Study of dust pollution control effect based on orthogonal test and CFD numerical simulations

To control the diffusion of high concentrations of coal dust during tunnel boring and minimize the threat to the life and health of coal miners, theoretical analysis, numerical simulations, and field measurements were combined in this study. First, computational fluid dynamic simulation software was used to simulate the generation of dust particles and their transport pattern in the tunnel. Subsequently, an innovative orthogonal test was performed to study the effect of four ventilation parameters [the pressure airflow rate ( Q ), distance between the air duct center and heading face ( L A ), distance between the air duct center and tunnel floor ( L B ), and distance between the air duct center and nearest coal wall ( L C )] on dust diffusion. According to the orthogonal test results, the optimal ventilation parameters for effective dust control are as follows: Q = 1400 m 3 /min, L A = 7 m, L B = 2.8 m, and L C = 1 m. The optimized set of ventilation parameters was applied to the Wangpo 3206 working face. The results show that dust diffusion in the tunnel was effectively controlled and that the air quality was sufficiently improved.