The instability of mine roadways is significantly influenced by the coupled effects of groundwater seepage and non-uniform loading. These interactions often induce localized plastic deformation and progressive failure, particularly in the roof and sidewall regions. Seepage elevates pore water pressure and deteriorates the mechanical properties of the rock mass, while non-uniform loading leads to stress concentration. The combined effect facilitates the propagation of microcracks and the formation of shear zones, ultimately resulting in localized instability. This initial damage disrupts the mechanical equilibrium and can evolve into severe geohazards, including roof collapse, water inrush, and rockburst. Therefore, understanding the damage and failure mechanisms of mine roadways at the mesoscale, under the combined influence of stress heterogeneity and hydraulic weakening, is of critical importance based on laboratory experiments and numerical simulations. However, the large scale of in situ roadway structures imposes significant constraints on full-scale physical modeling due to limitations in laboratory space and loading capacity. To address these challenges, a straight-wall circular arch roadway was adopted as the geometric prototype, with a total height of 4 m (2 m for the straight wall and 2 m for the arch), a base width of 4 m, and an arch radius of 2 m. Scaled physical models were fabricated based on geometric similarity principles, using defect-bearing sandstone specimens with dimensions of 100 mm × 30 mm × 100 mm (length × width × height) and pore-type defects measuring 40 mm × 20 mm × 20 mm (base × wall height × arch radius), to replicate the stress distribution and deformation behavior of the prototype. Uniaxial compression tests on water-saturated sandstone specimens were performed using a TAW-2000 electro-hydraulic servo testing system. The failure process was continuously monitored through acoustic emission (AE) techniques and static strain acquisition systems. Concurrently, FLAC^3D 6.0 numerical simulations were employed to analyze the evolution of internal stress fields and the spatial distribution of plastic zones in saturated sandstone containing pore defects. Experimental results indicate that under non-uniform loading, the stress–strain curves of saturated sandstone with pore-type defects typically exhibit four distinct deformation stages. The extent of crack initiation, propagation, and coalescence is strongly correlated with the magnitude and heterogeneity of localized stress concentrations. AE parameters, including ringing counts and peak frequencies, reveal pronounced spatial partitioning. The internal stress field exhibits an overall banded pattern, with localized variations induced by stress anisotropy. Numerical simulation results further show that shear failure zones tend to cluster regionally, while tensile failure zones are more evenly distributed. Additionally, the stress field configuration at the specimen crown significantly influences the dispersion characteristics of the stress–strain response. These findings offer valuable theoretical insights and practical guidance for surrounding rock control, early warning systems, and reinforcement strategies in water-infiltrated mine roadways subjected to non-uniform loading conditions.

To address severe mine pressure disasters induced by the coupling of mining-induced dynamic stress and impact disturbance during close-distance coal seam mining, this paper takes the No. 8 and No. 9 close-distance coal seams in the 119 mining area of a coal mine in Ningxia, China, as the engineering background. Theoretical analysis and FLAC^3D numerical simulation methods were adopted to systematically study the evolution of overburden structure, the manifestation law of mine pressure caused by mining disturbance, and the dynamic response mechanism of roadway surrounding rock under impact load. The findings demonstrate: ① Based on key block theory and elasticity mechanics theory, the stress transfer mechanism of the complete bearing type overburden rock in close-range coal seams was clarified. The calculation model of floor plastic zone depth and additional stress was derived, and the influence mechanism of the bearing state of interlayer rock strata on the stability of underlying coal seam roadways was revealed. ② Comparative numerical simulations of mining schemes revealed that both schemes formed a “goaf pressure relief-workface-coal pillar” load-bearing configuration with “upward subsidence and downward bulging” basin-shaped settlement. Scheme A exhibited significantly increased stress peaks and interlayer plastic zones due to repeated mining-induced stress, substantially elevating the risk of strong mine pressure manifestation and surrounding rock instability. ③ Under 8 MPa cosine impact load with a vibration frequency of 50 Hz (peak particle vibration velocity of 9.57 m/s), compared with the unsupported roadway, the bolt–cable collaborative support system reduced the peak displacement of surrounding rock by over 35% and decreased the shock wave propagation velocity by more than 40%, effectively suppressing the expansion of plastic zones and the transfer of impact energy, while significantly enhancing the impact resistance of the roadway. This study not only provides a systematic theoretical basis for close-distance coal seam mining and rock burst prevention but also offers scientific guidance and technical reference for surrounding rock control and dynamic disaster prevention of roadways in similar close-distance coal seam mining projects, which is of important engineering value for ensuring the safe and efficient mining of underground coal resources.