Yan Lincan, Yantek David, Lutz Timothy, Yonkey Jeffrey, Srednicki Justin
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), 626 Cochrans Mill Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15236.
J Therm Sci Eng Appl. 2020 Apr;12(2). doi: 10.1115/1.4044345. Epub 2019 Sep 7.
In case of an emergency in an underground coal mine, miners who fail to escape from the mine can enter a refuge alternative (RA) for protection from adverse conditions, such as high carbon monoxide levels. One of the main concerns with the use of both portable and built-in-place (BIP) RAs, especially for hot or deep mines, is the interior temperature rise due to the occupants' metabolic heat and the heat released by devices such as the carbon dioxide (CO) scrubbing system. The humidity within the RA will also increase through occupants' respiration and perspiration and from the chemical reaction within the CO scrubbing system. Heat and humidity buildup can subject the occupants to hazardous thermal conditions. To protect RA occupants, Mine Safety and Health Administration regulations mandate a maximum apparent temperature of 95 °F within an occupied RA. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) tested both an air-conditioned borehole air supply (BAS) and a cryogenic air supply for RAs in the NIOSH Experimental Mine in Bruceton, PA. The BAS was tested on a 60-person BIP RA, while the cryogenic air supply was tested on a 30-person BIP RA and a portable 23-person tent-type RA. Multiple tests were conducted with both air supplies to assess their ability to cool RAs. The test results show that the BAS and the cryogenic air supply were able to maintain the apparent temperature within the tested RAs under the 95 °F limit. The BAS and the cryogenic air supply are potential RA heat mitigation strategies that mines could use to prevent heat/humidity buildup within RAs.
在煤矿井下发生紧急情况时，未能逃离矿井的矿工可以进入避难硐室（RA）以保护自己免受诸如高一氧化碳水平等不利条件的影响。使用便携式和固定式（BIP）避难硐室时，尤其是对于高温或深部矿井，一个主要问题是由于人员的代谢热以及诸如二氧化碳（CO） scrubbing系统等设备释放的热量导致硐室内温度升高。避难硐室内的湿度也会因人员的呼吸、出汗以及CO scrubbing系统内的化学反应而增加。热量和湿度的积聚可能会使人员处于危险的热环境中。为保护避难硐室内的人员，美国矿山安全与健康管理局的规定要求在有人占用的避难硐室内，最高体感温度为95°F。美国国家职业安全与健康研究所（NIOSH）在宾夕法尼亚州布鲁克顿的NIOSH实验矿井中，对用于避难硐室的空调钻孔空气供应（BAS）和低温空气供应进行了测试。BAS在一个可容纳60人的BIP避难硐室上进行了测试，而低温空气供应则在一个可容纳30人的BIP避难硐室和一个可容纳23人的便携式帐篷式避难硐室上进行了测试。对这两种空气供应都进行了多次测试，以评估它们冷却避难硐室的能力。测试结果表明，BAS和低温空气供应能够将测试避难硐室内的体感温度维持在95°F的限制以下。BAS和低温空气供应是煤矿可用于防止避难硐室内热量/湿度积聚的潜在避难硐室热缓解策略。
