Physics of coal and mining processes crc press book. Strip mining is a practical type of mining when the ore body that is to be extracted is near the surface. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In addition, during the process of mining, a portion of the roof and floor material may be taken along with the coal seam in order to create adequate working height for. The mines are now operating at significantly higher annual tonnages, growing deeper, more complex and. The systematic planning and design process for underground coal mining operations from inception to closure 1. The land may, however, be returned to productive use after mining or even while mining in other parts of the area is still in progress figure 1. Layers of soil and rock overburden are removed the coal exposed coal seam is excavated.
Coal occurs in a wide range of forms and qualities. Gifs the 5 stages of the mining life cycle operations. Before mining begins, coal companies must post bonds. Coal mining and production industry description and practices coal is one of the worlds most plentiful energy resources, and its use is likely to quadruple by 2020. In best practice a detailed rehabilitation or reclamation plan is designed and approved for each coal mine, covering the period from the start of operations until well after mining has finished. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s is widely used to generate electricity.
The flow of coal mining process on underground mine. Longwall mining is an automated form of underground coal mining characterized by high recovery and extraction rates, feasible only in relatively flatlying, thick, and uniform coal beds. Box cut, strip cuts and spoil piles humphrey, 1984. Among them, caving and slow caving methods could not control the goaf roof. Guideline for the use of cost benefit analysis in mining. Coal seams can be mined by surface or underground methods figure 4. Minerals and mineral products are the backbone of most industries. Coal mineral deposits in nigeria and its uses coal deposits some africa countries like nigeria is blessed with coal rich states especially enugu which is known as the the coal city because of its vast coal deposits, other states include. Strip mining is the process of mining a seam of mineral by removing a long strip of overlying soil and rock.
This appendix presents additional details on the individual processes that are involved in extraction of coal from surface and underground mines, and the. Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. In the united kingdom and south africa, a coal mine and its structures are a colliery, a coal mine is a pit, and. Physical coal cleaning processes, the mechanical separation of coal from its. Surface mining can be used when the coal is buried less than 200 feet underground. Shallow, flat coal deposits are mined by surface processes, which are generally less costly per ton of coal than underground mines of similar. Ward encyclopedia of life support systems eolss coal marketing. Because subsidence due to underground mining may be inevitable, the relevant questions to be asked are how much, when, and where, and what abatement procedures are possible and might be necessary.
The first way in which proposed mining projects differ is the proposed method of moving or excavating the overburden. Coal mining, particularly in the case of opencut mines, requires that large areas of land are temporarily disturbed, and perhaps withdrawn from other productive uses such as agriculture, while the process of coal extraction is under way. The initial task is to gain access to the seam from the surface by some means shafts, drifts, etc see access to seam from surface section for. Open cut mining methods strip mining largescale open cut coal mining operations commenced in australia in mid 1960s and since then there has been significan t developments in this method of mining. The resulting falls of roof added more dirt to the coal, thus further complicating the process of preparation. Coal mining and production industry description and practices coal is one of the worlds most plentiful energy resources, and its use is likely to quadruple by the year 2020. A bench is excav ated in the mountain at the coal seam elevation. While various implementing regulations, including a number of amendments, have been issued by the government in pursuing the goals of the mining law, there remain many challenges for investors, particularly in the. The area is then backfilled, regraded, and replanted during the reclamation process. This process takes place at special processing plantscpps central processing plants.
Specially designed machines draglines, or large shovelsclear away the overburden material overlaying coal that must be removed before mining can commence to expose the coal bed. As explained above, during the formation of coal and subsequent geologic activities, a coal seam may acquire mineral matter, veins of clay, bands of rock, and igneous intrusions. A highpowered cutting machine the shearer is passed across the exposed face of coal, shearing away broken coal, which is continuously hauled away by a floor. Coal deposits some africa countries like nigeria is blessed with coal rich states especially enugu which is known as the the coal city because of its vast coal deposits, other states include. Coal miners use giant machines to remove coal from the ground. The process of contour mining begins with co nstructing roads to access the coal seam elev ation and the top or the mountain. Mining shafts were dug out by hand or using stone tools, making the entire process very lengthy. Sasol mining, although by far the majority of coal mined by these companies is for local consumption. Ensuring provisions of the coal rules are followed allows for continued extraction of coal to occur in a way that reduces andor eliminates long term impacts to the. In best practice a detailed rehabilitation or reclamation plan is designed and approved for each coal mine, covering the period from. The dtek energy coal preparation segment includes 4 processing plants. Guideline for the use of cost benefit analysis in mining and.
Take a look at how our online analyzers, sampling systems, coal blending software, belt scales, tramp metal detectors. Epa also addressed the question of whether coal mining companies are forfeiting bonds because of the cost of manganese treatment by examining bonding requirements, past bond forfeiture rates, and future potential bond forfeiture rates see section 10. Kumba was previously the mining arm of iscor, which split into a resources and mining company kumba and an iron and steel producer iscor steel, both independently listed. The various methods of mining a coal seam can be classified under two headings, surface. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s, has been widely used to generate electricity. The abundance of minerals also provides a method of creating wealth. Sasol mining is the coal mining subsidiary of sasol limited, a giant. Welcome to the eleventh edition of pwc indonesias mining in indonesia. Coal is an organic sediment consisting of a complex mixture of substances.
This process, known as the gateway process, applies to state significant mining and coal seam gas proposals that require a new or extended mining lease and are located on. Smaller shovels load the coal into large trucks that remove the coal from the pit. The goal of coal mining is to economically remove coal from the ground. The rooms are the empty areas from which coal has been mined, and the pillars are blocks of coal generally 40 to 80 feet on a side left to support the mine roof. In the beginning, miners used primitive tools for digging. Coal mining, extraction of coal deposits from the surface of earth and from underground. Understanding coal free pdf download the need project. Openpit mining is the process of extracting rock or minerals from the earth through their removal from an open pit or borrow. Coal mining is only a temporary use of land, so it is vital that rehabilitation of land takes place once mining operations have stopped. We produce several products to assist you in achieving your process objectives. Africas coal resources and reserves to ensure national energy security.
A relatively new branch of science, it tackles problems that arise during mineral products recovery, particularly safety issues such as rock failures, coal and gas. In the lower anthracite regions, where steeppitch mining occurs and the coal is run out of the breasts into the mine cars by gravity, practical. The power to help you profit optimizing performance with online elemental analysis every year 1. Ppt coal mining powerpoint presentation free to download. Free pdf download handson, critical thinking activities that introduce intermediate students to the formation of coal, the coal mining process, reclamation of lands, uses of coal, electricity generation, and advantages and disadvantages of utilizing coal. Once the mining is finished, the dirt and rock are returned to the pit, the topsoil is replaced, and the area is replanted. The overall process of coal exploration and mining involves six separate but interdependent and overlapping components. Coal mining and processing the national academies press. Room and pillar systems account for over half of the coal mined in the u. Benue, kogi, delta, kwara, plateau, abia, anambra, bauchi, edo, ondo, adamawa and imo.
In 2008, competition in the coal mining industry became more intense than ever, leading to a demand for better technology and new mines. Benue, kogi, delta, kwara, plateau, abia, anambra, bauchi, edo, ondo, adamawa and imo fossil fuels came up as a result of the remains of dead animals and plants million years ago. Coal companies operating surface mines must comply with strict requirements and regulations of the federal surface mining control and reclamation act. The shearer machine cuts coal from the seam and on to the face conveyor to be transported to the surface. Roomandpillar mining generally is limited to depths of about 1,000 feet because at greater. The process integrating thermo scientificproductsinto the coalprocess from the mine to loadoutweve got you covered. In surface mining, the ground covering the coal seam the overburden is first removed to expose the coal seam for extraction. Once a mining lease has been awarded to an operator, exploration i. Its predominant use has always been for producing heat energy. It is now more than eight years since the 2009 law on mineral and coal mining no.
The primary methods of surface coal mining used in pennsylvania are. Table 21 shows the amount of coal produced by mining method. It has a lot of commercial and industrial applications. It is an energy giving nonrenewable source of energy. Ucg, overview of the south african coal value chain, october 2011 is a technology where coal is ignited underground with a controlled. What follows are brief descriptions of the most common methods. The overall coal mining process consists of several sequential stages. Therefore, to remove impurities the coal is cleaned to the required level. The coal program is responsible for providing permits to coal companies, completing site inspections to confirm compliance and overseeing the reclamation and bond release process. Coal mining has been a major industry in the bowen basin since the mid1970s, with rapid growth triggered by.
This process, known as the gateway process, applies to state significant mining and coal seam gas proposals that require a new or. Coal mining is an energyintensive process, which requires high electricity load to run equipments including mining machines, conveyor belts, desalination plants, coal preparation plants, and ventilation fans. Improving the safety of mining work while responding to the need for increased coal production, however, is impossible without further development of the physics of mining processes. Mining of coal is one of the oldest industrial operation. In surface mining, giant machines remove the topsoil and layers of rock to expose large beds of coal. The elements of a surface mining operation are 1 topsoil removal and storage for later use, 2 drilling and blasting the strata overlying the coal seam. It was the basic energy source that fueled the industrial revolution of the 18th and 19th. Coal cleaning processes are categorized as either physical cleaning or chemical cleaning. A crucial part of the surface mining process is restoring a.
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