CFD modeling of dust transportation and deposition under Newtonian forces in the reduced scale model of a typical room and pillar mine

Dust is ubiquitous in underground mining activities, carrying with it risk to personnel and machines. Sources of dust are widely studied, but transportation has been mainly based on experimental data and simplified models. A fundamental understanding of dust transportation in the mine airways is instrumental in the implementation of local dust control strategies. Computational fluid dynamics models were developed using Lagrangian particle tracking approach in a pseudo-two-dimensional flow volume. This paper presents the transportation and deposition profile of different sized dust particles moving under the effects of Newtonian forces along a 7' high airway.