Historical Development of Technologies for Controlling Methane in Underground Coal Mines

Details

• Personal Author:
  Karacan, C. Özgen ; Taylor, Charles D.
• Description:
  For 100 years, a major emphasis has been placed on controlling methane in underground coal mines in order to improve worker health and safety. This emphasis and related research, as well as legislative actions, have led to new mining equipment and methods which have changed methane control practices in coal mines. The U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM), and more recently the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), have been an integral part of many of these developments which have improved mining health and safety, either by initiating research programs or by collaborating with the U.S. mining industry. Two primary goals of this research have been to reduce underground methane explosions by controlling methane emissions from the coal bed and the gob, and diluting methane gas that has been liberated in the face areas. The decreased number of fatalities due to methane explosions clearly shows the success of this program. This paper discusses several milestone events that show the progress of this methane control research. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Air Pollutants, Occupational Coal Coal Mining Engineering Explosions Mining Occupational Health Safety Safety Management Workplace

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• Keywords:
  Accident-analysis Accident-prevention Accident-statistics Coal-miners Coal-mining Control-technology Engineering-controls Explosion-prevention Explosive-atmospheres Explosive-gases Explosive-hazards Fumes Gases Methane-control Mine-workers Miners Mining-industry Safety-engineering Safety-measures Safety-research Underground-miners Underground-mining Work-environment Worker-health

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• Series:
  Mining Publications
• ISBN:
  9780873353229
• Publisher:
  Society of Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Book
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 8 ; Pennsylvania
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OMSHR - Office of Mine Safety and Health Research
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  478-487
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20037777
• Citation:
  Extracting the science: a century of mining research. Brune JF, ed. Littleton, CO: Society of Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, 2010 Jan; :478-487
• Editor(s):
  Brune JF
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2010
• NORA Priority Area:
  Mining
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  Extracting the science: a century of mining research
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:6a1bcb730de1ca9ca964f28dda7457b2e067b058161529d31f2d48f5ec4312ea239ae3e8eda09a09e3b83e0148dc818bf053246f851f9baa983e388070c759f5
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/227267/cdc_227267_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.95 MB ]