Dust Control Methods in Tunnels and Underground Mines

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Handbook for Dust Control in Mining [IC 9465]: Chapter 1: Dust Control Methods in Tunnels and Underground Mines
• Personal Author:
  Kissell, Fred N.
• Description:
  This chapter describes the three major control methods used to reduce airborne dust in tunnels and underground mines: ventilation, water, and dust collectors. It also describes methods to reduce the generation of dust, so less has to be removed from the mine air. The ventilation methods provide the best use of air in the vicinity of workers and in the vicinity of dust sources. In this sense, the methods described are local ventilation methods. Most of the emphasis is on so-called displacement ventilation because it is the most effective dust control technique available. The section on water sprays outlines the dual role of sprays - wetting and airborne capture - and describes why wetting is more important. It also corrects some of the misconceptions about spray effectiveness and describes circumstances where sprays can actually increase the dust exposure of workers. The section on dust collectors outlines the circumstances under which dust collectors can be expected to function effectively. It also describes some common design and maintenance problems. The final section describes how to reduce the amount of dust that gets into the air in the first place, since once the dust is airborne it is always harder to control. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Air Pollutants, Occupational Dust Engineering Mining Occupational Health Particulate Matter Safety Ventilation
• Keywords:
  Airborne-dusts Control-technology Dust-collection Dust-collectors Dust-control Dust-control-equipment Engineering-controls Sprays Underground-mining
• Series:
  Mining Publications
• Subseries:
  Information Circular
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Chapter
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; Pennsylvania
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  PRL - Pittsburgh Research Laboratory
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  3-21
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20023262
• Citation:
  Handbook for dust control in mining. Kissell FN, ed. Pittsburgh, PA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2003-147 (IC 9465), 2003 Jun; :3-21
• Editor(s):
  Kissell FN
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2003
• NORA Priority Area:
  Research Tools and Approaches: Exposure Assessment Methods
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:f8ee1c124336cbeb5323d7a5f943ff68f968dd66331f010a6ab31c5f1368f8a44746afd6de093a3e5377f30ae77b4756a157a22da897f298e011deb06b412b55
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/249164/cdc_249164_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.71 MB ]