HMINE 223: MINE VENTILATION ASSIGNMENT 2

QUESTION 1

a) As a Ventilation engineer consultant, you have been hired to plan a ventilation system for
a new underground gold mine in Zimbabwe.

Draw a flowchart to show a systematic approach that needs to be followed in planning

the ventilation system of the new underground gold mine. (5)

b) You are the Ventilation engineer for Duke Mine, how do you design the ventilation
system for the set up below. (15)

QUESTION 2
A downcast shaft is 1 324 m deep. The air quantity at mean shaft density 315 m3/s and the
pressure loss in the shaft is 1 745 Pa. The shaft has a K-factor of 0.021 Ns 2/m4. The main fans
have an overall efficiency of 73 % and power costs are $1500 per kW per year. It is desired to
increase the air quantity to 410 m3/s by increasing the speed of the main fans. At the same
time consideration is given to streamlining the shaft buntons. Two kinds of streamlined
buntons are available:
Type ‘A’: reduces the K-factor of the shaft to 00014 Ns 2/m4 and will cost $520 per metre
depth of shaft.
Type ‘B’: reduces the K-factor of the shaft to 0.011 Ns 2/m4 and will cost $711 per metre
depth of shaft.
The life of the mine is 18 years and the interest rate is 20%. Which of the following schemes
would you recommend?
 Scheme ‘A’ Install type ‘A’ streamlined buntons
 Scheme ‘B’ Install type ‘B’ streamlined buntons
 Scheme ‘C’ Leave the shaft as it is.
The main fans can be adjusted to suit any of the above three schemes.
(30)
Due date: 18 July 2021

Assignments to be submitted on Google Classroom ONLY in PDF format.

N.B: IF YOU HAND IN YOUR WORK LATE, WITHOUT A GOOD REASON FOR DOING
SO, YOUR MARK WILL BE REDUCED.