Taming the Dust Devil/An Evaluation of Improved Dust Controls for Surface Drills Using Rotoclone Collectors

摘要

U.S. Bureau of Mines study has evaluated specific improvements and/or modifications in the dust reducing capabilities of the Rotoclone dust collector, which is extensively used on small truck- or crawler-mounted blasthole drills. Criteria for testing were that the techniques tested must be simple, inexpensive, and readily installable while potentially providing significant airborne respirable dust (ARD) concentration reductions on the working bench. Impetus was provided for this study by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), which has identified this class of dust collector as unsuitable for providing sufficient control of ARD. The evidence is clear that exposures to ARD and quartz will result in the development of silicosis. In addition, recent changes in the Code of Federal Regulations, as promulgated by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), have specified that visible dust emissions from drill operations must be abated. The Rotoclone is the least effective dust-control system in use, and while it may provide protection for a drill operator, it does not protect other surface miners working at the mine site.