SIMULATING THE SENSITIVITY OF UNDERGROUND VENTILATION NETWORKS TO FLUCTUATING AMBIENT CONDITIONS

Ryan Fair,Diaan Nell,Kristy Nell,Jean Van Laar,Edward Mathews

doi:10.7166/32-3-2616

Abstract

The weather directly impacts ventilation systems, especially large industrial systems found in underground mines. Underground mine ventilation systems have high cost implications that add to the financial strains and uncertainties of future mining operations. In addition, the dynamic nature of underground ventilation systems makes the accurate prediction of underground conditions extremely difficult using traditional steady-state methods. Therefore, improved prediction methods of dynamic underground environmental conditions are needed to ensure cost-effective ventilation systems. This paper investigates simulating the sensitivity that underground ventilation systems have to fluctuating ambient conditions. Simulation software was applied to a case study on a gold mine in South Africa. The results showed that transient software can now be applied to entire mine ventilation systems, and can improve predicting the underground environment because of fluctuating ambient conditions.

Highlights

1.1 Background Underground mine ventilation systems provide an underground working environment that is conducive to productive work [1], [2]
The literature points to the need to apply a transient simulation to an entire underground mine ventilation system
The objective of this study was to develop a transient model of an entire underground mine ventilation system

Summary

Introduction

1.1 Background Underground mine ventilation systems provide an underground working environment that is conducive to productive work [1], [2]. In South Africa, the Mine Health and Safety Council enforces environmental standards [3]. These ventilation systems generally consist of underground tunnels in which ventilation equipment controls the airflow [2]. The amount of heat transferred to the ventilation system increases as the mining network expands to both new depths and extended distances from the shaft. Underground mines have many potential heat sources, such as [4]: These heat sources increase the limiting temperature of the working areas. Cooling systems are needed to mitigate the heat and achieve required temperatures. The cooling requirements are balanced with the cost of refrigeration when planning a ventilation system [5]

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion