Control mechanism of a cable truss system for stability of roadways within thick coal seams

Cable truss systems have been widely applied in roadways with complicated conditions, such as the large cross-sections of deep wells, and high tectonic stress. However, they are rarely applied to roadways with extremely thick coal seams because the control mechanism of the system for the deformation of the roof and the separation between coal rock segments is not completely understood. By using the relationship between the support system and the roof strata, a mechanical model was established to calculate the deformation of the roof in a thick coal seam with bedding separation under different support conditions: with an anchor truss support and without support. On this basis, the research was used to deduce a method for computing the minimum pre-tightening forces in the anchor truss, the maximum amounts of subsidence and separation with, and without, anchor truss support under the roof, and the maximum subsidence and the decreasing amounts of the separation before and after adopting the anchor truss.Additionally, mechanical relationships between the minimum pre-tightening force and the anchoring force in the anchor were analyzed. By taking a typical roadway with thick coal roof as an example, the theoretical results mentioned above were applied in the analysis and testing of a roof supporting project in a roadway field to verify the accuracy of the theory: favorable experimental results were achieved. In addition, the relationships among other parameters were analyzed, including the minimum pre-tightening forces applied by the anchor truss, the angle of inclination of the anchor cable, and the array pitch. Meanwhile, the changing characteristics of the amounts of roof separation and subsidence with key parameters of the support system (such as array pitch, pre-tightening force, and inclination angle) were also analyzed. The research results revealed the acting mechanism of the anchor truss in control of roadway stability with a thick coal seam, providing a theoretical basis of its application in coal mining.