Journal article
Models for the effect of rising water in abandoned mines on seismic activity
International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, Vol.77, pp.246-256
2015
Abstract
The old closed gold mines on the Witwatersrand are flooding and there is concern that the water may seep into stable faults in the district and destabilise them, thus leading to greater seismic activity. The simple deterministic models described here suggest that the time span for water movement into such faults within a distance of 3000. m is likely to be of the order of months and that the hydrostatic pressure buildup within the filled cracks is likely to significantly increase the risk of fault slip. These results appear to be consistent with available observations as documented by Goldbach [20]. The simple models predict a linear decrease in the effective coefficient of friction of the water filled fault with water depth with a reduction of up to 30% possible. Furthermore, and importantly, slip is predicted to occur along joints and faults not previously prone to slip because of their unfavored orientation.
Details
- Title
- Models for the effect of rising water in abandoned mines on seismic activity
- Authors/Creators
- N. Fowkes (Author/Creator) - The University of Western AustraliaG. Hocking (Author/Creator) - Murdoch UniversityD.P. Mason (Author/Creator) - University of the WitwatersrandC.P. Please (Author/Creator) - University of OxfordR. Kgatle (Author/Creator) - University of the WitwatersrandH. Yilmaz (Author/Creator) - University of the WitwatersrandN. van der Merwe (Author/Creator) - University of the Witwatersrand
- Publication Details
- International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, Vol.77, pp.246-256
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Identifiers
- 991005543752107891
- Copyright
- © 2015 Elsevier Ltd.
- Murdoch Affiliation
- School of Engineering and Information Technology
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
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- 8.8.36 Earthquake Dynamics
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