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U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Effect of location and type of water sprays for respirable dust suppression on a continuous-mining machine. Technical progress report

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:7340525
A field study was conducted to investigate the suppression of respirable dust by water sprays on a continuous-mining machine. Determining the importance of the top and bottom sprays for two types of spray nozzles was emphasized. Results showed, at a 90-pct confidence level, that (1) at least 70 percent of the dust was generated during the sump cut, even though nearly half of the coal was mined during the downshear operation, (2) the water sprays on the top of the boom had little effect in suppressing respirable dust, and (3) B.D. 5 spray nozzles mounted beneath the boom reduced dust at least 33 percent more than B.D. 5 sprays mounted on top of the boom. A single-cut technique was developed that gave good reproducibility for replicate cuts (coefficient of variation of 20 percent).
Research Organization:
Bureau of Mines, Pittsburgh, Pa. (USA). Pittsburgh Mining and Safety Research Center
OSTI ID:
7340525
Report Number(s):
BM-TPR-96
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English