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Heat and emissions management in underground mines through vehicle electrification
Swift, Aaron M.
Swift, Aaron M.
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2025
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Abstract
Underground mining produces resources vital for the functioning of the modern economy. Many of the activities in these mines are executed with diesel vehicles, which emit heat and engine exhaust into enclosed working areas. Underground mines employ a ventilation system to remove or dilute the emissions to safe levels by introducing fresh air. Chapter 2 demonstrates how the heat and exhaust emissions produced by diesel vehicles change with the ambient conditions, which may, in turn, affect worker exposure. Temperature data from an operational mine shows an 8 °C increase in an airway over a 2-hour period due to operations of loaders and haul trucks. We estimate that this temperature increase results in up to a 16% decrease in NOx, 5% increase in soot, and 2% increase in heat emitted from vehicles. Electrification of the haulage fleet is one option to reduce or eliminate such emissions altogether. Improvements in battery technology have enabled equipment manufacturers to develop battery-powered vehicles suitable for heavy-duty applications such as underground mining, but the lower energy density of batteries compared to diesel fuel requires more frequent stops for recharging. Chapter 3 compares the productivity, heat load, energy usage, and greenhouse gas emissions of diesel- and battery-powered haulage fleets to quantify potential operational impacts resulting from frequent recharging stops. The amount of material hauled by the all-battery fleet is between 10% less than and 5% more than the all-diesel fleet, with CO2 emissions and heat load decreasing by more than 40%. Lithium-ion batteries used in battery-electric vehicles have a finite lifetime that can be shortened by their operating conditions, and Chapter 4 examines how ambient temperature, depth of discharge, and charging scheme (i.e., fast charging or battery swap) impact the rate of degradation for two battery chemistries. In this application, the age of the battery better predicts the amount of degradation than the number of charge-discharge cycles. Results from these studies may be used to provide mine operators useful insights as they pursue vehicle electrification, and may be helpful in other industries pursuing the same goal.
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