Shallow-buried, hard, and extra-thick coal seams are very common in Xinjiang, China, but there are relatively few studies on the mine pressure law and the development characteristics of water-flowing fracture zones (WFFZs) during the mining of such coal seams. In this paper, the mine pressure of the top coal caving face in a shallow, hard coal seam with a hard roof and full bedrock (SHCSHRFB) is analysed, the laws of the surrounding rock deformation and stress of the open-off cut and roadway in the large-mining-height top coal caving face are studied, the characteristics of roof-breaking and overburden fracture development are analysed using the physical similarity simulation method, supporting suggestions for roadways are put forward, and three development stages of the WFFZ are analysed. Field monitoring shows that the hydraulic support stress in SHCSHRFB is weak, but the coal wall and roadway stability are good, which is significantly different from the results in the typical shallow-buried thin bedrock working faces. The measured height of the WFFZ is close to the physical similarity simulation results, but quite different from those arising from use of the empirical formula.

Coal gangue accounts for the bulk of the solid waste produced during coal mining. Conventional gangue disposal methods often fail to meet the requirements of environmental protection regulations, making it necessary to broaden the approach used in the disposal of coal gangue. The research aims to explore the feasibility of using gangue to displace coarse aggregates to prepare underground roadway shotcrete. Key performance indicators, including the slump, compressive strength, and tensile strength of the gangue‐based shotcrete with different mixing proportions, were tested. Influences of factors including the cement content, water‐cement ratio, and accelerator content on the performance of gangue‐based shotcrete were analyzed, the optimal mixing proportion of the shotcrete was determined, and a nonlinear prediction model for the strength of the shotcrete was established. Results show that Group O‐4 has the optimal mixing proportion of gangue‐based shotcrete, that is, the cement content, water–cement ratio, and accelerator content are separately 450 kg·m ⁻³ , 0.55, and 4%. Under that mix design, the slump, compressive strength, and tensile strength are 116 mm, 25.8 MPa, and 2.09 MPa, respectively. A multifactor coupling model was built based on orthogonal test data, and a predictive model for the compressive and tensile strengths of gangue‐based shotcrete was obtained through nonlinear regression and fitting. The research provides a theoretical basis and technical support for the use of solid‐waste coal gangue. Finally, the influences of the particle size of gangue on the performance of the shotcrete were analyzed, and the optimal particle size range of gangue was determined to be 0–10 mm.