ABSTRACT
This paper presents a detailed study on optimizing the location of auxiliary fans to control DPM-air recirculation in dead-end workings in which diesel-operated vehicles are used. Parametric studies using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models validated against field measurements are presented. The study consists of varying the fan locations from the dead-end crosscut and varying the intake air quantities using a 30 m3/s capacity two-stage 75 kW auxiliary fan. The results showed that if the drive intake air flow rate matches the fan capacity (30 m3/s), recirculation will occur even when the fan is located 10 m away from the crosscut entry. Results also showed that if the intake drive air quantity was greater than or equal to 150% of fan capacity (≥ 45 m3/s), no recirculation was observed when the fan location was at least 5 m away from the dead-end crosscut access.
