Study on PM diffusion and distribution of trackless rubber-tyred vehicle under different driving conditions in underground coal mining environment.

Abstract

Particulate matter (PM) is one of the most harmful exhaust pollutants to human health. In this study, the PM diffusion and distribution emitted by trackless rubber-tyred vehicle under different driving conditions in coal mine were analyzed with numerical simulations and field measurements. The results show that when the vehicle velocity was constant, the PM concentration of the trackless rubber-tyred vehicle decreased with increasing distance from the exhaust pipe orifice. In addition, the proportion of PM with a concentration below 10mg/m3 was the highest owing to the influences of diffusion and airflow dilution. However, when the diffusion distance is less than 3m, the PM concentration far exceeds the occupational exposure limit (10mg/m3). In this case, underground personnel should stay away from the area near and along the exhaust pipe as far as possible. With increasing vehicle velocity, the PM concentration gradient at a diffusion distance of 0-6m showed the most significant slope. Besides, the concentration fluctuation of PM was the largest and relatively high when the diffusion distance was 5-15m. Therefore, the area 15m from the exhaust gas pipe opening of the trackless rubber-tyred vehicle should be controlled. In addition, the relative errors between the measured and numerical simulation results were mostly less than 10%, which proved that the numerical simulation results were reliable.