si⁺/²³Na⁺ value, the intense organic positive secondary ion peaks from cell-filling pyrites, such as C₃H₃⁺, C₃H₅⁺, C₃H₇⁺, and C₄H₇⁺, indicate that pyrite formation may have accompanied dissolution or disintegration of the cell. The intense P⁺ peak was observed only in the fracture-filling pyrite and the highest ²⁸Si⁺/²³Na⁺ value of fracture-filling pyrite reflects its epigenetic origin. Together with XRD and REEs data, the stronger ⁴⁰Ca⁺ in nodular pyrite than other pyrite forms shows seawater influence during its formation.