Published in the December 2010 Coal USA Magazine

Carbonoks told Coal USA it briefed state officials in China on the Safe Haven during a recent 14-day visit, and it also detailed the nation’s mine communications developments such as through-the-earth technologies.

The company toured several Shanxi Province mines and surveyed the operations’ requirements for their respective Safe Haven shelters. Additionally, technology briefings were conducted during the trip, with the seven largest Shanxi mines, safety officials from 35 other operations, and the Department of Minerals and Geology (equivalent to the US Mine Safety and Health Administration).

The agreement between the Shanxi Government and Carbonoks was finalized on September 10 and is valued at about $US12 million plus the first full year of production of the units for its new Chinese customers. It is the first of its kind between a private US company and the Shanxi state government for refuge alternative manufacture.

“This agreement is a licensing agreement, which is rather unusual for China, but works out very well this way for both parties,” Carbonoks official Susan Johnson said, noting that the chambers will be placed in the most dangerous of the country’s operations.“Shanxi and several other provinces have very problematic mines in that they have methane issues and flooding issues. Carbonoks is best suited for mines with highly explosive methane, total water inundation and capable of cooling in high heat and mines which could see fire problems.”

Johnson noted that the survey of the Chinese mines prior to the deal signing was important to the company’s officials for another reason – to ensure the product could be made to fit the specific requirements of the mines.

“China’s mines require a small amount of redesign based on the widths of the mines there, and the fact that several mines are narrow shaft mines, which makes it difficult to use the design we have right now. We are working closely with Shanxi Coal to standardize the use of the chamber so that the high volume chambers being produced will, for the most part, be about the same.”

One logistical issue Carbonoks considered with the deal was the construction and shipment of the chambers. The weight and design of the units, including the vital oxygen needs, created an issue, but it was one easily solved, she noted.

“China will be building for China mines, and we hope that many of these chambers will be built by the family members of many of China’s coal miners. This makes us very happy to see.”

A look at the Carbonoks Safe Haven

Carbonoks began constructing mine refuge alternatives three years ago, and placed its first shelters underground in 2008 in West Virginia, Virginia Kentucky and Tennessee.

The line units provide shelter as well as food, water, waste containment, breathable air and advanced first aid to last 20 miners five full days underground following an emergency event underground. The units have been designed to withstand just about any potential event, Johnson said.

“We are able to save lives through flooding, rock fall, high heat temperatures, secondary and tertiary explosions,” she said.

In fact, the exterior of Carbonoks units can withstand direct fire at temperatures of 1500 degrees Fahrenheit. The shelter itself can withstand a direct-blow explosion of 35 pounds per square inch, and has been tested by the company up to 50psi.

However, Carbonoks has gone beyond the life-saving technical features of the chamber, placing a significant focus on the potential mental state of the miners who find themselves trapped.

Johnson said its intent was to make a bad situation as good as it possibly can be. Rather than providing fat-filled power bars, Carbonoks units are stocked with meals ready to eat, or MREs.

“We believe that a real meal is better for the mental state of the miners,” she said. Workers forced into the units after an event will also find various forms of entertainment, including cards, board games and word puzzles to help keep them occupied.

“We also give them natural vitamins and so forth to assist in helping them sleep, and other vitamins that help with anxiety and depression. Every chamber comes with bibles and writing pads for the men to write to their families and relieve some of the concerns they have.”

Johnson said no stone went unturned when the company was considering how to equip the Safe Havens. Miners would even find chewing tobacco for those not able to smoke.

“These things seem silly, but if you personally found yourself in this situation you [would] want to have a few creature comforts that will allow you to wait the rescue out in a much better frame of mind.”