Current Trends and Future Opportunities in UndergroundHardrock Ventilation Practices

摘要

The Australian mining industry has changed dramatically over the past 20rnyears in terms of mining methods,mining equipment and human resourcernpolicies.The industry 's approach to safety and health in terms ofrnattitudes,style of legislation,and risk management techniques has alsornchanged significantly.These changes have had and continue to havernmajor impacts on the design of underground mine ventilation systems.Inrnsome areas,trends are clearly emerging.In other areas,mine ventilationrnplanning remains very ‘reactive 'and is performing poorly in terms ofrnproviding a safe and healthy work environment at a reasonable cost.Newrnconcepts involving the role of ramps and shafts,the provision ofrnrefrigerated air,‘ventilation on demand 'and newegress and entrapmentrnapproaches are likely to be incorporated into mine planning and operatingrnpractices over the next ten years.This paper discusses these and otherrntrends and identifies some likely future developments in the area ofrnhardrock mine ventilation.