By Joe Defibaugh, engineer, dust and ventilation, JoyGlobal

Dust control in longwall mining is an important factor in optimizing production. This presentation will provide an overview of current longwall dust control techniques and the limitations of these techniques to reduce respirable dust levels at the operator’s position. Better ways to control respirable dust levels in the future will also be reviewed plus the presentation will also discuss the impact of future regulations for dust control in longwall mines and new technologies for dust control going forward to improve the productivity of longwall mining.