A Combined Method Utilizing Microseismic and Parallel Electrical Monitoring to Determine the Height of Water-Conducting Fracture Zones in Shengfu Coal Mine

The development of a water-conducting fracture zone is a critical factor in understanding and predicting water inrush from coal mine roofs, as these zones facilitate the inflow of water from overlying aquifers. However, traditional methods such as empirical formulas and drilling, as well as single physical investigations (such as transient electromagnetic), can only estimate the height of these fault zones and often cannot accurately obtain precursor information of roof water inrush during the mining process. In this study, a comprehensive evaluation of the 13,101 working face of the Shengfu Coal Mine in Shaanxi, China, is being carried out using microseismic monitoring and parallel electrical methods. On the basis of the microseismic results, the height of the water-conducting fracture zone is obtained to be 57 m. The average variation of the natural potential of the coal seam roof was obtained by the parallel electric method, which was all less than 250 mV, with no obvious anomalous seepage electric field and no large centralized water-conducting channels found. However, the decrease in resistivity and natural potential indicates the precursor information of water seepage when the fracture zone develops to 40–50 m. This approach aims to monitor the development of water-conducting fracture zones by combining microseismic monitoring with parallel electrical methods while simultaneously capturing changes in roof seepage. This will enhance safety and facilitate more informed decision-making in complex hydrogeological environments.