Examination of Space/Volume Requirements for US Underground Coal Mine Refuge Alternatives

Details

• Personal Author:
  Dempsey, Patrick G. ; Jansky, J. H. ; Porter, William L. ; Dempsey, Patrick G. ; Jansky, J. H. ; Porter, William L.
• Description:
  The Mine Safety and Health Administration requires that 1.4 m2 (15 ft2) of floor space is to be provided for each person inside a refuge alternative (RA). However, the amount of floor space needed for a person to reside inside an RA and perform basic tasks is unknown. During testing, participants entered into an RA or a simulated RA of various space/volume configurations and performed several simulated tasks that are representative of the survivability tasks performed within an RA. The results indicate that the floor space requirements were generally adequate for the tasks studied. Certain tasks such as changing scrubber cartridges, using toilets, and moving about the RA were impacted by the minimum height tested (0.6 m). As such, RAs of this height will require critical design consideration as a whole and the supplies provided for use inside of the RA to ensure the ability to use an RA. ©, This work was authored as part of the Contributor's official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Coal Coal Mining Ergonomics Mining Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Ergonomics Coal Mines Coal Mining Equipment Design Fit Floors Human Factors Mining Equipment Mining Industry Occupational Health & Safety Refuge Chambers Restricted Posture Space Physiology Task Performance Underground Mines

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• Series:
  Mining Publications   ; Mining Publications  
• ISSN:
  1463-922X
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article ; Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; Pennsylvania
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) ; National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  PMRD - Pittsburgh Mining Research Division ; PMRD - Pittsburgh Mining Research Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health ; Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America ; North America
• Pages in Document:
  388-403
• Volume:
  18
• Issue:
  5
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20050038
• Citation:
  Theor Issues Ergon Sci 2017 Sep; 18(5):388-403
• Email:
  WLPorter@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Theoretical Issues in Ergonomics Science
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:ec95cdd020fd42e97988176597a6b296608281c62ffd5af842387a940d555e28fbdd52a003ba3672e82aa9b6ee82a87b6d4eb0ff57a24bed72427a02f390f1d2
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/228432/cdc_228432_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.03 MB ]