Stability Control of Deep Coal Roadway under the Pressure Relief Effect of Adjacent Roadway with Large Deformation: A Case Study

High-efficiency maintenance and control of the deep coal roadway surrounding rock stability is a reliable guarantee for sustainable development of a coal mine. However, it is difficult to control the stability of a roadway that locates near a roadway with large deformation. With return air roadway 21201 (RAR 21201) in Hulusu coal mine as the research background, in situ investigation, theoretical analysis, numerical simulation, and engineering practice were carried out to study pressure relief effect on the surrounding rock after the severe deformation of the roadway. Besides, the feasibility of excavating a new roadway near this damaged one by means of pressure relief effect is also discussed. Results showed that after the strong mining roadway suffered huge loose deformation, the space inside shrank so violently that surrounding rock released high stress to a large extent, which formed certain pressure relief effect on the rock. Through excavating a new roadway near this deformed one, the new roadway could obtain a relative low stress environment with the help of the pressure relief effect, which is beneficial for maintenance and control of itself. Equal row spacing double-bearing ring support technology is proposed and carried out. Engineering practice indicates that the new excavated roadway escaped from possible separation fracture in the roof anchoring range, and the surrounding rock deformation of the new roadway is well controlled, which verifies the pressure relief effect mentioned. This paper provides a reference for scientific mining under the condition of deep buried and high stress mining in western China.