Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

The Validation Process of the Method of Balancing Gas Contained in the Pore Space of Rocks via Rock Comminution

Version 1 : Received: 1 March 2018 / Approved: 2 March 2018 / Online: 2 March 2018 (12:47:16 CET)

How to cite: Kudasik, M.; Pajdak, A.; Skoczylas, N. The Validation Process of the Method of Balancing Gas Contained in the Pore Space of Rocks via Rock Comminution. Preprints 2018, 2018030023. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints201803.0023.v1 Kudasik, M.; Pajdak, A.; Skoczylas, N. The Validation Process of the Method of Balancing Gas Contained in the Pore Space of Rocks via Rock Comminution. Preprints 2018, 2018030023. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints201803.0023.v1

Abstract

The article discusses the validation process of a certain method of balancing gas contained in the pore space of rocks. The validation was based upon juxtaposition of the examination of rocks' porosity and the effects of comminution in terms of assessing the possibility of opening the pore space. The tests were carried out for six dolomite samples taken from different areas of the 'Polkowice-Sieroszowice’ copper mine in Poland. Before the rock material was ground, it was examined using the porosimetric method and subsequently subjected to the SEM analysis. After grinding, the research material was subjected to the granulometric analysis. Prior to the grinding process, the rocks' porosity fell in the range of 0.3-14.8%, while the volume of the open pores was included in the 0.01-0.06 cm3/g range. The research material was also characterized by inhomogeneous distribution of the pore volume. The grinding process was performed using an original device – the GPR analyzer. The ground samples were characterized by similar particle size distribution and mean diameters D_3.2 of about 4.0-4.5 µm. The SEM analysis revealed pores of various size and shape on the surface of the rock cores, while at the same time demonstrating lack of pores following the grinding process. The grain size distribution curves were compared with the cumulative pore volume curves of the cores before grinding. The resulting intersection points of both curves were seen as testifying to the presence of openings in the rock pores and release of the accumulated gas. The opening percentage of the pore space was associated with the coordinates of the curves' intersections. In order to confirm the argument put forward in this paper – i.e. that comminution of a rock to grains of a size comparable with the size of the rock's pores results in the release of gas contained in the pore space – the amount of gas released as a result of the comminution process was studied. The results of gas balancing demonstrated that the pore space of the investigated dolomites was filled with gas in amounts from 3.19 cm3/kg to 45.86 cm3/kg. The obtained results of the rock material comminution to grains comparable – in terms of size – to the size of the pores of investigated rocks, along with asserting the presence of gas in the pore space of the studied dolomites, were regarded as a proof that the method of balancing gas in rocks via rock comminution is correct.

Keywords

porosity; gas; outburst; dolomite, copper ore mines

Subject

Environmental and Earth Sciences, Geophysics and Geology

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