Water Management at Abandoned Flooded Underground Mines

doi:10.1007/978-3-540-77331-3

Cited by 19 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 283 publications

(424 reference statements)

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“…Fluid and heat flow pathways are dependent on the volume mined and dewatered, which is related to the type of mining (Wolkersdorfer 2008). This research has focused on coal mines worked by hand following the pillar-and-stall (also known as stoop-and-room or bord-and-pillar) method ( Fig.…”

Section: Conceptual Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coupled hydraulic and mechanical model of surface uplift due to mine water rebound: implications for mine water heating and cooling schemes

Todd

McDermott

Harris

et al. 2019

SJG

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In order to establish sustainable heat loading (heat removal and storage) in abandoned flooded mine workings it is important to understand the geomechanical impact of the cyclical heat loading caused by fluid injection and extraction. This is particularly important where significantly more thermal loading is planned than naturally occurs. A simple calculation shows that the sustainable geothermal heat flux from abandoned coal mines can provide less than a tenth of Scotland's annual domestic heating demand. Any heat removal greater than the natural heat flux will lead to heat mining unless heat storage options are also considered.As a first step, a steady-state, fully saturated, 2D coupled hydromechanical model of a generalized section of pillar-and-stall workings has been created. Mine water rebound was modelled by increasing the hydrostatic pressure sequentially, in line with monitored mine water-level data from Midlothian, Scotland. The modelled uplift to water-level rise ratio of 1.4 mm m −1 is of the same order of magnitude (1 mm m −1 ) as that observed through interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) data in the coalfield due to mine water rebound. The modelled magnitude of shear stress at the pillar corners, as a result of horizontal and vertical displacement, is shown to increase linearly with water level. Mine heat systems are expected to cause smaller changes in pressure than those modelled but the results provide initial implications on the potential geomechanical impacts of mine water heat schemes which abstract or inject water and heat into pillar-and-stall coal mine workings.

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Section: Conceptual Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coupled hydraulic and mechanical model of surface uplift due to mine water rebound: implications for mine water heating and cooling schemes

Todd

McDermott

Harris

et al. 2019

SJG

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“…The acid effluents may or may not contain dissolved toxic metals, but will always contain sulfate in their composition (Wolkersdorfer 2008). Effluents with high sulfate and low dissolved iron content can be indicative of the previously generated AMD, that is being neutralized nowadays (Berghorn and Hunzeker 2001).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hydrogeochemical features of surface water and groundwater contaminated with acid mine drainage (AMD) in coal mining areas: a case study in southern Brazil

Galhardi

Bonotto

2016

Environ Sci Pollut Res

102

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Effects of acid mine drainage (AMD) were investigated in surface waters (Laranjinha River and Ribeirão das Pedras stream) and groundwaters from a coal mining area sampled in two different seasons at Figueira city, Paraná State, Brazil. The spatial data distribution indicated that the acid effluents favor the chemical elements leaching and transport from the tailings pile into the superficial water bodies or aquifers, modifying their quality. The acid groundwaters in both sampling periods (dry: pH 2.94-6.04; rainy: pH 3.25-6.63) were probably due to the AMD generation and infiltration, after the oxidation of sulfide minerals. Such acid effluents cause an increase of the solubilization rate of metals, mainly iron and aluminum, contributing to both groundwater and surface water contamination. Sulfate in high levels is a result of waters' pollution due to AMD. In some cases, high sulfate and low iron contents, associated with less acidic pH values, could indicate that AMD, previously generated, is nowadays being neutralized. The chemistry of the waters affected by AMD is controlled by the pH, sulfide minerals' oxidation, oxygen, iron content, and microbial activity. It is also influenced by seasonal variations that allow the occurrence of dissolution processes and the concentration of some chemical elements. Under the perspective of the waters' quality evaluation, the parameters such as conductivity, dissolved sodium, and sulfate concentrations acted as AMD indicators of groundwaters and surface waters affected by acid effluents.

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“…An interesting insight to problems with mine water quality in Scotland can be found in Marsden's et al, work [13]. Geochemical processes in flooded mines along with water stratification are described in detail by Younger [14][15][16][17][18], Nutatall [19] and Wolkersdorfer [20]. Some papers also present mine water issues in opencast mines [21,22].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Groundwater Chemistry and Stratification in the Flooded Hard-Coal Mine Shaft “Nowy I” (Nowa Ruda Region, SW Poland)

Chudy

Worsa-Kozak

Wójcik

2020

Water

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The flooding of unprofitable underground mines is one of the methods of their closure. After the drainage of the mine has stopped, the voids left in the rock mass as a result of mining, are filled with inflowing groundwater. In this way, reservoirs of groundwater with specific physicochemical parameters are formed. These parameters depend on the interaction of the water flowing into the workings with the rock formations. It was the economic situation in the 1990s that led to the closure of hard coal mines in the Nowa Ruda Coal Basin, where the flooded “Nowy I” shaft is located. In that shaft, in 2008, hydrogeological research was performed and groundwater samples from five various depths were collected. The aim of the study was to recognize if groundwater stratification occurs in the shaft. In 2015, a sample of the water outflowing through the “Aleksander” adit was taken to check the potential influence of mine flooding on the environment and to confirm the changes in groundwater chemistry over time. These were the first, and so far, the only studies on the chemical composition of water in the flooded mine in that area. The article presents results of the preliminary research, which confirmed the existence of not obvious hydrogeochemical stratification in the shaft. It can be assumed that below the depth of 350 m, the water circulating through mining excavations exhibits the highest electrical conductivity and the highest concentration of Ca2+, K+, SO42−, Fetot. In the depth range of 320–380 m there is a transition zone, in which a decrease of Eh value and a change of reduction and oxidation is recorded. Above this zone, infiltration water inflow, from outside the shaft casing, dominates. The research shows that it would be necessary to perform additional sampling of the water in the shaft at greater depths, as well as to perform isotope analysis and periodical tests for at least several years. This would allow for a more complete characterisation of hydrogeochemical processes taking place in the flooded mine.

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Water Management at Abandoned Flooded Underground Mines

Cited by 19 publications

References 283 publications

Coupled hydraulic and mechanical model of surface uplift due to mine water rebound: implications for mine water heating and cooling schemes

Coupled hydraulic and mechanical model of surface uplift due to mine water rebound: implications for mine water heating and cooling schemes

Hydrogeochemical features of surface water and groundwater contaminated with acid mine drainage (AMD) in coal mining areas: a case study in southern Brazil

Groundwater Chemistry and Stratification in the Flooded Hard-Coal Mine Shaft “Nowy I” (Nowa Ruda Region, SW Poland)

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