| Although continuing efforts at improved mine safety are minimizing the cause of mine fires, the chance of serious mine fires is still a reality. Disasters are most likely to occur whenever a fire is not detected and located quickly.; For the early detection of mine fires, the techniques that have been developed so far are sophisticated enough to meet the common needs of current mining industry. But rapidly and automatically locating an underground mine fire is still a difficult problem addressed very little in the past.; Unlike building construction, in an underground mine, it is impractical to install detectors at every desired location. Some mine fires are detected and located early while the location of others, even if detected early, remains unknown too long for safe evacuation and effective fire fighting.; This study, as part of the mine fire research program of the US Bureau of Mines, is intended to develop a strategy of rapidly and automatically locating mine fires in real time using a minimum of selectively placed sensors coupled with computer-based data interpretation. Fire properties related to detection and available detection devices are analyzed and compared. Analysis of the underground mine fire experiments conducted at the Waldo mine are presented. A computer-aided fire detection and location system is proposed. Two computer programs useful for this system are developed.; The techniques developed in this dissertation will provide a significant first step toward the rapid and automatic determination of fire location in underground mines.; Full-scale in-mine validation of the concepts and computer programs from this study are planned by the US Bureau of Mines. |
