Some mine shafts extend deep into the earth
where the conditions are hazardous and the temperatures are high enough to be
life threatening. For example, the TauTona Gold Mine in South Africa
We recently had a call
from another gold mining operation in North America .
The hazard of concern in this case was with the availability of fresh breathing
air.
No doubt you have heard references to the ‘canary
in a coal mine’. This expression is derived from the historical practice of
taking caged canaries into mines. The canary has a small body and rapid
breathing rate and metabolism. It will succumb to the effects of carbon
monoxide or methane much sooner than an adult human. It therefore provided a
portable early warning of life-threatening changes in the mine atmosphere.
In the North American gold mine application
mentioned above, the issue of atmosphere concern originated not from mine
itself, but from activity at the top level of the mine. Mines have air handling
systems that are designed to supply breathable air and manage the temperature.
Typically, a large fan and louver system draws fresh air from ground level and
pumps it down into the mine. If the ground level areas surrounding the fan
intake have a lot of vehicular traffic or other combustion processes, the
baseline air being pulled into the mine may have an elevated level of carbon monoxide
(CO). Vehicles and various engines in the mine will also contribute to the
total CO in the mine atmosphere.
To ensure a safe baseline air input into
the mine, a continuous CO monitor can be installed in the air flow after the
fan. The monitor should be ranged for ppm analysis because the Permissible
Exposure Limit of CO gas is currently 50 ppm over 8 hrs.* The monitor should
have alarm set points with relay contacts to provide warning and allow automated
controls to be initiated.
For this purpose, we have sold the Model
580 shown in our catalog here.
We have also provided engine exhaust
analyzers for use in mines. See this post for more info. The picture and comments about the facility located somewhere in the Tien Shan Mountains in the
Kyrgyz Republic (Kyrgyzstan) was a mining project that needed engine exhaust analysis
for tuning the numerous small engines located throughout the mine.
There is a part 2 to this post here.
There is a part 2 to this post here.
For information on these and other gas
analyzer systems, give Mike or Dave at Nova a call, or send us an e-mail.
1-800-295-3771
sales at nova-gas dot com
websales at nova-gas dot com
http://www.nova-gas.com/
* PEL as established by US OSHA, by
Time-Weighted Average
Picture of fan - http://www.actom.co.za/pages/actom-divisions/news.asp?ID=5&DivisionID=7&BusinessUnitID=33&NewsID=79
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