Abstract
One of the challenges in the coal mining industry is self-heating of coal as this can become a problem during mining operations, stockpiling and transportation. This study reviews the mechanism of self-heating, areas of spontaneous combustion, various factors influencing self-heating and different experimental studies to predict its occurrence. The technical control measures applied to minimise self-heating with special consideration to South African coals are also discussed. The distribution and association of unknown materials accelerating spontaneous combustion at different bands within the seam is yet to be studied. A site evaluation of the effects of these parameters is underway.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the staff of Glencore and Anglo American mines for their devoted help during sample collections. The authors wish to express gratitude to Coaltech for their financial support. The work presented here is part of a PhD research study in the School of Mining Engineering at the University of the Witwatersrand.