Evaluation of Smoke and Gas Sensor Responses for Fires of Common Mine Combustibles

Details

• Personal Author:
  Litton, Charles D. ; Perera IE ; Litton, Charles D. ; Perera IE
• Description:
  Experiments were conducted to evaluate the response characteristics of commercially available gas, smoke, and flame sensors to fires of common combustible mine materials. The experiments were conducted in the large-scale Fire gallery located at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Lake Lynn Laboratory (LLL) in Fairchance, Pennsylvania, using Ponderosa Pine, Red Oak, Douglas-fir, high and low volatile coals, PVC and SBR conveyor belt, No. 2 diesel fuel, and diesel exhaust. All the experiments (except those using No. 2 diesel fuel and the diesel exhaust tests) were conducted in a similar manner, with combustible materials heated rapidly by electrical strip heaters producing smoldering fires that quickly transitioned into flaming fires. The sensors included a diffusion-type carbon monoxide (CO) sensor, photoelectric- and ionization-type smoke sensors, a video smoke/flame detector, and an optical flame detector. Simultaneous measurements were obtained for average gas concentrations, smoke mass concentrations, and smoke optical densities in order to quantify the levels of combustion products at the alert and alarm times of the sensors. Because the required sensor alarm levels are 10 ppm and 0.044 m-1optical density for CO and smoke sensors, respectively, the different sensor alarms are compared to the time at which the CO and smoke reached these alarm levels (1). In addition, the potential impact of using smoke sensors that have met the performance standards from accredited testing laboratories is also evaluated using the response of an Underwriters' Laboratory (UL)-approved combination photoelectric/ionization smoke detector. The results are discussed relative to fire sensor needs that can have a positive impact on mine fire safety. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Air Movements Coal Coal Mining Emergencies Hot Temperature Humidity Mining Occupational Health Safety Temperature
• Keywords:
  Chemical-reactions Coal-gas Combustibility Combustible-gases Combustible-materials Combustion-gases Combustion-products Detectors Diesel-emissions Diesel-exhausts Electronic-devices Equipment-reliability Fire-hazards Fire-prevention Fire-safety Flammable-gases Fuels Gas-detectors Gas-indicators Gases Laboratory-testing Materials-testing Mine-fires Mine-gases Mining-industry Reaction-rates Standards Testing-equipment Underground-mining Warning-devices Warning-signals

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• Series:
  Mining Publications   ; Mining Publications  
• ISBN:
  9781622760893
• Publisher:
  Society of Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration, Inc.
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Proceedings ; Proceedings
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; OSHA Region 10 ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 8 ; Pennsylvania ; Washington
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) ; National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OMSHR - Office of Mine Safety and Health Research ; OMSHR - Office of Mine Safety and Health Research
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health ; Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America ; North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-7
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20041634
• Citation:
  2012 SME Annual Meeting, February 19-22, Seattle, Washington, preprint 12-026. Englewood, CO: Society of Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration, Inc., 2012 Feb; :1-7
• CAS Registry Number:
  Carbon monoxide (CAS RN 630-08-0) ; Carbon monoxide (CAS RN 630-08-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2012
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  2012 SME Annual Meeting, February 19-22, Seattle, Washington, preprint 12-026
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:8c2b2e589f9b5862e984ee20955e80862837d8ef4148b6a6576285cc7187b422893b42a853034a25409ed33c632c4c96ae9e25726a719378693b3d5aca5e01eb
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/227468/cdc_227468_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 4.39 MB ]