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Mining Contract: Wireless Sensor Network with Methane Gas Cloud Detector and Absolute Pressure Sensor
Keywords: Methane Pressure Temperature sensors
This page is archived for historical purposes and is no longer being maintained or updated.
Contract #
200-2015-63501Start Date
9/1/2015End Date
6/30/2016Research Concept
A wireless sensor with near real-time monitoring of absolute pressure, temperature, and humidity as well as methane and carbon monoxide gas detection can provide critical information regarding the performance of the mine ventilation system and any potential fire or explosion hazards.Topic Area
Atmospheric Monitoring
Contract Status & Impact
This contract is complete. To receive a copy of the final report, send a request to mining@cdc.gov.
Continuous real-time sensing of hazardous atmospheric gases and environmental conditions in underground mines, with feedback to the mine operation center, provides a proactive knowledge of potentially dangerous areas. The mine ventilation system controls airflow distribution and ventilation capacity to ensure air quality for safe and efficient mine operations by diluting contaminants and controlling the air temperature and humidity. Atmospheric gas conditions can change rapidly in an underground mine as the pressure variations occur within the ventilation system. Methane gas can appear at explosive levels where it is not typically suspected or during non-routine tasks. To significantly reduce the risk for a methane explosion, it is critical to capture methane, air pressure, and temperature and humidity readings within the mine in near real-time and provide feedback to the mine operation center.
Under this contract, Innovative Wireless Technologies, Inc., was responsible for developing a battery-powered, MSHA-approved wireless sensor to detect absolute pressure, temperature, and humidity as well as methane gas and carbon monoxide gas in a mine. This sensor was designed to serve three purposes: (1) conduct absolute pressure measurement and recording in both non-permissible and permissible areas of a coal mine; (2) explore methane gas cloud detection, measurement, and visualization; and (3) provide a wireless sensor node network. This sensor network was used in conjunction with the *SENTINEL*TM Communications and Tracking system developed under a previous contract, which enabled the operator to conduct continuous monitoring and make adjustments to ventilation systems accordingly.
The prototype wireless sensor system was tested in a laboratory and in a working mine. The testing revealed that this pressure sensor was not sufficiently accurate in producing useful airflow estimations. It was determined that the LPS25H sensors currently available cannot effectively support the vision of enhancing mine safety by monitoring ventilation airflows in underground coal mines. The intake air in a mine varies with the time of day, local weather conditions, and the temperature of the air that fluctuates as it moves through the mine. Therefore, enhanced pressure sensors that are less susceptible to variations in temperature and humidity need to be used. A multiple wireless methane sensor system was chosen to monitor and detect methane clouds.
As a result of this research, a wireless sensor system was developed that demonstrated the following:
The ability to remotely measure and monitor absolute air pressure and temperature in an underground coal mine using intrinsically safe, battery-powered wireless sensors.
The ability to detect and remotely monitor and follow the movement of a methane cloud in an underground coal mine adequately instrumented with intrinsically safe, battery-powered wireless methane sensors.
The ability to measure and remotely monitor carbon monoxide levels in an underground coal mine using intrinsically safe, battery-powered wireless gas sensors.
The ability to use a mine’s existing *SENTINEL* communications and tracking system for wireless subnetwork data of battery-powered wireless sensors.See Also
Degasification System Selection for U.S. Longwall Mines Using an Expert Classification System
Development and Application of Reservoir Models and Artificial Neural Networks for Optimizing Ventilation Air Requirements in Development Mining of Coal Seams
Drainage of Methane From the Overlying Pocahontas No. 4 Coalbed From Workings in the Pocahontas No. 3 Coalbed
Measuring Formation Pressures and the Degree of Gas Drainage in a Large Coalbed Gas Drainage Field
Methane Diffusion Parameters for Sized Coal Particles: A Measuring Apparatus and Some Preliminary Results
Methane-Air Detonation Experiments at NIOSH Lake Lynn Laboratory
Modeling and Prediction of Ventilation Methane Emissions of U.S. Longwall Mines Using Supervised Artificial Neural Networks
Remote Methane Sensors
Reservoir Rock Properties of Coal Measure Strata of the Lower Monongahela Group, Greene County (Southwestern Pennsylvania), from Methane Control and Production Perspectives
Stochastic Modeling of Gob Gas Venthole Production Performances in Active and Completed Longwall Panels of Coal Mines
Page last reviewed: November 28, 2016
Page last updated: November 28, 2016
Content source: National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Mining Program
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