ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Energy Res.
Sec. Advanced Clean Fuel Technologies
Character and Inspiration of coalbed methane extraction from underground boreholes
Provisionally accepted
Bo Wang1
Xianshang Zhang2*Qianqian Ma2Zhen Wang2Guangcai Wen2Qingming Long2
Jun Liu2Huiming Yang2Jie Cao2
Linchao Dai2Xuezhan Xu2Moran Zhu2- 1China Coal Technology and Engineering Group Chongqing Research Institute, Chongqing, Chongqing, China
- 2China Coal Technology and Engineering Group Corp Chongqing Research Institute, Chongqing, China
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Coalbed methane (CBM) has become an important unconventional gas source in China, yet quantitative understanding of underground borehole extraction remains limited. Based on field data from the Wangpo coal mine, this study investigates the relationships among methane concentration, vacuum pressure, gas production rate, and cumulative extraction behavior. Results reveal that daily production rates follow a power-law–type decline consistent with pore–cleat–controlled gas flow, and the cumulative extraction curve can be divided into four characteristic stages corresponding to shifts in gas-migration mechanisms. The rate integral–derivative function exhibits a strong linear correlation with mass-balance time, underscoring its potential as a predictive tool for production forecasting. A clear threshold effect of vacuum pressure is identified, beyond which methane concentration improves significantly, while longer boreholes enhance gas capture due to increased exposed coal area. However, drilling length, cost, and geological heterogeneity must be balanced to maintain efficiency. The findings highlight the need for intelligent vacuum-pressure regulation based on real-time methane monitoring to optimize extraction stability and utilization efficiency. These insights offer practical guidance for CBM borehole management and process optimization.
Keywords: gas production, Vacuum pressure, Methane concentration, underground borehole, Coalbed drainage
Received: 11 Jun 2025; Accepted: 17 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Wang, Zhang, Ma, Wang, Wen, Long, Liu, Yang, Cao, Dai, Xu and Zhu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Xianshang Zhang, zhangxianshang@sina.com
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