MINAEV, A.A. 1, NAZIMKO, V.V. 1 & PENG, S.S. 2
1
2 USA, WV, West Virginia University, speng@wvucemr.wvu.edu, http://www.wvu.edu
Abstract: Partnership between Ukrainian and American universities has been developed according a multipurpose program. It occurs both in education, research and industry areas. This yields new curricula, scientific and practical results. Hence process of education goes more fluently through research and industry experience. This provides permanent enhancing of education quality.
Keywords: partnership, program, scientific project, abandoned mine
Partnership between West Virginia University (WVU) and Donetsk State Technical University (DSTU) has been established since May 1992. It had started from exchange of scholars and students and has developed in multipurpose program. In 1992, a contact between the universities has been initiated during visit of Ukrainian party to Morgantown, WV. Rector of DSTU acquainted with the structure of WVU, its educational and research process, facilities, libraries and laboratories. Exchange of scholars and students on regular basis had been negotiated and the partnership has been launched according multipurpose program. So far, this program encompasses:
A two year cooperative research project. The project has been funded by Civil Research and Development Foundation (CRDF), USA. It is non-profit organization, which delivers financial support to scientific groups from Former Soviet Union States on competition basis. Grant UG1-308 ($42,000) which is funded from CRDF deals with technology of ground control over an abandoned mine. This project is mutually useful for USA and Ukraine because there are more than 70,000 abandoned coal mines in USA and more then 50 coal mines are expecting to be closed in Ukraine in near future and 20 mines have been recently closed. There is no efficient and economical technology to prevent delayed subsidence that causes great damage for surface utilities (buildings, electric towers, pipelines, roadways, rivers, etc.). The only well-known method is filling of the abandoned mines with waste rock or ash from power station. However this method did not prove its efficiency in practice. There is no experience to close, eliminate or conserve deep (hundreds of meters) vertical shafts. Filling of the shafts does not work because the filling material consolidates and a shaft becomes empty. There is a great number of cases when surface falls and comes down around abandoned filled vertical shafts. Scientists developed new technologies to prevent surface subsidence over abandoned mines. These technologies are being tested in laboratory and in situ (Figure 1).
Faculties exchange on regular basis. This helps to exchange new ideas for scholars and to update engineering trends in education and industry. American scientists have been acquainted with wide experience on physical and computer modeling of irreversible geomechanical processes in DSTU. Ukrainian party gained good experience on roof control with rock bolting systems and recent trend in modern longwall mining in USA.
Figure 1 American and Ukrainian scientists examine state of a physical model
Publication of cooperative research papers in international journals and participation in international conferences. Owing to the cooperation, Ukrainian scientists participated some important international conferences, namely; 13, 15 International Conferences on Ground Control (Morgantown, USA, 1994; Golden, USA, 1996), 35 and 36 U.S. Rock Mechanics Symposiums (Reno, 1995; New York, USA, 1997), International Conference on Geomechanics/Ground Control in Mining and Underground Construction GGM’98 (Wollongong, Australia, 1998). Some independent and cooperative papers have been published [1-3]. This helped Ukrainian scientists to break informational isolation and to gain from personal contacts with professionals worldwide.
Implementation of new technology for vertical shafts elimination after abandoning coal mines. This is very important for Ukraine now because there are not extensive technical experience of closing deep coal mines anywhere. Implementation of the technology saves money and essentially increases safety. Figure 2 demonstrates a moment of examination of a site where a vertical shaft is to be eliminated at a closed coal mine “Felix Con”. Specialists from DonSTU (Professors Alexandrov S.N. - left and Nazimko V.V. – third from the left), from WVU (Professor Peng S.S. – right) and from Zasiadko coal mine (Chief Engineer Petrov V. N. – second from the left) are examining facilities at the shaft.
Writing a Doctor dissertation under cooperative supervising. This helps to prepare modern specialists in Ukraine on urgent problems of safety during closing the coal mines. Conventional methods of vertical shafts elimination employ filling of the shafts with waste rock. However practical experience has not proved efficiency such technologies. Main problem are consolidation of the filling, big cost and low reliability and safety. To solve these problems, new technology for the shafts elimination has been developed during scientific cooperation. It should be noted however that the technology is under current testing and improvement. In the other words, research process continues and experienced specialists have been involved to accelerate the process. Figure 3 demonstrates discussion of a research plan for Doctor dissertation of Zviagilski E.L. (right), who has been working in coal industry for 35 years.
Development of a research laboratory for ground subsidence investigation. This liquidates urgent shortage of modern computer equipment and up-to-date technical and scientific information. According to budget of UG1-308 grant, three modern computers, a plotter and a digital camera have been bought to provide the research. The camera is used for prompt registration of states of the physical models and surface falls in situ. The computers are utilized in processing experimental data and in numerical simulation of ground movement over abandoned and active mines. All new equipment dramatically accelerated research process and increased its accuracy and reliability of final results.
Elaboration of new research courses for graduate students on ground control subject. A new course ”Ground control over an abandoned mine” has been developed and introduced in DSTU. Three courses namely ”Ground control in mining”, ”Rock mechanics” and ”Physical processes in rock mass” have been essentially updated owing the research results. Two Doctor dissertations have been commenced to develop the problem of ground control over abandoned or active coal mines.
Accumulation of modern technical and scientific books and journals. Dozens of modern books, conferences proceedings and journals on ground control problems, artificial intelligence, economics and rock mechanics have been accumulated in DSTU. It is impossible to overestimate an importance of this printed staff because of extraordinary shortage of recent scientific information in Ukraine.
Selection and development of new research problems which may be interesting for the both parties. New promising research problems in mineral processing, rock bolting, powder metallurgy, solid physics, and economics have been initiated in DSTU owing the cooperation. These new directions of investigation may help to develop scientific potential of DSTU and to accumulate critical knowledge in high technologies. This is very important in a market economy to which Ukraine is entering now.
Partnership between Ukrainian and American universities has been developed according a multipurpose program. It occurs both in education, research and industry areas, namely:
Therefore the interaction is naturally multipurpose and occurs both in education, research and industry areas. This yields new curricula, scientific and practical results. Hence process of education goes more fluently through research and industry experience. This provides permanent enhancing of education quality.
NAZIMKO V.V. GRAYSON L.R. Thermodynamic method of rock durability. In Rock Mechanics Proceedings of the 35th U.S. Symposium, A.A.Balkema Rotterdam, 1995, pp.363-365. ISBN 905410 552 6.
NAZIMKO V. V., PENG S. S., LAPTEEV A. A., ALEXANDROV S. N., SAZHNEV V. P. Damage mechanics around a tunnel due to incremental ground pressure. In 36th U.S. Rock Mechanics Symposium, J. Rock Mech. & Min. Sci., 1997, Paper No. 222, p.665. ISBN0148-9062.
NAZIMKO V.V., LAPTEEV A.A., SAZHNEV V.P., NAPRASNICOV S.V., ALEXANDROV S.N., IVANOV I.E. Longwall Panel Roof Stability Assessment. In Proceedings of Int. Conf. On Geomech./Ground Control in Mining and Underground Constraction, Univercity of Wollongong, Wollongong, 1998, pp. 599-608. ISBN 0 86418 514.
Figure 2 Examination of field arrangement for a vertical shaft closing
Figure 3 Discussion of a Doctor dissertation plan on ground control over an abandoned mine problem