How coal is mined. Hard coal Open pit coal is mined in

coal industry is engaged in the extraction and primary processing (enrichment) of hard and brown coal and is the largest industry in terms of the number of workers and the cost of production fixed assets.

Russian coal

Russia has various types of coal - brown, black, anthracite - and occupies one of the leading places in the world in terms of reserves. The total geological reserves of coal amount to 6,421 billion tons, of which 5,334 billion tons are standard. More than 2/3 of the total reserves are coal. Technological fuel - coking coal - is 1/10 of the total amount of hard coal.

Coal distribution throughout the country uneven. 95% reserves account for eastern regions, of which more than 60% - to Siberia. The main part of the general geological reserves of coal is concentrated in the Tunguska and Lena basins. In terms of industrial coal reserves, the Kansk-Achinsk and Kuznetsk basins are distinguished.

Coal mining in Russia

In terms of coal production, Russia ranks fifth in the world (after China, the USA, India and Australia), 3/4 of the coal produced is used for energy and heat production, 1/4 - in metallurgy and the chemical industry. A small part is exported, mainly to Japan and the Republic of Korea.

Open pit coal mining in Russia is 2/3 of the total volume. This mining method is considered the most productive and cheapest. However, this does not take into account the severe disturbances of nature associated with it - the creation of deep quarries and extensive overburden dumps. Mine production is more expensive and has a high accident rate, which is largely determined by the depreciation of mining equipment (40% of it is outdated and requires urgent modernization).

Russian coal basins

The role of this or that coal basin in the territorial division of labor depends on the quality of the coal, the size of the reserves, the technical and economic indicators of extraction, the degree of preparedness of the reserves for industrial exploitation, the size of the extraction, and the peculiarities of the transport and geographical position. Together, these conditions stand out sharply interdistrict coal bases— The Kuznetsk and Kansko-Achinsk basins, which together account for 70% of coal production in Russia, as well as the Pechora, Donetsk, Irkutsk-Cheremkhovo and South Yakutsk basins.

Kuznetsk basin, located in the south of Western Siberia in the Kemerovo region, is the main coal base of the country and provides half of the all-Russian coal production. Here lies the coal High Quality, including coking. Almost 12% of mining is carried out by open pit mining. The main centers are Novokuznetsk, Kemerovo, Prokopievsk, Anzhero-Sudzhensk, Belovo, Leninsk-Kuznetsky.

Kansko-Achinsk basin located in the south of Eastern Siberia in the Krasnoyarsk Territory along the Trans-Siberian Railway and provides 12% of coal production in Russia. The lignite of this basin is the cheapest in the country, since it is mined in an open pit. Due to the low quality of coal, it is not very transportable, and therefore powerful thermal power plants operate on the basis of the largest mines (Irsha-Borodinsky, Nazarovsky, Berezovsky).

Pechora basin is the largest in the European part and provides 4% of the country's coal production. It is remote from the most important industrial centers and is located in the Arctic; mining is carried out only by the mine method. Coking coal is mined in the northern part of the basin (Vorkuta and Vorgashorskoye deposits), while in the southern part (Intinskoye deposit), mainly energy coal is mined. The main consumers of Pechora coal are the Cherepovets Metallurgical Plant, enterprises of the North-West, the Center and the Central Chernozem Region.

Donetsk basin in the Rostov region is the eastern part of the coal basin located in Ukraine. This is one of the oldest coal mining areas. The mining method of extraction led to the high cost of coal. Coal production is declining every year and in 2007 the basin produced only 2.4% of the total Russian production.

Irkutsk-Cheremkhovo basin in the Irkutsk region provides a low cost of coal, since mining is carried out in an open way and provides 3.4% of coal in the country. Due to the great distance from large consumers, it is used at local power plants.

South Yakutsk basin(3.9% of the total Russian production) is located in the Far East. It has significant reserves of energy and process fuels, and all mining is carried out by an open method.

The promising coal basins include the Lensky, Tungussky and Taimyrsky, located beyond the Yenisei to the north of the 60th parallel. They occupy vast areas in the poorly developed and sparsely populated areas of Eastern Siberia and the Far East.

In parallel with the creation of coal bases of inter-district significance, there was a wide development of local coal basins, which made it possible to bring coal production closer to the areas of its consumption. At the same time, in the western regions of Russia, coal production is declining (the Moscow Basin), and in the eastern regions it is increasing sharply (deposits of the Novosibirsk Region, Trans-Baikal Territory, Primorye.

Coal mining as an industrial sector became widespread at the beginning of the 20th century and to this day continues to be one of the most profitable types of mining of mineral deposits. Coal is mined commercially all over the world.

Contrary to popular belief, this fossil is used not only as a quality fuel. In the middle of the twentieth century, the coal industry gave a powerful impetus to the development of scientific research on the extraction of hydrocarbons from minerals.

Where is mining

Most major countries, extracting coal - China, USA, India. ranks 6th in the world ranking in terms of its production, although it is in the top three in terms of reserves.

Brown coal, hard coal (including coking coal) and anthracite are mined in Russia. The main coal-mining regions in Russia are the Kemerovo region, the Krasnoyarsk Territory, the Irkutsk region, Chita, Buryatia, and the Komi Republic. There is coal in the Urals, the Far East, Kamchatka, Yakutia, the Tula and Kaluga regions. There are 16 coal basins in Russia. One of the largest - more than half of Russia's hard coal is mined there.

How coal is mined

Depending on the depth of the coal seam, its area, shape, thickness, various geographical and environmental factors, a certain method of coal mining is selected. The main methods include the following:

• mine;
• developments in a coal quarry;
• hydraulic.

In addition, there is open-pit coal mining, provided that the coal seam lies at a depth of no more than one hundred meters. But this method is very similar in form to quarry coal mining.

mine method

This method is used from great depths and has an undeniable advantage over open methods of coal mining: coal at great depths is of better quality and practically does not contain impurities.

To access the coal seams, horizontal or vertical tunnels (adits and mines) are drilled. There are known cases of coal mining at a depth of up to 1500 meters (Gvardeyskaya, Shakhterskaya-Glubokaya mines).

Underground coal mining is one of the most difficult specializations due to a number of dangers:

1. Constant threat of groundwater breakthrough into the mine shaft.
2. The constant threat of a breakthrough of associated gases into the mine shaft. In addition to possible suffocation, a special danger is explosions and fires.
3. Accidents due to high temperature at great depths (up to 60 degrees), careless handling of equipment, etc.

In this way, approximately 36% of the world's coal reserves are extracted from the earth's interior, which is 2625.7 million tons.

open way

According to their classification, developments in a coal quarry belong to an open method of coal mining, since they do not require drilling mines and adits to a great depth.

This method of mining consists in undermining and removing overburden (a layer of excess rocks above coal deposits) from the mining site. After that, with the help of excavators, water guns, bulldozers, crushers, draglines and conveyors, the rock is crushed and transferred further.

This method of coal mining is considered less safe than closed (mine). But he also has certain risk factors associated with careless handling of equipment and large-sized vehicles, the possibility of poisoning with exhaust gases and substances accompanying machine activity.

A significant disadvantage this method considered to cause great harm environment due to the removal of a large area of ​​the land layer and its accompanying natural elements.

The open-pit method is considered one of the most widespread in the world - it produces more than 55% of coal per year, which is 4102.1 million tons.

It was first used in the Soviet Union in the 30s of the twentieth century. It involves the extraction of coal in deep mines, while transporting coal to the surface occurs with the help of water jets under tension. This method made it possible to use the lack of underground coal mining - groundwater - to their advantage.

Recently, hydraulic coal mining is considered one of the most respectable methods. It is able to replace the laborious and dangerous process of coal mining by miners, instead of which water will act as a destructive and lifting force.

The disadvantages of this method of coal mining include the following:

• constant contact of working tools and mechanisms with water and rock;
• certain difficulties in replacing or repairing working equipment;
• dependence of the process of coal mining on the thickness, angle of inclination and hardness of the rock.

This method produces approximately 7.5% of coal annually, which is 545.5 million tons.

In Russia, the Siberian Federal District produces more than 80% of coal from the total volume in the country. Coal production has been on the rise in recent years. The industry leader is OAO SUEK.

The largest branch (in terms of the number of workers and the cost of production fixed assets) of the fuel industry is coal mining in Russia. The coal industry extracts, processes (enriches) coal, lignite and anthracites.

How and how much coal is produced in the Russian Federation

This mineral is mined depending on the depth of location: open (in cuts) and underground (in mines) methods. Between 2000 and 2015, underground production increased from 90.9 to 103.7 million tons, while open-pit production increased by more than 100 million tons from 167.5 to 269.7 million tons. The amount of the mineral mined in the country during this period, broken down by production methods, see fig. one.

According to the Fuel and Energy Complex (FEC), in the Russian Federation in 2016, 385 million tons of black minerals were mined, which is 3.2% higher than the previous year. This allows us to draw a conclusion about the positive dynamics of the industry growth in recent years and about the prospects, despite the crisis.

The types of this mineral, mined in our country, are divided into power and coking coals. In the total volume for the period from 2010 to 2015, the share of energy production increased from 197.4 to 284.4 million tons. See fig. 2.

Source: Coal magazine according to Rosstat

How many black minerals are in the country and where is it mined

According to Rosstat, the Russian Federation(157 billion tons) ranks second after the United States (237.3 billion tons) in the world in terms of coal reserves. The Russian Federation accounts for about 18% of all world reserves. See figure 3.

Source: Rosstat

Rosstat information for 2010-2015 suggests that in the country, mining is carried out in 25 subjects of the Federation in 7 federal districts. There are 192 coal enterprises. Among them are 71 mines, and 121 coal mines. Their total productive capacity is 408 million tons. More than 80% of it is mined in Siberia. Coal mining in Russia by region is shown in Table 1.

Source: Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation

In 2016, 227,400 thousand tons. mined in the Kemerovo region (such cities with one industry affiliation are called single-industry towns), of which about 125,000 thousand tons were exported.

Kuzbass accounts for about 60% of domestic coal production, there are about 120 mines and cuts.

At the beginning of February 2017, a new open-pit mine was launched in the Kemerovo region - Trudarmeisky Yuzhny with a design capacity of 2,500 thousand tons per year.

In 2017, it is planned to produce 1,500 thousand tons of minerals at the open pit, and, according to forecasts, the open pit will reach its design capacity in 2018. Also in 2017, three new enterprises are planned to be launched in Kuzbass.

The largest deposits

On the territory of the Russian Federation there are 22 coal basins (according to Rosstat for 2014) and 129 individual deposits. More than 2/3 of the reserves of those that have already been explored are concentrated in the Kansk-Achinsk (79.3 billion tons) and Kuznetsk (53.4 billion tons) basins. They are located on the territory of the Kemerovo region of the Krasnoyarsk Territory.

Also among the largest basins are: Irkutsk, Pechora, Donetsk, South Yakutsk, Minusinsk, and others. Figure 4 shows the structure of explored reserves for the main basins.

Source: Rosstat

Import Export

The Russian Federation is in the top three largest exporters coal after Australia (export volume 390 million tons) and Indonesia (330 million tons) in 2015. The share of Russia in 2015 - 156 million tons of black fossil went for export. This indicator for the country has grown by 40 million tons in five years. In addition to the Russian Federation, Australia and Indonesia, the top six countries include the United States of America, Colombia and South Africa. The structure of world exports is shown in fig. 5.

Rice. 5: Structure of world exports (largest exporting countries).

Coal is a sedimentary rock that forms in the earth's seam. Coal is an excellent fuel. It is believed that this is the most ancient type of fuel used by our distant ancestors.

How coal is formed

For the formation of coal, a huge amount of plant matter is needed. And it is better if the plants accumulate in one place and do not have time to decompose completely. The ideal place for this is swamps. The water in them is poor in oxygen, which prevents the vital activity of bacteria.

Vegetation mass accumulates in swamps. Not having time to completely rot, it is compressed by the following soil deposits. This is how peat is obtained - the source material for coal. The next layers of soil, as it were, seal the peat in the ground. As a result, it is completely deprived of access to oxygen and water and turns into a coal seam. This process is lengthy. So, most of the modern reserves of coal were formed in the Paleozoic era, that is, more than 300 million years ago.

Characteristics and types of coal

(Brown coal)

The chemical composition of coal depends on its age.

The youngest species is brown coal. It lies at a depth of about 1 km. There is still a lot of water in it - about 43%. Contains a large amount volatile substances. It ignites and burns well, but gives little heat.

Hard coal is a kind of "middling" in this classification. It occurs at depths up to 3 km. Since the pressure of the upper layers is greater, the water content in coal is less - about 12%, volatile substances - up to 32%, but carbon contains from 75% to 95%. It is also highly flammable, but burns better. And due to the small amount of moisture, it gives more heat.

Anthracite is an older breed. It occurs at depths of about 5 km. It has more carbon and almost no moisture. Anthracite - solid fuel, poorly ignites, but the specific heat of combustion is the highest - up to 7400 kcal / kg.

(Anthracite coal)

However, anthracite is not the final stage in the transformation of organic matter. When exposed to harsher conditions, coal transforms into shuntite. At higher temperatures, graphite is obtained. And when subjected to ultra-high pressure, coal turns into diamond. All these substances - from a plant to a diamond - are made of carbon, only the molecular structure is different.

In addition to the main "ingredients", the composition of coal often includes various "rocks". These are impurities that do not burn, but form slag. Contained in coal and sulfur, and its content is determined by the place of formation of coal. When burned, it reacts with oxygen to form sulfuric acid. The less impurities in the composition of coal, the higher its grade is valued.

Coal deposit

The place of occurrence of coal is called a coal basin. Over 3.6 thousand coal basins are known in the world. Their area occupies about 15% of the earth's land area. The largest percentage of deposits of the world's coal reserves in the United States - 23%. In second place - Russia, 13%. China closes the top three leading countries - 11%. The largest coal deposits in the world are located in the USA. This is the Appalachian coal basin, whose reserves exceed 1600 billion tons.

Russia's largest coal basin- Kuznetsky, in the Kemerovo region. The reserves of Kuzbass amount to 640 billion tons.

The development of deposits in Yakutia (Elginskoye) and in Tyva (Elegestskoye) is promising.

Coal mining

Depending on the depth of the coal, either a closed mining method or an open one is used.

Closed, or underground mining method. For this method, mine shafts and adits are built. Mine shafts are built if the depth of coal is 45 meters or more. A horizontal tunnel leads from it - an adit.

There are 2 closed mining systems: room and pillar mining and longwall mining. The first system is less economical. It is used only in cases where the discovered layers are thick. The second system is much safer and more practical. It allows you to extract up to 80% of the rock and evenly deliver coal to the surface.

The open method is used when the coal is shallow. To begin with, an analysis of the hardness of the soil is carried out, the degree of soil weathering and the layering of the covering layer are ascertained. If the ground above the coal seams is soft, the use of bulldozers and scrapers is sufficient. If the upper layer is thick, then excavators and draglines are brought in. A thick layer of hard rock lying above the coal is blown up.

The use of coal

The area of ​​use of coal is simply huge.

Sulfur, vanadium, germanium, zinc, and lead are extracted from coal.

Coal itself is an excellent fuel.

It is used in metallurgy for iron smelting, in the production of iron, steel.

The ash obtained after burning coal is used in the production of building materials.

From coal, after its special processing, benzene and xylene are obtained, which are used in the production of varnishes, paints, solvents, and linoleum.

By liquefying coal, a first-class liquid fuel is obtained.

Coal is the raw material for producing graphite. As well as naphthalene and a number of other aromatic compounds.

As a result of the chemical processing of coal, more than 400 types of industrial products are currently obtained.

In practice, the process of coal mining is very costly. Coal itself is a product formed from ancient representatives of the flora located at a considerable depth. In the modern world, it is used in many areas of life and in a significant amount. Therefore, the extraction of combustible stone has been and remains a profitable business option. In recent decades, there has been a clear trend towards increasing the manufacturability of coal mining processes.

At the moment, the leading position in the extraction of minerals belongs to China. The next position belongs to the United States, followed by India, whose mining industry brings up to 15% of the total world production.

Existing methods of coal mining

Fossil coal deposits are located at a considerable depth underground. The product can be located in the upper or lower layers. It depends on the characteristics of the coal formation process. If in some cases production is carried out at a depth of several meters, then in others it is necessary to remove layers to a kilometer depth.

Modern coal mining technology involves two main methods:

• open mining;
• underground mining.

Each of them is characterized by certain features, advantages and disadvantages.

Open Mining Option

In this case, so-called coal cuts are used. Actual coal mining in this way, when the raw material is located in the layers of the earth within a hundred meters from the soil surface.

The necessary equipment is an excavator designed to remove the top layer of the earth. In the future, he loads fossil coal into specialized machines - mining dump trucks. It is they who transport raw materials to dumps.

Dumps are understood as impressive embankments, the height of which in some cases can reach tens of kilometers.

At this stage of coal mining, other machines are used - bulldozers. Their role is reduced to a uniform distribution of the extracted rock within the surface. In addition, their task is to create roads and driveways for dump trucks.

Another important participant in the extraction of combustible stone is watering machines. It is they who knock down the dust formed on the dumps.

The next stage of the technological process is reduced to the work of excavators. They scoop coals, reloading them into dump trucks. The latter transport goods to warehouses for storage and subsequent transportation to destinations.

Underground mining option

Underground mining is carried out in the conditions of coal mines. Here, other coal-mining units are required. The reason is that the mines have existed for many years, so no mechanized means are required for such coal mining.

In this case, it is necessary to equip an adit, which is a tunnel that runs in a horizontal or vertical direction, directly approaching the layers of fossil coal.

The width of the seams during coal mining can vary widely, from a few meters to tens of kilometers.

Modern enterprises are developing using coal combines. At some stages, relatively small devices - jackhammers - can also be used. Another kind of coal mining process is also possible. It involves cutting the original layers using special devices. They are designed to be supplied under significant water pressure.

The extraction of raw coal and other rocks is a necessary occupation. But it is associated with serious risks, therefore it belongs to the most dangerous category.

Technological processes for cleaning coal

The technology of clearing works represents several processes within the framework of coal mining, which are closely related to each other.

Technologies for cleaning hard coals involve the following steps:

• extraction of raw materials within the stope;
• loading operations;
• transportation;
• ventilation;
• construction and subsequent shifting of the lining;
• rock pressure selection, etc.

As part of the extraction of raw coal, first breaking is carried out, and then its loading.

The separation of the fossil from the main body is the manipulation of breaking. It is done according to the drilling and blasting technique, mechanical and hydraulic. The option is determined by the specific properties of the coal seam, its stability and the availability of working machines.

In practice, in the extraction of combustible stone, breaking is usually carried out according to a mechanical technique. It involves the destruction of the existing layer by means of special devices on the working units. Subsequent excavation is jet and combine.

With the hydraulic version of production, manipulations are divided into several small, small-scale operations. These tasks are implemented without the involvement of a person. This method of extraction has received the widest application in the Kuzbass. The jet of water is supplied with great force.

mechanical way

A mechanical option is also possible. It involves the use of special devices - jackhammers, that is, pneumatic manual machines. The unit is especially relevant for stope in steep seams, when there are difficulties with electricity. Transportation of broken coal is carried out by gravity next to the lava. Scraper type conveyors are used for moving.

Under certain conditions of coal mining, such a set of measures as rock pressure adjustment is practiced. It may involve partial or complete laying of a certain area, hollow collapse, or lowering of the roof.

A single cycle of work is made up of such components as the excavation of raw materials, their transportation and fastening, as well as rock pressure control.

Complex mechanization of extraction of combustible stone

Modern mechanized complexes, made up of specialized units and equipment for coal mining, are increasingly being used in the coal mining industry. Now, among their components, there are plow installations along with harvesters with a narrow grip, conveyors of a mobile type in place and other mechanisms. The productivity of the stope is within 3 thousand tons daily.

Usually connection technological schemes standard. Mobile support is mounted along the perimeter of the face. It is necessary to prevent possible blockages of the working area with rock, whether it be coal or brown coal. Next is the scraper conveyor, on the frame of which a special harvester is installed. This unit is characterized by a narrow grip along with the ability to move through a special chain.

The mechanized chain is divided into separate supports, each of which is interconnected with the neighboring ones, as well as with the working conveyor.

When excavating, the work of the combine occurs in any direction, while eliminating unnecessary unproductive movements.

Additional technological processes

In addition to the main manipulations, there are several additional ones within the framework of coal mining. First of all, they include pumping water. To a greater or lesser extent, it enters the workings carried out underground. Often, the daily pumping is measured not only in hundreds, but also in several thousand. As a result, the liquid moves to the surface through special pumps.

Another important auxiliary manipulation in coal mining is the provision of lighting and ventilation.

Special attention is paid to the maintenance of the main working mechanisms, which are used both in the mine itself and above it. They keep the mine running.

Applications of the fossil

The main direction in which the extracted material is used is the energy sector. That is, it was and remains one of the most common types of fuel. It operates both heating installations and power plants.

During the processing of the original coal, its technological variants are produced. Thus, coke has found wide application in the metallurgical field.

In addition, it is on the basis of coal that chemical processing is carried out, as well as new products are created, which are subsequently used in various areas of human life.

Coal is mainly used for gasification and coking, as well as for hydrogenation. Coal mining technologies continue to improve. This is necessary to minimize human participation in such a complex and dangerous business.

Video: Modern coal mining