Strength criterion effect of the translator and destabilization model of gas-bearing coal seam

Coal seam destabilization inflicts damage to equipment, causes property loss and personnel casualties, and severely threatens mining safety and efficient production. To further understand this destabilization based on the basic theory of Lippmann seam destabilization, a mathematical model was introduced for gas pressure distribution by considering intermediate principal stress and support resistance. Subsequently, we established a translation model suitable for the entire roadway coal seam with rocky roof and floor by applying the unified form of yield criterion in the state of plane strain. We also obtained the analytic expressions of coal seam stress distribution on both sides of the roadway and the widths of plastic and disturbance zones. Afterward, we analyzed several typical cases with different material yield criteria, obtained the plastic zone widths of the coal seam under different gas pressures, and assessed the effects of support resistance, roadway size, and coal strength on coal seam destabilization. Results showed that: the results obtained on the basis of Wilson and Mohr–Coulomb criteria are considerably conservative, and the use of Druker–Prager criteria to evaluate the rockburst-induced coal seam destabilization is safer than the use of the two other criteria; coal seam stability is correlated with gas pressure; and high-pressure gas accelerates the coal seam destabilization.