Instability mechanism and shear failure characteristics of fault stick-slip under the influence of mining

Abstract

To investigate the fault damage process and slip mechanism when the longwall working face encounters a fault, the slip characteristics and the evolution of the stress environment around the fault during the longwall–fault distance decrease was analyzed through numerical simulation. Based on these numerical results, biaxial loading–unloading tests were performed on fault specimens to examine their damage process, shear stress evolution, and energy release characteristics under different stress states. The results show that the decrease in the lateral pressure coefficient, caused by horizontal stress reduction and vertical stress increase, is the main factor inducing fault slip. The progressive failure process of the fault involves evolution from the upper roof fault distant from the coal seam to the fault adjacent to the coal seam. The fault near the coal seam slips later, but the seismic moment and seismic energy are large. Biaxial loading-unloading test results indicate that during the stick-slip instability stage, the specimen undergoes a sudden drop in shear stress and releases energy, accompanied by tensile fracture and shear slip in the fault zone. The accuracy of the numerical simulations is verified from an experimental perspective and generalized to an engineering context.

Keywords

fault slip / stress redistribution / lateral pressure coefficient / stick-slip / energy release / rock burst

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