“Feedback on the Bucyrus diesel control system (DCS) has been overwhelmingly positive,” a company spokesman said.
“The DCS system goes beyond being a reliable standalone electronic shutdown system that prevents the machine from being operated in unsafe conditions such as low water level, high exhaust system temperatures or excessive back pressure.
“It is also a valuable diagnostic tool through its continuous machine monitoring capability.
“If the vehicle powers down, the event and activity log can be interrogated through the fault retrieval screen by the operator.”
Aside from the onboard fault retrieval screen, the spokesperson said the DCS data log can be downloaded onto a laptop for further analysis by mine managers, maintenance personnel and Bucyrus.
The original equipment manufacturer’s second generation dry exhaust system was designed to improve safety and reduce various operational costs at longwall mines.
“Diesel particulate matter requires considerably more airflow to dissipate than gas emissions,” Bucyrus said.
“Many older established mines have ventilation systems and designs operating close to peak capacity and increasing ventilation rates is not just limited to fan replacement.
“New infrastructure would be required to support increased power demands along with the redesign of panel layouts and ventilation doors.
“When the financial impact of this is considered, the selection of underground diesel equipment can have a serious impact on the mine’s investment budget.
“If not fitted with diesel particulate filters, longwall change outs produce a high volume of diesel particulate matter and can pose a significant health threat to the personnel involved, a concern for independent longwall move contractors.”
For the dry system, the Bucyrus spokesman said the exhaust gas is cooled through a heat exchanger rather than employing wet bath to cool the exhaust gas.
“The filtration system totally removes diesel particulate matter from the mine atmosphere by trapping all the particulate matter within the disposable filter,” he said.
Bucyrus offers wet exhaust systems which use a post-catalytic converter.
“The exhaust gas passes through a water bath which reduces the exhaust gas temperature and assists in removing particulates from the exhaust gasses,” Bucyrus said.
For both systems the gas passes through particulate filters and a flame trap, and is then mixed with discharge air from a cooling system before entering the mine atmosphere.
