The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-07-31

| served some good purpose.
RAMSAY TELLS OF
OPERATIONS AT BANNER
The address of Erskine Ramsay WIS
In regard to mine sprays at Banner
mines. He is one of the most wide
| ly informed engineers of this district
and is first vice president and chief
engineer of the Pratt Consolidated
Coal company. He gave a detailed de-
scription of the properties at Banner
and continued this with valuable ideas
In reference to spraying mines.
| The address of Mr.. Ram say follows:
The Banner shaft mine began op-
| erations October IA. 1904, mining what
| is known as the big seam which aver
eges at this point q total thickness
Of about nine feet, having a top coal,
| including some slate of 81 Inches a
bottom coal of SO inches with mid
die man of about 15 inches. The coal
is dry and friable, and when machine
mined and shot with bituminite only
rs per cent of 1t passes over an au-
toma tically fed shaking screen having
perforations of 21s inches In diameter.
The daily output runs from 1000 to
1900 tons. An analysis of the coal
shows about 20 per cent volatile mat
ter.
THE shaft Is located near the west
ern outcrop where the seam has a dip
to the southeast, or, in other words
into the field of about 3 per cent. With
this dip and with the working places
extending into the fields the mine wa
ter drains toward the face of the slope
and away from the older workings,
thus causing them to become dry and
dusty In many places.
NINA without faS bo
been Installed, resulting in a minimum
of coal being spilled on the roadways,
and, as electric locomotives are USED
on the main haulages. there is not as
much dust produced from this source
as where the mule haulage is in
vogue.
Until 1906 the coal was mainly shot
on the solid with 81 black powder.
From then until September 19cS, vary
ing proportions were machine mined
Since 1908 practically all coal In head :
ings, air courses and rooms has been
machine mined. All of the under cut
ting Is done with Sullivan Long Wall
machines, making a cut of ~ feet
in depth by about inches. In MAX
ing such a cut in rooms AZ feet wide
about 5000 pounds of slack coal is
produced, part of which Ia very fine
and calculated to go long ways to-
ward supplying the mine and ventila-
tion with the troublesome and danger
Gus mine dust. The fine coal is loaded
out along with the other coal.
las the mine grew In extent and under
the conditions stated it was found that
some of the workings contained dust in
such an amount as to demand that 1t
be handled in some way that would re-
move as far as possible the danger from
explosions. The mine itself gives off
some gas, but not in sufficient quantities
to make it dangerous. from this source
alone with proper ventilation. No safety
lamps arg used except by the fire boss.
1t is well established that small amount
of gas in the air of. a mine becomes
dangerous when considerable mine dust
is present.
With these conditions 1t was necessary
to do away with the danger, and, at
first, pipelines were laid to such por-
lions of the mine as we're dry and con-
tanned dust Tees were provided at fire.
quent intervals in these pipelines, so
that hose pipes could be connected, and
such dangerous places. Including rooms.
were watered sufficiently to dampen and
lay the dust. At least this was at
tempted.
while this plan did much good it
was not found to be sufficiently effective,
and especially as the watering process
with the hose pipes was not attended to
with sufficient regularity. The watering
with the hose was supposed to be done
at least once q week, but in many cases
it was found not done thoroughly. The
pipelines supplying water for the hose
pipes were connected with the mine
pump, used in unwatering the mine, and
which discharged against a head of
about 150 feet.
After finding by experience that this
plant of taking care of the dust was not
effective and that the hose proposition
by itself was not what the conditions
demanded a few sprays made by the
American Molstening company of Bos-
ton, Mass, were out into service and
The number increased from time to time
until there are at present 81 installed.
For some time the water supplying
the sprays was furnished by the mine
pump. previously mentioned. but trouble
developed in the fact that the fine sedi-
ment taken up by the pump from the
dump and forced through pipes to the
| sprays lodged in the small spray-out-
let's and clogged them up. To get around
this trouble the connection to the mine
pump was abandoned anil instead one
was made to the reservoir located on
the outside and near the shaft At the
present all of tho water used in the
/
Is supplied from the Warrior river, anu
no trouble has been experienced since
with the sprays clogging up. While
1t adds somewhat to the expense as mere
pumping must be done from the river te
the reservoir and from the mine to DAY
tight, there is some recompense for this
in the fact that the pipelines and noz-
zles should last longer, as thu same cor
rosive action will not exist Sprays con-
nected with the reservoir also have tht
additional advantage of receiving a much
more uniform and constant supply than
is the case where connection is made te
the mine pump.
At the time we experienced the trou-
bic. with the sprays clogging up whei
supplied with water from the mine pump
the question was gone into somewhat
of installing filter in the mine. draw.
ing it's supply from the mine pump ane
designed to take out the troublesome
sediment. 1t is believed that an arrange
ment which would do this effectively
would be installed without great expense
and would result In some saving In the
cost of pumping.
THE SPRAYS are located IN the arr
ways at various points leading from tn
main air inlet 10 the working places