journal article·2025-11-07Open access

Assessing the Performance of a Cascaded Composite Phase Change Material Roadway Cooling System Against Heat Hazard from Sustainable Mine Geothermal Energy

Hengfeng Liu, Jiahao Guo, Baiyi Li, Alfonso Rodriguez-Dono, Peng Huang, Xinying Li, Erkan Topal, Shuqi Liu

Applied Sciences· Volume 15· Issue 22

Abstract

Sustainable mine geothermal energy causes high-temperature hazards in mine roadways, severely endangering miners’ lives. There is an urgent need to enhance research on the performance of composite phase change material (CPCM) roadway cooling systems, as they can effectively control ambient temperatures. However, existing research on CPCM roadway cooling system performance remains limited. This study innovatively establishes a numerical model for a novel cascade CPCM roadway cooling system and employs the control variable method to investigate the influence of multi-parameter regulation on system performance. The study reveals that the ring pipe radius ratio significantly impacts the system’s heat exchange efficiency and temperature distribution. The optimal comprehensive system performance is achieved at an annular tube radius ratio of 2:3, where the CPCM solid phase percentage for 89.03% and the average temperature of the monitoring surface decreases by 9.54 °C. Increasing the cascaded tube spacing enhances the overall cooling effect, but cooling efficiency diminishes when the spacing exceeds 0.5 m. The CPCM phase change temperature must align with the mine’s geothermal conditions, with CPCM utilization and cooling efficiency peaking at 25 °C. The air deflector structure effectively mitigates cooling lag in the lower roadway section. At an installation angle of 30°, the expansion distance of the lower low-temperature zone increased by up to 48.89% without compromising cooling efficiency in the upper roadway section, while also delaying the recovery rate of heat damage.
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Research context

OpenAlex topics: Geothermal Energy Systems and Applications · Phase Change Materials Research · Coal Properties and Utilization

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

School of Mines, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China

State Key Laboratory for Geomechanics and Deep Underground Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, 08034 Barcelona, Spain

Department of Graphic and Design Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, 08028 Barcelona, Spain

Centre Internacional de Mètodes Numèrics en Enginyeria (CIMNE), 08034 Barcelona, Spain

WA School of Mines: Minerals, Energy and Chemical Engineering, Curtin University, Perth, WA 6102, Australia

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China · Postdoctoral Fellowship Program of China Postdoctoral Science Foundation · Key Laboratory of Xinjiang Coal Resources Green Mining, Ministry of Education · China National Administration of Coal Geology Major Special Project · the 111 Project

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