Particle Size and Mineralogy Distributions in Respirable Dust Samples from 25 US Underground Coal Mines

Details

• Personal Author:
  Afrouz SG ; Keles C ; Sarver E
• Description:
  Detailed characterization of respirable coal mine dust is critical to understanding occupational health outcomes, as well as improving exposure monitoring and dust controls in mines. However, data on characteristics such as particle size and mineralogy are still scarce, and there are virtually no datasets available that allow direct comparisons across many mines. Following up on a previous effort to characterize dust from eight underground mines in the Appalachian region of the United States, the current study expands the dataset to cover a total of 25 mines across the country. A total of 171 respirable dust samples were collected in standard locations of each mine and analyzed by scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX). Results demonstrate that significant differences in particle size and mineralogy distributions exist both within and between mines based on sampling location, mine region and/or mining method-and characteristics can be indicative of dust sources. In locations nearby to production or roof bolting, the respirable dust was clearly sourced from the mine strata. Interestingly, in the production location rock-strata sourced dust appeared to be inordinately abundant relative to the actual coal and rock strata heights being mined during sampling. With respect to particle size, diesel particulates and coal dust were generally found to be finer than mineral dust; and mineral dust likely sourced from the rock strata in the mine was finer than that associated with rock dusting products. On average, when considering all particles analyzed between 100 and 10,000 nm, results indicate that about 75% are in the submicron range, however these particles are estimated to account for only about 6% of the mass. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Dust Mining Occupational Health Particulate Matter Safety Vehicle Emissions
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Respirable Crystalline Silica Coal Dust Coal Mines Diesel Exhausts Particle Size Particle Surfaces Particulates RCMD RCS Respirable Coal Mine Dust Respirable Dust Scanning Electron Microcopy With Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy Scanning Electron Microscopy SEM-EDX Spectroscopes Underground Mining

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• ISSN:
  0166-5162
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Contract
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  247
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20068035
• Citation:
  Int J Coal Geol 2021 Nov; 247:103851
• Contact Point Address:
  Emily Sarver, Department of Mining and Minerals Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
• Email:
  esarver@vt.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2022
• Performing Organization:
  Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20190901
• Source Full Name:
  International Journal of Coal Geology
• End Date:
  20210831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:54063e5774952207a7c76dd6fffca9a18ea24458e5f64ff4a1715ab3d759849312680b4b3580f6b8d7ca7412b29d4e62a49f65b9199578955cf0545d030c79ba
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/230258/cdc_230258_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 4.27 MB ]