Perth Amboy evening news., 1921-09-29
STUDYING AIR
IN BIC TUNNEL
Experiment in Mines Near
Pittsburgh by N. Y. & N. J.
Tunnel Commission
BY GEORGE IL. MANNING.
Washington Correspondent of Perth
Amboy Evening News .

WASHINGTON, D.. c.. Sept. 90
An intensive scientific study of the
problems of o%bviating the danger
from automobile exhaust gases in
v%ehicular tunnels is being conducted
at the government experimental
mine near Pittsburgh by the New
Jersey and New York authorities
with the special object of solving the
ventilation problem of the 5000 feet
tubes being designed to handle the
traffic between New York City and
New Jersey under the Hudson river,
sc as to make it certain that the
many thousand users of the tubes
will suffer no i'll effects from the air
encountered.
The investigation is being carried
or by the United States Bureau of
Mines in cooperation with the New
York and New Jersey State Bridge
and Tunnel Commission in the only
coal mine in the world operated by
a governmental agency for scientific
Investigations. A special tunnel has
just been built through this mine in
which the study is to be made.
The experimental tunnel is COM
pletely equipped with sensitive APP
paratus for measuring the tempera-
ture. humidity, quantity, velocity and
pressure of the air in various parts
of the tunnel. A total of forty-eight
air-Sampling tubes has been INSTALL
ed on eight croSS-SectionS of the tun-
mel in order to obtain samples for
chemical analysis, for determining
the diffusion and concentration OF
the exhaust gases in various parts of
the tunnel with different methods of
ventilation.
An important feature of the tests
will be the comprehensive physio-
logical and psychological observa-
tionS to be made on the effect of
temperature, rate of air flow, humid
Uy, smoke and exhaust gases on the
men driving the test cars.
In the tests ten automobiles will
be speeded at forty feet intervals
and will be running at ten miles an
hour; $1,000 cubic feet of air per
minute, or sufficient to maintain a
concentration of four parts carbon
monoxide per 10000 parts of air by
volume, will be passed across the
tunnel. Each driver and observer
in the tunnel will be subjected to ex-
animation before and after the tests
by the physicians and psychologists
in charge. The amount of carbon
monoxide absorbed by each person
during the tests will be determined
by examination of a few drops of
blood drawn Immediately after the
tests. Especially sensitive methods
for making these blood examinations
fcve been developed by the Bureau
CT Mines. The effect of smoke and
temperature on the motor car driv-
ers is also an important considera-
ton.
1t Is believed this underground
tunnel in the experimental mine
has important advantages over any
above-ground model, in that it more
nearly represents actual conditions
that will prevail in the proposed
Hudson tunnel. Situated about 100
feet below the surface of the ground
and 1850 feet from the pit mouth
Of the mine, it will have a constant
temperature and be free from the
wide temperature fluctuations and
unavoidable leakages of air in an
above-ground model. The ground
temperature surrounding the tunnel
is near that underneath the Hudson.
Means are installed for heating and
humidifying the air to any of the
conditions that may occur On the
hottest summer day.