Characterization of the Time-Space Evolution of Acoustic Emissions from a Coal-like Material Composite Model and an Analysis of the Effect of the Dip Angle on the Bursting Tendency

Rock bursts pose a grievous risk to the health and lives of miners and to the industry. One factor that affects rock bursts is the dip angle of the coal seam. Because of the uniquely high gas content of the coal in a mine in Shanxi Province, China, coal specimens were obtained from this mine to produce coal-rock combination specimens and test the effects of various seam inclinations. Using a DYD-10 uniaxial compression system and a PCI-8 acoustic emission (AE) signal acquisition system, we investigated the spatial and temporal evolution characteristics of the burst tendency of specimens with different coal seam inclination angles (0 degrees, 10 degrees, 20 degrees, 30 degrees, 35 degrees, 40 degrees, and 45 degrees). Uniaxial pressure was applied to the specimens, and we found that, as the inclination angle increased, the coal-rock combination specimens exhibited structural damage and destabilization, which was attributed to the generation of an interface slip phenomenon. In all tests, the coal exhibited greater damage than the rock. There was an energy convergence at the coal-rock interlayer interface, which was the main carrier for the accumulated energy. The impact energy dissipation index is defined according to the energy dissipation properties of the loading process of coal-rock composites. As the inclination angle increased, the impact energy dissipation index, energy storage limit, compressive strength, elastic modulus, and other indexes gradually decreased. This effect was strongest where the angles were 40 degrees and 45 degrees. The indexes used to assess the impact propensity decreased to a notable degree at these angles, revealing that the burst tendency of coal-rock is curtailed as the inclination angle increases. The results of this research are of great importance to the early evaluation of mine burst risks and the sustainable development of coal utilization.