A Comparative Assessment of On-Site Application Effects of Mine Dust Prevention and Control Technology

Abstract

Prolonged exposure to coal dust leads to various lung disorders, including incurable coal workers’ pneumoconiosis (CWP), and endangers miners’ health in underground mines. This article summarizes the latest research progress in dust control technology, including chemical dust suppressants, foam dust removal, ultrasonic atomization, magnetized water dust suppression, double curtains of wind and fog, biological nano-film, and emerging microbial dust suppressants in the field of dust. The actual application compares and analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of different dust removal technologies. The current three directions of mine dust prevention and control are pointed out: the prevention and control of respirable dust, hydrophobic dust, and secondary dust, and the prospects for future development trends. Given the treatment of respirable dust, it is necessary to strengthen the research on the dust generation mechanism under different working conditions and to explore the migration and settlement laws of respirable dust by constructing a numerical model of dust dynamics; for the treatment of hydrophobic dust, further research on the microphysical and chemical properties of coal dust is needed. The relationship between wettability and continuously optimizing the wetting agent; for the prevention and control of secondary dust in coal mines, emerging microbial dust suppression technologies need to be developed to explore the micro-action between microorganisms and coal dust molecules to achieve green prevention and control of dust.