Research on airborne air curtain dust control technology and air volume optimization

The mechanization ratio of coal mining faces has reached more than 90%. However, the coal dust pollution in the fully mechanized mining operation is still an urgent problem to be solved, especially in the working area of the shearer driver. Therefore, an airborne air curtain dust control technology is proposed. The air current migration and dust pollution diffusion in a working face under various air volumes were studied using CFD numerical simulation technology. It was found that two high-speed air curtains form at the shearer driver’s operating position, while a trapezoidal full-section clean air chamber formed at the sidewalk, which could effectively block the dust engendered by the coal cutting drum. The air curtain with 90 m3/min air volume has the best dust control effect in this area, and the diffusion distance of high concentration dust is reduced by 90 m. After applying this technology in the field, the dust concentration in the shearer driver’s working area was reduced to 79.23 mg/m3, and the dust control efficiency was 83%. It is proved that the technology can reduce the dust concentration in the whole tunnel, especially at the shearer driver operating point. This work provides valuable information for dust prevention and control in a working face.