FIGHTING MINE FIRES

The common methods of fighting mine fires are

1. Fighting by direct attack

2. Fighting by indirect attack

– Isolation of the fire
– Sealing the fire area or the entire mine

3. Flooding the fire area or the entire mine.

4. Flushing the fire area with sand or other suitable solid materials
conveyed with water

5. Introducing an inert gas into the fire area and

6. Special methods of fire fighting

FIRE EXTINGUISHING AGENTS

AND

FIRE EXTINGUISHERS
Once an open fire has been detected, the first step to
control it is to use an extinguishing agent.

The five common fire extinguishing agents used :

• Dry chemical

• Water

• Foam

• Halogenated hydrocarbon (halons) and

• Carbon dioxide
Dry Chemical/Powder
These are particularly useful for the following types of fires:
• Fires in charged electrical installations, where use of foam and
water are restricted.
• Fighting localised flaming fires in liquids or in gaseous fuels.
• In case of localised solid fires with glow (smouldering) where
formation of an incrustation helps creating a barrier against air
ingress to the fuel body.

There are three types of dry chemicals:

• Sodium bicarbonate based;

• Potassium bicarbonate based, known as Purple-K dry chemical;

• Monoammonium phosphate, known as Multi-purpose dry

chemicals.
• The dry chemicals function mainly from their anticatalytic effect of
the chemicals which interrupt the chain reaction of combustion.

• Effect of fire quenching due to evolution of CO2 from the

bicarbonates used, are only marginal.

• Both sodium and potassium bicarbonate based chemicals are only

effective on B and C class fires.

• Potassium bicarbonate chemicals are better than sodium

bicarbonate based chemicals.

• The monoammonium phosphate based chemical is effective on A, B

and C class fires.

Merits & Limitations

 Generally provides the quickest knockdown of a fire.

 It has a little cooling capacity and hence there is a possibility of re-

ignition.
Water
• It is the cheapest and most effective extinguishing agent.

• It is the most commonly used fire extinguishant for underground mines.

• Often used as a good coolant, due to its high latent heat (latent heat of
water = 539 cal/g) of evaporation.

• Besides its cooling action, the profuse quantity of steam generated (1 litre
of water ≈ 17, 000 litres of steam, approx.) restrict access of air to the
burning object.

• It cannot be used in class C fires because it conducts electricity and can

injure or kill personnel operating the extinguishers and can also cause
serious damage to the electrical equipment.

• In the case of class B fires, water can be used only with specified
equipment by highly trained fire fighters.
• Water can be applied by injecting directly to the seat of fire as a
water-jet through hoses from water mains or by spraying.

• Water jetting has the advantage that it can penetrate through the
cracks and may reach deeper layer of the burning mass.

• Besides, it can be applied from a greater distance (but less than

30 m, if applied in the mine roadways of height not exceeding 3
m).

• In case of water jetting a maximum of 20% water can be gainfully

utilized by its evaporation, rest gets drained out virtually
unutilized.

• Spraying facilitates evaporation of much larger quantity of water

and also forms water curtain which can knock down the flame
easily.

• With this method more steam can be produced forming insulation

against air and better cooling effect of the surrounding area is
achieved – thus requiring less amount of water.

• This helps in preventing the spread of fire.

• It is particularly effective in timber fires.

Foam
• Application of foam is well known in dealing with fires due to its smothering
action, by cutting off air feed to the burning fuel as well as acting as a
coolant.

• Foam consists of an aggregate of bubbles which is generated by blowing air

through a screen or net which is suitably wetted with water containing a
surface-active agent such as carboxymethyl cellulose.

• The bubbles serve to carry water to the fire as foam. When the foam hits the
fire the bubbles break, releasing the water.

• As the water evaporates into steam, it results in a drop in the O2 % and

thereby helps to extinguish the fire.

• Furthermore, the conversion of water to steam absorbs a lot of heat,

resulting in cooling.

• When enough foam accumulates, it forms a barrier to prevent the spread of

fire.
• If the ratio of air to water in the foam is higher than 100 to 1 (on
a volume/volume basis), the foam is considered to be of ‘high
expansion’.

• A ratio lower than 100 to 1 indicates that the foam is low or

medium expansion.

• Foam is extremely effective for seeping into inaccessible places.

• It has the advantage of effectively blanketing everything within

range and consequently provides slow but relatively certain
extinguishment.

• Although form has low water requirements it is relatively

expensive.
Halogenated Hydrocarbons (Halons)
• Halon is a colourless, odourless, non-toxic, non-corrosive and
electrically non-conductive gas.

• Halons consist of halogen substituted products of methane and

ethane (particularly fluro carbons).

Commonly available halons are:

• CCl4 (CTC) – where the vapour is 5 times heavier than air.

• Monochloromonobromo methane, CBX.

• Fluromonochlorodibromo methane, FLTOI.

• Bromochlorodifluro methane, BCF.

• Bromotrifluro methane, BTM.

• They are generally used in enclosed areas to produce 5 to 7%
conc. of the gas.

• In contact with fires/hot surface, they vaporise and the heavier

vapours drive away air from the burning surface.

• But their most important fire combat action is because of inhibiting

the progress of fire by their anticatalytic effect on combustion
reaction.

• Because halon is a gas and non-corrosive, it leaves no residue to

clean up.

• Since non conducting even for high voltages, it is used frequently

in the case of complex electrical installations.

• Also, it is used in liquid fuel fires such as aviation fires.

Limitations

• High cost, compared with other agents.

• Certain agents are toxic– restricting their use in mine fires,

mainly UG fires.

• Only useful for fires in sophisticated installations at the surface.

Carbon Dioxide

• Being 1.5 times heavier than air, CO2 can be used to blanket the
fire, preventing O2 from reaching it.

• Since heavier than air, CO2 is better in quick replenishment of air.

It starts filling up from floor upwards in the form of layers.

• Since it is heavier, it can also escape very quickly through cracks

and fissures in the floor.

• Once filled up it is difficult to flush out CO2 from roadways when

needed i.e. during recovery operation – because of stratification of
CO2 in the floor.
 FIRE EXTINGUISHERS
• An extinguisher is a fire-fighting appliance containing
an extinguishing medium which can be expelled by the
action of internal pressure which may either be stored
or obtained by a chemical reaction.

• Portable extinguishers are designed to be carried and

operated by hand and weigh not more than 25 kg.

• They are of different shapes, metals and methods of

construction.
• Basically, a fire extinguisher consists of
– a container,
– the extinguishing agent,
– a pressure-producing device or agent, and
– discharge orifice or hose and
– nozzle.

• Fire extinguishers have greater extinguishing ability than water

but suffer from the limitation of limited supply of the extinguishing
agent.

• The maximum extinguishing effect is achieved when it is possible

to cover or blanket the fire completely with the extinguishing
medium.
Types of fire extinguishers

Fire extinguishers commonly used in mines can be classified as:

• Soda-acid extinguishers

• Foam extinguishers

– Chemical foam extinguishers

– Mechanical or air foam extinguishers

• Carbon dioxide-snow extinguishers

• Dry chemical (dry powder) extinguishers

• Multipurpose dry chemical (dry powder) extinguishers

Soda-acid extinguishers

• It is a chemical reaction type extinguisher in which two chemicals

are allowed to react to produce a propellant gas when the
operating mechanism is activated.

• This type of extinguisher depends for its action on the cooling

effect of a jet of liquid.
The extinguisher consists of

•A conical or cylindrical
sheet steel container of
4.5 to 9.1 litres capacity
charged with basic sodium
bicarbonate solution,

•A siphon or discharge
tube,

•A nozzle,
•A hermetically sealed
acid phial or bottle,
•A perforated acid bottle
metal cage, and
•A plunger knob
assembly.
 • The glass phial contains sulphuric acid.

• The nozzle is closed with a protection disc which ruptures at a pressure

of 2 atg and has the object of protecting the solution against the
action of surrounding atmosphere.

• The rupture disc, also, builds up a pressure inside the extinguisher,

which is sufficient to force the extinguishing liquid out of the nozzle in
a powerful jet after breaking the disc.

• The extinguisher is operated by breaking the acid phial with the

plunger knob permitting the acid and soda solution to mix and
directing the nozzle at the same time towards the fire with the
extinguisher held almost horizontally.

• When the acid is released, it mixes with the solution and reacts to
produce CO2 gas.
• The chemical reaction produces CO2 in such a quantity that a
pressure of about 6.5 atg is developed which forces the whole of
the contents (sodium bicarbonate solution) of extinguisher on to
the fire.

• The resulting stream is directed on to the fire either from a nozzle

or from the end of a length of hose attached to the extinguisher.

• A 10 litre capacity extinguisher has a covering range of up to 14 m

and a duration of 90 seconds.

• Soda-acid fire extinguishers are suitable for fires of solid

combustible materials.

• They cannot be used for electrical fires or fires involving burning

oils or flammable liquids.
Foam extinguishers
When operated, foam extinguishers produce a thick foamy fluid
either

 by reaction between two chemical solutions (chemical-foam-type)

or
 by stirring powerfully an aqueous solution of a foam-forming
compound by means of compressed air (air-foam-type).

Accordingly, the foam extinguishers are categorised in two different

types:

• Chemical foam extinguishers and

• Mechanical or air foam extinguishers.
• When directed against a fire, the foam spreads over the entire fire
covering or blanketing it forming a 5-10 cm thick surface layer and
thereby cut off the oxygen supply feeding the fire.

• The wet foam layer also produces a cooling effect which assists in
extinguishing the fire.

• Foam extinguishers are especially used for fighting fires involving

combustible and flammable liquids.

• Foam being conductor of electricity, they are not recommended for

fires involving electrical equipment.
Chemical foam extinguishers
• It is a chemical reaction type extinguisher.

• It consists of
– a cylindrical outer container filled with an aqueous solution of
sodium bicarbonate containing a special foam-forming
compound and a stabilizer,
– a cylindrical inner container containing an acid solution of
aluminium sulphate in water, and
– a nozzle with a protection disc fitted to the outer container.
– A brass screw cap on the top of the cylinder sometimes
contains a sealing valve and
When the screw cap is opened and the extinguisher is operated
by inverting it permitting the acid and basic solutions to mix, it
produce foam and a gas which acts as an expellant.
During the operation, the nozzle fitted with a short length of hose
is directed on to the fire to be extinguished.
• The chemical reaction produces a gelatinous sodium sulphate and
carbon dioxide according to the equation:

6 NaHCO3 + Al2 (SO4)3 = 3 Na2SO4 + 2 Al (OH)3 + 6 CO2

• CO2 is liberated in a state of very fine bubbles which are

maintained in that state by the foam-forming compound.

• The light gelatinous precipitate has the effect of making the

bubbles more tenacious and permanent thus giving a very stable
foam.

• The excess CO2 under pressure serves to force the foam in a

stream out of the nozzle.

• A mixing chamber is provided before the nozzle for thorough

mixing of the acid and basic solutions and forming foam in
shortest time.
Mechanical or air foam extinguishers
• This extinguisher produces foam similar to that produced by a chemical
foam extinguisher and usually of 9.1 litres capacity.
• It produce foam from a solution of foam compound and water.

• The solution is stored either in the body of the extinguisher or in a

hermitically sealed inner container.
• The pressure to force it out comes either from CO2 gas contained in a small
metal cartridge, or from air introduced into the extinguisher and compressed
at 1050 kPa.

• This extinguisher is more rapid in action than the chemical foam type and is
operated in the upright position.

• A small, foam-making branch is attached to the end of the length of hose

and is pointed towards the fire and the plunger in the cap depressed.

• As the liquid comes out of the tube it creates a venturi effect which sucks in
air, creating mechanical foam.

• The great advantage of air foam extinguisher is that it can be readily

charged underground and contains less amount of dissolved solids in the
charge.
The Minimax air foam
extinguisher consists of
• A cylindrical container filled
with an aqueous solution of
a foam-forming compound or
foam concentrate,
•A siphon tube,
•A mixing chamber,
•A discharge hose,
•A nozzle,
•A safety valve, and
•A compressed-air
cylinder fitted with a
cylinder valve of the
hand-wheel type and
accommodated in the
centre of the container.
• The extinguisher is operated by turning on compressed air by
means of the hand wheel.

• The compressed air which is at a pressure of 150 atg is reduced to

a pressure of 8 atg by a reducing valve before it exerts pressure
on the top of the solution forcing it up the siphon tube and the
mixing chamber.

• A part of the compressed air flowing through a hole in the siphon

tube at its top mixes with the solution in the mixing chamber and
the resulting mixture is converted into a very fine-bubbled air
foam in the discharge hose and forced out of the nozzle.

• A 10-litre air foam extinguisher produces with one filling about

120 to 140 litre air foam and has a range of about 5 m.
Carbon dioxide (snow) extinguishers
• It consists of a light steel cylindrical container of about 8 litre
capacity filled with a charge of 6 kg liquid CO2 (approx. 2/3 of its
capacity) under a pressure of 56 to 63 kg/cm2 and fitted with a
control valve.

• The cylinder valve (may be of hand wheel, lever, or hand-grip

type) is fitted with a tube that nearly reaches the bottom of the
cylinder, and connected by means of a short length of high-
pressure hose (about 1 m long) either directly or through an
extension pipe to a snow pipe or discharge horn.

• A safety device on the cylinder valve prevents undue excess

pressure in the steel cylinder.

• A distinctive feature of the extinguisher is the discharge horn

(made of insulating material) which is fitted so that it can be
discharged at right angles to the cylinder.

• It is designed with the orifice end wider than the end attached to
the cylinder to allow rapid expansion of the gas as it enters the
atmosphere and its temperature rises.
• If the horn was not this shape, the gas might freeze in the tube
and block the extinguisher.
• When the valve is opened, a portion of the liquid CO2 evaporates at an
orifice at the closed end of the horn by expansion to gas.
• This chills the horn to low temperatures.
• When the gaseous CO2 further expands by streaming through the horn to
the atmospheric pressure, the remaining CO2 is converted into loose snow
due to intense cooling (-79 °C) in the horn.
• Thus the extinguishing stream consists of an under cooled carbon CO2 gas
with finely-divided snow.
• The extinguisher has a range of about 1.5 m.
• The best extinguishing results are obtained by applying the discharge as
close to the fire as possible, first at the near edge of the fire moving the
discharge horn slowly from side to side, and slowly progressing forward as
the flames are extinguished.
• CO2 is essentially non conducting and leaves no residue.
• It is effective as an extinguishing agent primarily because it covers the
burning material when released on it and reduces the oxygen content of the
air to a point where it will no longer support combustion.
• The extinguisher is specially suitable for use on fires which cannot be fought
by water such as fires in electrical equipment and fires in flammable liquids.
Dry chemical (dry powder) extinguishers
• They utilizes a bicarbonate based fire-quenching chemical powder for its
action.

• Commercially available dry chemicals are mixture of powders principally

either sodium bicarbonate or potassium bicarbonate (90% or more) with
various additives to improve storage and flow characteristics.

• Chief among the additives are metallic stearates and tricalcium

phosphate.

• Potassium bicarbonate-base dry chemical has a faster extinguishing action

than the sodium bicarbonate-base type.

• Smothering, cooling, and radiation shielding contribute each to a certain

degree to the extinguishing action of dry chemical, but chain-breaking
reaction in the flame may be the principal cause of extinguishment.

• Dry chemical extinguisher is primarily used to extinguish flammable liquid

fires, fires in electrical equipment subject to flammable liquid fires such as
oil-filled transformers and circuit-breakers, and flaming mine fires.

• It can also be used on fires in ordinary combustible materials.

• The Minimax dry chemical extinguisher using sodium bicarbonate-
base dry chemical consists of

– a cylindrical container with a fixed nozzle at its bottom,

– a liquid CO2 steel container outside the container fitted with a

valve, and

– a tube extending from the cylinder valve to the bottom of the

container.

– The nozzle is provided with a protection disc to prevent the action

of the surrounding atmosphere upon the charge in the cylindrical
container.

When the cylinder valve is opened, CO2 gas is released which, when
sufficient pressure is developed in the container, expels the dry
chemical out of the nozzle in a cloud after rupturing the nozzle
protection disc.
Limitations

• Dry chemical extinguisher offers a rapid discharge of relatively

short duration.

• Action from such extinguishers (portable ones) is short lived,

max. up to 15-20 min only.

• The fine powder may damage delicate electrical appliances as

computer etc., penetrating within.

• Although powders used are nonabrasive but it is corrosive on

certain alloys.
Multipurpose Dry Chemical (Dry Powder)
Extinguishers

• Multipurpose dry chemical is a mixture of chemicals consisting of

monoammonium phosphate as the principal ingredient and
substances which have anti-stick and water-repellant properties.

• The extinguishers are effective against

– glow fires,
– flaming fires,
– fires in flammable liquids, and
– fires in live electrical equipment.

• Multipurpose dry chemical is as effective as water on kg-for-kg

basis when used on fires in ordinary combustible materials and
is slightly more effective than the bicarbonate base-type.
• It has little cooling effect on the fire but its extinguishing action is
due to
– inhibiting effect of the liberated ammonia and
– formation of an adhering glassy crust of metamorphic acid over
the fire in ordinary combustible material, which tends to retard
further combustion.

• The mechanism causing fire in a flammable liquid to go out is

believed to be a chain-breaking reaction.

• The extinguishers may be either of the stored-pressure-type (the

charge under constant pressure of expellant gas) or of the cylinder
or cartridge operated-type.
Fighting Fire by Indirect
Attack
• When direct methods of combating an open fire or incipient fire
have proved unsuccessful or impracticable or unsafe within
reasonable time, one takes recourse to indirect fire-fighting.

• In this method the fire seat is isolated or sealed off from the rest
of the mine workings and air currents so that the fire is
extinguished from lack of oxygen.

Isolation of fire
• Isolation of fire by preventing air from gaining any access to it
depends on the
– location of the fire,
– the rate and direction of advance of the fire, and
– the nature of the combustible material.

Isolation of a fire is easy in mines which are divided into suitable

fire sections by means of steel fire doors and preparatory
stoppings at strategic locations.
Sealing off the fire area
• An underground fire is sealed off by creating stoppings.

• It is usually adopted in cases of fires originating from spontaneous

heating and/or in large-scale underground fires.

• It is sure method of cutting off oxygen feed to the fire – though it

requires a long time for extinguishing the fire.

The main problems posed in sealing off a fire are:

– The leakages of air within (even after sealing) and
– The threat from explosion-during the sealing off operation,
immediately after it, as well as during recovery operation of the
fire area.
• With every fire, one should expect sealing off from the very
beginning, and along with the fire-fighting operation, certain
preparatory measures should be undertaken.

The most important preparatory measures for sealing off are:

1. Withdrawal of endangered workmen: all workers should be

withdrawn from the danger area a period sufficiently long to
ensure that the danger period is past.

2. Selection of sites for erection of permanent stoppings: In general,

the stoppings are erected in sound ground as near to the seat of
fire as possible, without, sacrificing mine safety.

3. Determination of the type and construction of stoppings, their

order and duration of erection: the stoppings should explosion-
proof

4. Preparation of the sites selected for permanent stoppings.

5. Supply of necessary building materials.

6. Analysis of gases.
 FIRE STOPPINGS
 Stoppings are used when alternative means of controlling a fire or
spontaneous heating have been exhausted and rescue operations
have been terminated.

 The purpose is to stop the flow of air and allow an inert

atmosphere to build up within the affected zone.

Temporary stopping:
• These are quickly made to restrict air flow to the fire while making
preparation for building the permanent stoppings.

• They are of light structure erected from brattice cloths, other

fabrics or boarding or quickly erected alternatives.

• They are not capable of withstanding any significant physical

loading.
Permanent stoppings:

• Permanent stoppings are constructed ½ to 1 hour after the

completion of the temporary stoppings.

• The stoppings should be well-hitched in the sides, roof and floor.

• The selection of building materials depends on

– the strength required to withstand rock pressure and

– the necessity for complete air-tightness.

• The stoppings may be built of bricks, cement concrete blocks,

monolithic concrete, or packwalls of various kinds.
Selection of sites for permanent stoppings
• Site selection for stoppings invariably requires compromises
between optimum positions and practical considerations.

• The selection of sites for permanent stoppings depends on

 the nature of the ground whether unsettled, fractured, or settled,

 the number of openings to be sealed,

 the intensity of the fire,

 the condition of air in the fire area,

 the system of ventilation,

 the likelihood of formation of flammable gas mixtures, and

 the difficulty of transporting the materials of construction.