MINE VENTILATION
MaestroFlex automated regulators replace drop board manual regulators that cannot be adjusted from surface , while allowing surfacebased control room operators the ability to control ventilation through manual , eventbased , time-based or full ventilation on demand ( VoD ) functions , according to Maestro
“ If you take a look at trying to reduce carbon content in your operations , reducing your energy footprint is going to be the most important factor for these mines ,” he said .
The energy profile of a typical deep mine means up to 70 % of the energy expended is directly related to ventilation , according to Gribbons .
This percentage may be widely accepted by suppliers , but not all mine managers and operating personnel factor this into their decision making .
“ Mine managers think about tonnes per day / month , or , if they are in gold mining , ounces per day / month ,” Gribbons said . “ A better metric that makes sense to them in terms of ventilation is tonnes per tonne . That is the amount of air circulating in a mine versus how much ore is being skipped / hauled to surface .”
In some of these deep mines Maestro studied , there were ratios of 18-22:1 in favour of air .
“ The weight of air being pushed through the mine was 18 to 22 times the amount of ore that came up to surface ,” Gribbons explained . That air could be cooled or heated too , adding another layer of expense .
These are ratios that operating personnel will need to understand and appreciate if they are to achieve their ESG goals .
“ If you are seriously considering trying to reduce carbon content , you should consider this metric ,” Gribbons said . “ Ventilation is becoming a constraining factor for miners being able to produce at deep mines . That constraint is both economic and environmental .”
After an evaluation of actual ventilation requirements , these miners should then ensure the ventilation is getting to the right spot , according to David Ballantyne , Vice President of Product Development and Co-founder of Maestro .
This is where the company ’ s Vigilante AQS™ and Zephyr AQS™ Air Quality Stations come into play , providing measurement of the environmental conditions , control and feedback to the MaestroFlex regulators in order to optimally ventilate the mine level .
Gribbons said : “ Our whole goal is to make the ventilation process a lot less complicated and reduce the requirement for specialists . This is what we did with the Vigilante AQS and Zephyr AQS , and we are doing it again with the regulators and actuators using both IIoT and Edge-based controls .”
Pairing all these elements with MaestroLink Server provides improved maintenance processes and a reduced need for specialist intervention , according to the company . This software features a multi-instance web-based interface to monitor and record the health of all of Maestro ’ s IIoT devices and the Plexus PowerNet™ ‘ last mile ’ underground communication network .
Gribbons explained the origins of the software : “ When thousands of our Vigilante AQS and Zephyr AQS were operating , we realised the constraint was keeping the sensors in compliance by calibration . We had all these advanced diagnostic functions on board the devices , but the client was not able to access them .”
The software takes all the embedded data in Maestro devices and pulls it into an easy-to-use platform for viewing and reporting , according to the company .
“ MaestroLink Server will poll the IIoT devices and pull the diagnostic bits into the software ,” Gribbons said . “ The software will then provide a detailed action plan to calibrate or repair the device .
“ It gives you the ability to maintain these devices from surface , instead of using timebased maintenance functions that deploy personnel underground unnecessarily .”
The company is focusing on utilising MaestroLink Server as an on-premise software platform to eliminate cybersecurity risks . Future implementations could easily leverage cloudbased infrastructure when mining companies deem this method safe .
Maestro ’ s aim of driving out complexity in the ventilation space – epitomised by providing all data via open communication protocols – has recently been aided by a collaboration with
Howden and its Ventsim CONTROL ventilation design program for control and optimisation .
Gribbons said the two companies share a “ simplistic ” operational aim , with Ventsim CONTROL and Maestro ’ s IIoT devices reducing the complexity and integration time required for any underground ventilation project .
“ We integrate with everyone ’ s solution , but what is very different with Howden ’ s integrated approach today is they are making it even easier for their clients ,” he said . “ Simple pull-down menus allow you to select any Maestro device in the software , and it gets populated automatically . That is a huge saving on complexity and engineering costs , allowing the client to manage much more of the system integration themselves .”
He added : “ The other software VoD platforms require significant configuration and engineering services , which incurs huge engineering costs and time delays . With this integration , the client can eradicate that complexity and expense .”
Howden boosts CONTROL functionality
Howden is continuing to take on user feedback to improve its flagship Ventsim CONTROL software , with the latest update set to bring an ‘ on demand ’ element to mine ventilation cooling .
Ventsim CONTROL was born out of such feedback – in fact almost 10 years of customer input . This helped the original owners of the software , Simsmart and Chasm , develop a no programming ' plug and play ' approach that could see instrumentation , automation , fans , dampers and fan motor starters integrated quickly and easily into any Ventsim CONTROL system .
An upgrade from Ventsim DESIGN , Ventsim CONTROL uses intelligent software connected to Howden or third-party hardware devices to remotely monitor , control and automate airflow heating and cooling to deliver safer , more productive , and lower cost ventilation for mines , the company says .
Hugo Dello Sbarba , Director of Ventsim and Sales Mining , says the addition of a ‘ cooling on demand ’ module to Ventsim CONTROL coincides with an industry move to install more cooling plants to achieve higher standards of health and safety for workers . Howden has seen this trend up close and personal , having recently successfully delivered the first phase of an 8 MW surface bulk air cooling plant for Roxgold ’ s Yaramoko gold mine in Burkina Faso .
“ We chose now to introduce cooling on demand to Ventsim CONTROL partially because more mines are getting deeper , require cooled air and are adopting higher standards in advance of incoming regulations ,” he told IM . “ This reflects a wider industry move towards more sustainable operations .”
There was also a push from existing Ventsim
12 International Mining | JULY 2021