Use and cost optimization for underground mines electrical energy: A case of a mine in Zvishavane

Maregedze, Laurence; Chingosho, Hilton; Madiye, Luxmore

doi:10.1016/j.energy.2022.123374

Cited by 5 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…Studies [12][13][14] focused on optimising energy usage in underground mines; however, none of these studies considered the management of diesel fuel as an energy resource. Lastly, studies [1,3] focused on the use of diesel equipment in underground mines.…”

Section: Introduction and Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

A Data-driven Framework to Reduce Diesel Spillages in Underground Mines

Ngwaku,

Pascoe,

Pelser

et al. 2023

Mining

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Several methodologies have been developed to manage diesel in open-cast mining due to its high demand and increasing diesel prices. Although the use of diesel-powered equipment in underground mines has increased over the years, effective management thereof has not received the same attention. With the advent of Industry 4.0, data can be utilised more effectively by modern businesses to identify and solve problems in a structured manner. In this study, an underground mine was used as a case study to determine whether a Data, Information, Knowledge, Wisdom (DIKW) method for diesel management could be coupled with the Six Sigma Define, Measure, Analyse, Improve, Control (DMAIC) tool to make more informed decisions and gain new insights to help reduce diesel wastage underground. The new integrated methodology identified diesel spillages and highlighted the biggest contributors to these underground spillages. The Six Sigma DMAIC domain utilised root cause analysis to determine the reason for recent systems failures, followed by the identification of practical solutions to eliminate up to 200 ML (megalitres) of diesel spillage. With this information, the case study mine stands to save over USD 175,000 per annum.

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Section: Introduction and Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

A Data-driven Framework to Reduce Diesel Spillages in Underground Mines

Ngwaku,

Pascoe,

Pelser

et al. 2023

Mining

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“…There is no systematic experiment and reasonable performance evaluation method for the dust removal efficiency and dust removal resistance of fiber grid filtration technology. In addition, most of the current dust collectors use electrically driven fans as dust removal power, which will bring additional power costs and electrical hazards (Maregedze et al 2022). When applied in high methane coal mines, there is also a risk of gas explosion due to the use of electrical components in the driven fans.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental study on a novel double Y-shaped filter and its dust removal characteristics

Jiang

Yuan

et al. 2023

Preprint

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For efficient and energy-saving purification of underground coal dust, a double Y-shaped filter device with a pneumatic fan as the power source was presented and tested. Numerical simulation results showed that the dust removal resistance of the double Y-shaped filter was lower than that of the conventional parallel filter. Next, filtration performance was evaluated and the morphology of water film on the filter was analyzed. It was discovered that a moderate filtration velocity was beneficial in increasing dust removal efficiency and the density of the fiber grid was proportional to the dust removal efficiency of the equipment. Conversely, an excess filtration velocity will increase the dust removal resistance and decrease the dust removal performance. According to quality factor evaluation, the optimum performance parameters for this equipment were 60 mesh density fiber grid, 0.6 MPa spray pressure, and 5 m/s filtration velocity. Under these conditions, the dust removal efficiency was 98.2%, and the dust removal resistance was 169.6 Pa. The results obtained in this study showed that this device can provide a new idea for efficient, low resistance and dust removal without electricity in underground coal mines.

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“…The control theme includes different categories, such as energy accounting, performance measurement, and benchmarking. Control as an energy management theme is common in the mining industry, with studies on energy auditing [10,11], performance evaluation [12], and benchmarking [13][14][15].…”

Section: Introduction 1backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Application of Clustering Techniques for Improved Energy Benchmarking on Deep-Level Mines

Caromba,

Schutte,

van Laar

2023

Energies

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The South African mining industry relies on coal-based energy to run operations, with the sector utilising 29.6 terawatt-hours of energy in 2018. However, energy availability constraints and swelling electricity prices in the country have instilled a greater emphasis on energy management practices to reduce waste and maintain profitability. Energy benchmarking is a popular and effective energy management method applied in industry, but the current methods in the mining sector use the average energy usage of various mining shafts over different intervals to develop benchmarks. This may lead to skewed benchmarks when anomalous energy usage is present within the interval or when vastly different energy users are aggregated. However, clustering-based benchmarking techniques have been applied successfully in other industries to compare similar energy users accurately. This study developed and applied a clustering-based benchmarking method to evaluate the performance of different mining shafts at a deep-level gold mine in South Africa. The K-means unsupervised learning clustering algorithm was used to group similar energy users and benchmark different mining shafts using ordinary least squares regression equations. Compared to traditional methods, the benefit of clustered energy usage benchmarks is shown by more accurately evaluating energy performance and facilitating focused energy management responses.

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Use and cost optimization for underground mines electrical energy: A case of a mine in Zvishavane

Cited by 5 publications

References 3 publications

A Data-driven Framework to Reduce Diesel Spillages in Underground Mines

A Data-driven Framework to Reduce Diesel Spillages in Underground Mines

Experimental study on a novel double Y-shaped filter and its dust removal characteristics

Application of Clustering Techniques for Improved Energy Benchmarking on Deep-Level Mines

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