New technology will help avoid explosions in mines and reduce harm to nature

In a new paper, scientists from the Kuzbass State Technical University named after T.F.Gorbacheva

(KuzGTU) have developed a system that reduces the harm of suspended coal and rock dust: it appears both in mines and quarries and during the transportation, processing and enrichment of coal.Dust easily spreads over long distances, settling even inside rooms, machinery and living organisms.

Dust is not safe for the human body, as it can cause the development of cancer, cardiovascular and other dangerous diseases, and also leads toto deterioration of the quality of soil and drinking water, equipment malfunctions, loss of visibility on the roads and other problems.Also, an excess of explosive coal dust in enclosed spaces can lead to a disaster in the mine. 

In order to reduce the harm of dust, scientists have created an automated pneumatic-hydraulic irrigation system to control dust and prevent explosions of the dust-air mixture. 

Such systems are still not widely used inworld practice. Our development reduces the concentration of dust in the air ten times, while consuming ten times less water than existing counterparts. The droplet size ranges from two to 50 micrometers, so that it is possible to effectively deposit dust while avoiding excessive wetting.

Alexey Khoreshok, Director of the Mining Institute of KuzSTU, 

The new system consists of injectors - devices withone or more calibrated holes for spraying any liquid under pressure. They are installed in places where dust is most active: depending on the specific chemical composition of the dust, various compounds can be added to the water to more efficiently capture the particles.

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