Chapter 2
Environmental Conditions in the Mine
2.1 Introduction
It has been known since ancient times that various toxic gases are present in
mines. Carbon monoxide
1 (CO) is the perhaps best known of them. Unfortunately,
the consequences of this gas are frequently observed in domestic accidents, as a
result of combustion at low oxygen concentration. Another gas that humankind has
known about since early times is methane
2 (CH 4 ), due to its explosiveness and the
catastrophic accidents caused in the coal-mining industry.
A product of combustion processes, carbon dioxide
3 (CO 2 ), is also a very wellknown gas, especially in the area of climate change. However, this gas is less obviously perceivable. One of its key characteristics is its displacement of oxygen, which
causes asphyxiation. Hydrogen sulphide
4 (H 2 S) is primarily identifiable owing to its
characteristic odour of rotten eggs. What is less widely known about it, however, is
that it is extremely toxic. All these gases are present in mining environments, but
so are others—particularly those released during blasting. The most important of
these are nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), both of which can
have fatal consequences. In addition to the gases mentioned above, large volumes of
powder are produced during mining activity. Dust is the cause of many occupational
diseases that engineers must be aware of, for example, silicosis. Another parameter
that must be considered in underground environments is heat and, here, ventilation
will play a major role in its dissipation.
All these parameters, together with the high humidity that results from the presence of water in the ground, considerably worsen working conditions in mines. In this
section, we discuss the origins, regulatory values, prevention and control measures
relating to them.
1 In mining engineering terminology, this gas is termed white damp.
2 Fire damp.
3 Black damp.
4 Stink damp.
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license
to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
C. Sierra, Mine Ventilation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-49803-0_2
31
Environmental Conditions in the Mine
2.1 Introduction
It has been known since ancient times that various toxic gases are present in
mines. Carbon monoxide
1 (CO) is the perhaps best known of them. Unfortunately,
the consequences of this gas are frequently observed in domestic accidents, as a
result of combustion at low oxygen concentration. Another gas that humankind has
known about since early times is methane
2 (CH 4 ), due to its explosiveness and the
catastrophic accidents caused in the coal-mining industry.
A product of combustion processes, carbon dioxide
3 (CO 2 ), is also a very wellknown gas, especially in the area of climate change. However, this gas is less obviously perceivable. One of its key characteristics is its displacement of oxygen, which
causes asphyxiation. Hydrogen sulphide
4 (H 2 S) is primarily identifiable owing to its
characteristic odour of rotten eggs. What is less widely known about it, however, is
that it is extremely toxic. All these gases are present in mining environments, but
so are others—particularly those released during blasting. The most important of
these are nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), both of which can
have fatal consequences. In addition to the gases mentioned above, large volumes of
powder are produced during mining activity. Dust is the cause of many occupational
diseases that engineers must be aware of, for example, silicosis. Another parameter
that must be considered in underground environments is heat and, here, ventilation
will play a major role in its dissipation.
All these parameters, together with the high humidity that results from the presence of water in the ground, considerably worsen working conditions in mines. In this
section, we discuss the origins, regulatory values, prevention and control measures
relating to them.
1 In mining engineering terminology, this gas is termed white damp.
2 Fire damp.
3 Black damp.
4 Stink damp.
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license
to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
C. Sierra, Mine Ventilation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-49803-0_2
31