Cooling mine air for mining and tunnel construction

High underground temperatures represent one of the greatest challenges in mining and tunnel construction. They are generated by the temperature of the rock, which increases with depth. Adding to the temperature is the exhaust heat from mining and pipe jacking machines.

Various mine air cooling systems are used to reduce the temperature. The concept of ‘mine air’ is used in tunnel construction and mining to mean the gases present at the construction site or in the underground workings at the mine site.

Mine air cooling ensures that the underground temperatures are suitable for both humans and machines. The mine air cooling systems by Herco are very robust and are specifically adapted for the respective, individual circumstances.

Depending on the application site, centralised or decentralised systems are used for air, water or hydraulic cooling. In centralised systems for cooling mine air, a cold water machine is used to supply several air cooling units or longwall air coolers. In decentralised systems, independently functioning air cooling machines are set up at several operating points. Each machine has its own, respective cooling capacity.

Re-coolers remove the absorbed heat energy. The Herco portfolio also includes high-pressure/low-pressure heat exchangers and specialised solutions for tunnel construction and mining. The mine air cooling systems are available with various capacities as needed.