Using three dimensional structural simulations to study the interactions of multiple excavations in salt
Three-dimensional quasistatic finite element codes are being used at Sandia National Laboratories to simulate the interactions of multiple large room and pillar mines in rock salt. The calculations presented in this paper are of a salt dome which contains multiple closely-spaced room and pillar mines. One of the mines was used as an oil storage facility, supported by the US DOE under the auspices of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) program. The facility has recently been decommissioned due to the discovery of geotechnical instabilities. The model, validated by field observations, has resulted in a better understanding of the mechanisms which can threaten the stability of an underground excavation, as well as the structural interactions of multiple excavations. Although these calculations were performed in the specific interest of the SPR, the results should be of interest to mine designers concerned with the interactions of multiple mines excavated in a common formation.
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC04-94AL85000
- OSTI ID:
- 650165
- Report Number(s):
- SAND--97-1017C; CONF-980620--; ON: DE98004220
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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