Study on effect of magnetization on wetting characteristics of water with different ions to coal dust

•Optimal magnetization parameters for various inorganic salt solutions were confirmed.•The effect of ions on hydrogen bonding corresponds to their wettability to coal.•Na+ and Cl– promote hydrogen bond breaking and improve solution wettability.•Mg2+, Ca2+, CO32– and SO42– all make magnetization less effective. Coal dust is a significant problem in underground coal mining, and more economical and effective methods are needed to control coal dust. Magnetized water dust removal technology is considered to be an effective method to solve the problem of high concentration dust. In order to further understand the role of ions in magnetic fields in water, the optimal magnetic field parameters for solutions containing various ions were determined by surface tension and contact angle measurements. The wettability experiments have shown that the optimal magnetization effect can be obtained by placing NaCl solution with the concentration of 0.04 mol/L in the 150mT magnetic field for 120 s at room temperature. Subsequently, the influence of various ions in water on the wettability of coal was investigated using a combination of FTIR testing and Zeta potential experiments. The results showed that the order of the influence intensity of different ions on the wettability of water was Na+ > Mg2+ > Ca2+ when the Cl– content was 0.04 mol/l, and Cl– > CO32– > SO42– when the Na+ content was 0.04 mol/L. Furthermore, Lorentz forces can influence various ions, accelerating their migration and enhancing their accessibility to water clusters. Different ions exert force on the dipoles within water molecules, which can promote or suppress hydrogen bond cleavage. When the number of hydrogen bond breaks rises, it leads to an increase in the wetting properties of the solution. The research findings provide a theoretical foundation for the use of magnetization technology in dust suppression with mist spray in underground coal mines.