subject: Portable Diesel Generators - The Life-line for Coal Miners [print this page] The U.S. has produced more than 1 billion tons of coal annually for each of the last 15 years and this industry directly employs nearly 134,000 people in the US alone. As fossil fuels become more rare and more politically disadvantageous to depend upon, the energy market has looked to renewable energy sources and other fossil fuels such as coal.Coal is one of the answers to the burning global energy crisis. However, all types and sizes of diesel generators are required in coal mining - particularly in remote places such as near mountains or major deserts. Since most of the equipment used in mining involves either electricity or hydraulic motors, it is essential that portable diesel generators are a part of the mines' inventory at every mine site. Diesel and natural generators are responsible for providing the necessary electricity for all the illumination in the mineshaft, for the conveyor belt that brings the product to the surface, and for much of the equipment that drills the coal from the walls of the mine shaft.In most coal mining operations, there are one or two main power lines that supply all the electricity to the necessary machinery in the mineshaft. Adding to the power dependency of coal mining is the fact that coal mining remains mostly an underground endeavor. Diesel generators are important in that they supply all electricity to the mine, however the mine could not even function if they did not supply the necessary power to all the lighting needed in the shaft. Local miners rest and take their meals to special compartments in the mineshaft and leave the area where active mining and explosive processes are in action. It is critical that diesel generators are able to supply these areas with electricity, so that miners' lives can be spared and they can sit and relax n the break areas, and those same miners have enough light to see in the rest of the mineshaft where active drilling is underway. Portable diesel generators also supply electricity for much larger pieces of equipment, equipment that pulls much more electricity than the lights in the mineshaft.One of the most important pieces of equipment is the conveyor belt that starts at the end of the mineshaft and ends at the surface. This machine is responsible for bringing all the coal that is mined at the active drilling site to the surface. Without an active conveyor belt in the mineshaft, there would be many wasted man-hours of hauling the coal from the end of the shaft all the way to the surface. In some cases, this is more than half a mile.By providing electricity to the mineshaft through the main power cables, diesel generators are able to save mining corporations a large sum of money that would be used for simple tasks such as bringing the coal to the surface. Instead, because there is electricity in the mineshaft to run machines such as the conveyor belts that go all the way along the mineshaft, a simple task that would take a long time is done automatically by the conveyor belt.Power generators are responsible for the operation of many of the actual tools involved in mining for coal.There are numerous drills that require electricity in order to operate. Many of these tools are located at the active mining site, so it is important that electricity can get to them, enabling the mining processes to continue at a steady pace. Coal cutting tools cut pieces of coal into smaller pieces that can then be transferred to the conveyor belt. After explosives have removed the coal from the veins of coal in the walls of each cave, then they are usually used. Many of these tools run exclusively on electricity, so portable diesel generators are vital not only to get the coal out of the mine shaft via the conveyor belt, but for also getting it actually onto the conveyor belt.Diesel and HFO generators are essential tools for a coal mining operation, because of all the benefits that come along with being able to use electric tools. Miners are able to work long hours, because of the artificial lightning provided by electricity supplied by power generators. The conveyor belt is supplied by electricity created by power generators, and this is the only efficient method of getting coal out of the deep mine shaft. Electricity is needed by many of the coal cutting tools found at the actual active mining site within the mineshaft. Power generators allow these tools to operate so that the coal can be broken up into pieces small enough to be put onto the conveyor belt. Coal mining may be a dangerous and dusty occupation, but coal is the primary source ultimately that allows people around the world to heat their homes in the winter.Coal mining remains an essential element of our economic strength, and fortunately, the coal-mining corporations are making the necessary investments to keep the people who bring us the coal to heat our homes, safe and alive to see another day. Diesel generators are essential in the safety aspects of working in a mine, and they are essential for the economics of the mining operations.
Portable Diesel Generators - The Life-line for Coal Miners
