Extended longwalls: is bigger better? : E. D. Thimons, R. A. Jankowski & G. L. Finfinger, Engineering & Mining Journal, 195(4), 1994, pp 16B–16F, 16H

Abstract

Since the first introduction of longwalls into the U.S. mining industry, longwall mining productivity has been continually on the increase. These productivity gains have resulted from a number of operational and equipment changes. One constant trend over the years has been to increase the size of longwall panels. Recently, some longwall mines have opted to make significant increases in the size of their panels. These extended longwall panels offer some major benefits in terms of fewer panel moves, less entry development, and increased resource recovery. At the same time, large increases in panel dimensions result in changes in the mining environment, and these changes can have potential positive and negative health and safety implications. On the positive side, reducing the number of panel moves can reduce injury rates since more accidents occur during moves than during actual mining. Additionally, the amount of continuous miner development work is reduced, and since the frequency of accidents is higher for continuous mining than for longwall mining, overall accident rates should be lower. conversely, extended panels can introduce concerns with respect to dust and methane levels, ground control issues, ventilation planning, and fire and escape considerations. How longwalls are getting bigger, how this canmore » impact health and safety, and some practices implemented by current extended longwall operations to improve conditions are discussed.« less