Activities in the mining industry, whether it’s blasting, hauling, maintenance or in the plant processing area, usually result in the release of dust particles into the air which can have a major risk to the health and safety of workers including communities.
Dust control, if not managed effectively, can disturb mining production and have a serious impact on the operational costs. Dust-A-Side is continuously looking for new methods that could be beneficial to any mining operation in terms of managing dust, whether underground or on surface.
FOG CANNON APPLICATIONS
The Fog Cannons can be used to suppress dust in areas where wind plays a major role. The product allows for better coverage of water, specifically when treating open tip areas where there are no structures in place and when fewer options are available to install static nozzle manifold arrangements.
Fog Cannons come in mobile units that can be moved at different plant tip areas, stockpile, dumps or blasting areas and can be directly interlinked and activated by the control room, radar sensor or by means of remote activation (Blasting Operations excess of 600m).
HOW IT WORKS
Fog Cannons can be installed to operate automatically using radar sensors. Once a vehicle, such as a haul truck, moves into position, ready to tip, the radar sensor detects the moving vehicle and initiates a fan and high-pressure mist system, which are connected and mounted onto the trajectory outlet side of the fog cannon.
The system will automatically switch off after a predetermined time, set from the control panel, once the vehicle has completed the tip and moved away.
Water passes through one misting nozzle at a high pressure, creating a dense mist cloud, which is dispersed across large areas by an industrial-sized fan.
Water is attached to the dust particles to increase their mass and prevent them from floating on air currents. The benefit of using only water is that no danger is posed to mineworkers’ health, supply is affordable and no harsh chemicals are released into the environment.
KEY BENEFITS
• Very effective with capturing breathable airborne dust
• Low-volumes of water compared to low pressure systems
• Evaporation much higher if compared to low pressure system
• Cover large areas (oscillation option as well)
• Can be positioned and installed easily
The performance of these systems can be further improved by adding a product like HydroPlus, which lowers the surface tension of water particles and makes it easier for the water and dust particles to agglomerate, particularly when managing hydrophobic materials such as coal and other fine ores.
Fog cannon technology has been researched, engineered and tested significantly throughout 2016/2017 to reach the most effective solution available. To date, Dust-A-Side, has rolled out 10 fog cannons in operations throughout South Africa and Australia.