Published in the August 2007 American Longwall Magazine
A team arrangement was necessary to create BlastSeal, Transco Products project manager Adam Brown said with the concept, Blastek, developed by HJ3 Composite Technologies and licensed to First Defense.
The explosion and aftermath of the Sago incident in January 2006 was the impetus for the companies to enter the coal industry.
Because underground coal mine application was very different, engineering company Crosby Group came on board to adapt the First Defense product, Blastek, to a unique system for mine seal applications.
BlastSeal is a series of Advanced Carbon Fiber Based Composites specifically engineered to mitigate and contain blast energy. Once installed, the BlastSeal system provides the necessary blast resistance to contain forces caused by methane explosions.
Brown said the technology was tested at a government-owned experimental mine in Pennsylvania at over 50psi dynamic pressure when installed on two sets of 20psi seals commonly used in mines.
"Both retrofitted seals survived the 50-plus psi explosion pressure, making our team the first to design and test a system to withstand over 50psi dynamic explosion forces per the current regulatory requirements," he claimed.
Brown said the newer, much stricter set of regulations for mine seals means both mine owners and regulators will be more accountable for their design and construction. He said BlastSeal was a good match for the underground mining environment because of its consistent and cost-effective application in various conditions.
According to Brown the mining community provided generous support to the BlastSeal team to help apply their technology to the mining environment.
"We were very impressed with the industries' dedication to a solution for higher integrity mine seals. Now, twelve months later, we are very comfortable with the task at hand."
Several operations have been in talks with the company to use BlastSeal in their mines.
Looking forward, Transco Mine Services is researching and developing other solutions to the Miner Act including fire protection, safe chambers and communications technology.
