In this paper, the effects of steam curing conditions on concrete properties and microstructural characteristics are reviewed, and technical approaches such as appropriate raw material compositions and curing regimes are explored. Moreover, the environmental effects of precast concrete are evaluated. The main conclusion is that steam curing can improve the early strength of concrete, but thermal damage, shrinkage cracking, delayed ettringite formation (DEF), and other factors cause the later strength to increase more slowly or even deteriorate. Accordingly, it is necessary to undertake methods for improvement: (1) Adopt a lot of high-activity mineral admixture + a few low-activity mineral admixture combinations to ensure that the early strength of concrete meets the standard while allowing the subsequent development of concrete hydration to ensure durability. (2) Control the precuring time and temperature gradient of the concrete to allow the initial structure of the concrete to form. (3) Use effective secondary curing, such as soaking in an aqueous solution of limestone, in addition to standard curing to further improve the compactness of concrete. Moreover, the replacement of cement with less than 30% mineral admixtures in steam-cured concrete should be promoted to alleviate the environmental hazards caused by excessive CO₂ emissions.

Paste and thickened tailings (PTT) technology can improve the utilization and management of tailings from processing plants. The pore size distribution (PSD) and microstructure evolution affected by the rake shear in thickening tailings beds are essential to produce a high-density tailings underflow. Continuous thickening and computed tomography (CT) scanning tests were conducted to study the PSD with and without shear. The pore morphology was studied to reveal the shearing-dewatering performance of the tailings bed. The results show that at a flocculant solution concentration of 0.01 wt % and a feed slurry concentration of 10 wt%, the underflow concentration with and without shear can reach 58.5 wt %and 55.8 wt %, respectively. The CT image reconstruction models demonstrated that the porosity of the sheared tailings bed increased with the bed height. When the bed height increased from 2.5 to 10 cm, the porosity increased from 35.1% to 41.9%, the pore fractal dimension increased from the range 1.8–1.95 to the range 2.1–2.15, and the pore quantity decreased by 21.39%. The average pore volume increased with increasing height by 13.93%, 16.57% and 12.07%. The pore structure became more complex with the bed height, and the connectivity between pores increased to form water-flow channels, which were beneficial to the drainage of sealed water.

At present, the many domestic, large mined-out areas caused by single filling ability of the slurry flow state, thin layer flow and hardening after filling in multilayer structure generally need to finish filling for many times, because after a filling experience shows that filling body in the last solidification of flow, this leads to a lower one side of the roof, and far distance part of the filling body cannot pick up top. The determination of backfill strength is the key problem of the cemented backfill method, and it is affected by many factors. Therefore, through theoretical calculation, laboratory testing and numerical simulation methods, combined with the field filling process, this paper has verified the flow accumulation and stratification characteristics of stope layered filling slurry. When the slurry concentration is 60–73%, the slope increases exponentially from 2.5° to 8°. It is revealed that the delamination and meshing state are the key factors to determine the overall strength of large-scale stope filling through the testing of particle size distribution in interlayer and flow direction. The reduction effect of the number and Angle of structural weak surface formed by layering and filling on strength is revealed: cement–sand ratio 1:12, concentration 68%, standard curing R28 > 1.81 MPa. The strength reduction coefficient is 61.31% and 92.96% when the number of layers is 1–4. The higher the number of layers, the greater is the reduction coefficient, and when the stratification angle increases by 2, the strength of backfill decreases by 20–30%. The verification of stope filling coring shows that the in situ strength reaches 2.42 MPa, which is 0.61 MPa higher than the standard curing strength, with an increase of 33.7%. When the depth is from 1 m to 5 m, the strength increases from 2.26 MPa to 2.69 MPa, with an increase rate of 18.2%. Finally, through the research and application of the comprehensive technology of mining and filling coordination under the complex goaf group, the residual ore resources of Xianglushan tungsten mine are effectively recovered, the volume of goaf is significantly reduced, and the safety of goaf is improved.