Underground Ventilation 1st Edition

Purushotham Tukkaraja
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Underground
Ventilation
EDITED BY Purushotham Tukkaraja
UNDERGROUND VENTILATION

Underground Ventilation contains the proceedings of the 19th North American Mine Ventilation
Symposium held at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology (South Dakota Mines) in Rapid
City, South Dakota, June 17-22, 2023. South Dakota Mines organized this symposium in collaboration
with the Underground Ventilation Committee (UVC) of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration
(SME).

The Mine Ventilation Symposium series has always been a premier forum for ventilation experts,
practitioners, educators, students, regulators, and suppliers from around the world to exchange
knowledge, ideas, and opinions. Underground Ventilation features sixty-seven selected technical
papers in a wide range of ventilation topics including: auxiliary and primary systems, mine fans,
case studies, computational fluid dynamics applications, diesel particulate control, electric machinery,
mine cooling and refrigeration, mine dust monitoring and control, mine fires and explosion prevention,
mine gases, mine heat, mine ventilation and automation, occupational health and safety, renewable/
alternative energy, monitoring and measurement, network analysis and optimization, and planning and
design.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE 19TH NORTH AMERICAN MINE VENTILATION SYMPOSIUM
(NAMVS 2023), 17-22 JUNE 2023, RAPID CITY, SOUTH DAKOTA, USA

Underground Ventilation

Edited by
Purushotham Tukkaraja, Ph.D., QP
Mining Engineering & Management, South Dakota Mines, Rapid City, SD, USA
Front Cover Image: © Zitrón - Ventilation solutions for underground mines

First published 2023

by CRC Press/Balkema
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN

and by CRC Press/Balkema

2385 NW Executive Center Drive, Suite 320, Boca Raton FL 33431

CRC Press/Balkema is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

© 2023 selection and editorial matter, Purushotham Tukkaraja; individual chapters, the
contributors

Typeset by Integra Software Services Pvt. Ltd., Pondicherry, India

The right of Purushotham Tukkaraja to be identified as the author of the editorial material,
and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections
77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form
or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without
permission in writing from the publishers.

Although all care is taken to ensure integrity and the quality of this publication and the
information herein, no responsibility is assumed by the publishers nor the author for any
damage to the property or persons as a result of operation or use of this publication and/or
the information contained herein.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

A catalog record has been requested for this book

ISBN: 978-1-032-55146-3 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-1-032-55147-0 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-42924-1 (ebk)
DOI: 10.1201/9781003429241
 Underground Ventilation – Tukkaraja (Ed)
© 2023 The Editor(s), ISBN 978-1-032-55146-3

Table of contents

Preface xi
Organizing committees xiii
Underground Ventilation Committee (UVC) xiii
Review committee xiii
Sponsors and Exhibitors xv

Auxiliary ventilation
An investigation of booster fan placements in a large opening underground stone mine
utilizing CFD 3
N. Gendrue, S. Liu & S. Bhattacharya
Quantifying assemblage losses in auxiliary ventilation systems 15
E. De Souza

Case studies of mine ventilation

Kucing-Liar (KL) mine LOM preliminary ventilation design – PT Freeport Indonesia 25
A.A. Habibi, I. Setiawan, R. Prasojo & C. Stewart
A case study in successful use of spot cooling for underground shaft sinking 34
M. Brown, D.W. Durieux, C. McGuire & D. Witow

Computational fluid dynamics applications in mine ventilation

CFD study of cavern ventilation 45
M.A. Carvajal-Meza & J.P. Hurtado-Cruz
Model order reduction of high-fidelity underground mine model 54
M. Vaze, J. Nyqvist & S. Dasgupta
Minimizing the aerodynamic impact of a new cooling plant installed upstream of an existing
surface fan and heater arrangement through CFD analyses 60
J.K. Shaw, L.K. Falk, C. Allen & M. Kaufman
CFD modeling of a large-opening stone mine using COMSOL multiphysics 69
K.V. Raj & V. Gangrade
An investigation of shock loss factors at ventilation raise junctions in underground hard rock
mines using computational fluid dynamics 83
H. Zhang, L.K. Falk & C. Allen

v
Diesel particulate control
Comparing diesel and GDiesel® exhaust exposures in an underground mining laboratory 95
R.J. Reed, J.L. Burgess & E.A. Lutz
Improvement of size-selective sampling of diesel aerosols in underground mines 104
A.D. Bugarski, T.L. Barone, J.A. Hummer, T. Lee, S. Vanderslice & S. Friend
Results of diesel exhaust nanoparticle experimental sampling in a cabin of LHD loader
operating in an active ore heading area 115
S. Sabanov, N. Magauiya, A. Zeinulla, A. Abil, A. Qureshi, M. Torkmahalleh,
G. Nurshaiykova & D. Rakhimov
Importance of using real-time and microscopic analysis techniques to characterize DPM in
underground mines 120
A.A. Habibi, K.O. Homan & A.D. Bugarski
Development and evaluation of innovative diesel particulate filter technology 129
J. Stachulak, B. Rubeli, D. Young, K. Watson & B. McLean
DPM reduction through emission assisted maintenance - PT Freeport Indonesia program
update 135
A.A. Habibi, E. Pinto, M. Mardon, K. Wijayanto & C. Rose

Electric machinery in mine ventilation

Underground mine ventilation design: Diesel vs. electrical equipment 149
C.A. Rawlins

Mine cooling and refrigeration

Selection, design challenges and construction of Vale’s Coleman mine 10 MW surface
refrigeration plant 163
S.G. Hardcastle, J.K. Shaw & C. Allen
Mine refrigeration using geothermal energy – is this a viable decarbonization strategy? 174
D.W. Durieux
Onaping Depth Project underground refrigeration plant update 183
D.W. Durieux, C. McGuire, T. Mehedi, D. Witow & E. Pilkington
A direct equation for sigma heat and wet-bulb temperature for underground ventilation
applications 192
A. Pandey, S. Jayaraman Sridharan & B.S. Sastry
Case study: Refrigeration requirements during mineshaft excavation as a function of heat
stress index 200
K. Tom
Development of energy efficient and sustainable cooling strategies for hot underground mines 208
J.E. Fox

Mine dust monitoring and control

Effect of auxiliary scrubbers on respirable coal mine dust particle size and composition 221
F. Animah, A. Greth, C. Keles & E. Sarver
Recovery of respirable dust from fibrous filters for particle analysis by scanning electron
microscopy 230
A. Greth, S. Afrouz, F. Animah, C. Keles & E. Sarver

vi
Effects of vertical air-blocking ring of drill shroud on dust control for surface mine drilling
operation using CFD 239
Y. Zheng, J.D. Potts & W.R. Reed
Investigation on the effect of water pressure on spray performance for removal of respirable dust 247
H. Jiang, S. Klima, T. Beck & Y. Zheng
Real-time measurements of respirable crystalline silica, kaolinite, coal, and calcite 256
W. Arnott, C. Kocsis, X. Wang, B. Osho, P. Nascimento, S. Taylor, B. Bingham, C. Murphy &
M. Sandink
Comparing respirable dust characteristics from full-scale cutting tests of three rock samples
with conical picks at three stages of wear 264
S. Slouka, E. Sidrow, C. Tsai & J. Brune
Accuracy of low-cost particulate matter sensor in measuring coal mine dust- a wind tunnel
evaluation 274
M.M. Zaid, G. Xu & N.A. Amoah
Parametric studies to maximize the dust protection performance of the two-level manifold
canopy air curtain and computational fluid dynamics modeling 285
N.A. Amoah, G. Xu & A.R. Kumar
Respirable coal mine dust research: Characterization and toxicity analysis based on dust
sources 296
V.P. Salinas, M.C. Das, G. Rubasinghege, P. Roghanchi & K. Zychowski
Comparison of respirable coal and silica dust monitoring systems for underground mining
applications 305
A. Medina, A. Vanegas, E. Madureira, P. Roghanchi, R. Rajapaksha, L. Uecker, T. Rawson &
C. Harb
Evaluation of different surfactants’ performance in varying coal dust concentration through
logistic regression analysis 313
Z. Zhao, A. Ghosh, P. Chang & Y. Liu
Process ventilation solutions for mitigation of combustible and non-combustible dust
hazards at mining operations 322
J. Finn
Development of VR-CFD-based training tool for dust control in gateroad development 330
M. Qiao, T. Ren, J. Roberts, J. Hines, C. Chow & A. Clayton

Mine fans
Stall impact on axial fans and testing of anti-stall rings 341
J. Fernandez
Practical values for the evaluation of fan system efficiencies 353
J. Bowling, G. Schult & J. Van Diest

Mine fires and explosion prevention

Longwall maingate and tailgate proactive sponcom and gas management strategy-
An operational safety share on risk management 363
B. Belle & R. Balusu
Real-time methane prediction with small dataset in underground longwall coal mining using AI 377
D.C. Demirkan, H.S. Duzgun, A. Juganda, J. Brune & G. Bogin

vii
Evaluation of different suppression techniques for lithium-ion battery fires 384
L. Yuan, W. Tang, R.A. Thomas & J. Soles
Characterization and preliminary assessment of diesel fire prior to setting up large size
battery fire experiment 393
R.I. Pushparaj, G. Xu, A. Iqbal & O.B. Salami
Fire-induced temperature attenuation under the influence of a single ceiling smoke extraction
point in a bifurcated drift 399
O.B. Salami, G. Xu, A.R. Kumar, R.I. Pushparaj & A. Iqbal
Application of pressure balancing techniques at the West Elk coal mine 411
C. Kocsis, F. Calizaya, J. Johnson, T. Dias, N. Nunes, E. Lindgren, G. Atchley & J. Poulos

Mine gases
Underground coal methane gas forecasting using multivariate time series with one and two
auxiliary variables 423
J.C. Diaz, Z. Agioutantis, S. Schafrik & D.T. Hristopulos
Complete degasification of longwall panels in U.S. coal mines 431
P.C. Thakur
Study of in-situ coal seam gas content for Australian coal and gas outburst management:
A field data analysis and laboratory experiment 439
Z.B. Li, T. Ren, M. Qiao, D. Black & J. Juric
Airflow patterns and blast fume dispersion in different mining methods 451
S. Jayaraman Sridharan, A. Adhikari, P. Tukkaraja & J. Connot
The oxiperator for Ventilation Air Methane (VAM) 462
E. Prabhu, M. Prabhu & J.E. Fox

Mine heat
Findings and learnings from thermal parameter studies at four LKAB sites 469
F.K.R. Klose, A.L. Martikainen & T.H. Jones
Scenario-driven evaluation of heat sources in underground production scheduling 484
J.A. Buaba, E. Udofia, A. Newman & A.J. Brickey

Mine ventilation and automation

Permeability determination for potential interaction between shale gas wells and
the coal mine environment due to longwall-induced deformations under deep
cover 499
M.L. Harris, S.J. Schatzel, K.M. Ajayi, M. Van Dyke, P. Zhang, V. Gangrade, J.D. Addis,
H. Dougherty & E. Watkins
Analysis of variation in longwall-induced permeability under different mining depths 507
K.M. Ajayi, Z. Khademian, S.J. Schatzel, M.L. Harris & J.D. Addis
New applications of jet fans in underground mines for haulage ramps and block cave
ventilation control 515
C. Stewart

viii
Occupational health and safety in mine ventilation
Ventilation research findings for enhanced worker safety when mining near unconventional
gas wells in longwall abutment pillars 529
S.J. Schatzel, K.M. Ajayi, Z. Khademian, R. Kimutis, M.L. Harris, M. Van Dyke, J.D. Addis,
H. Dougherty & E. Watkins
Optimization for fire evacuation applying maximum flow cost algorithm to improve the
time-response in underground coal mines 541
S. Lotero, H. Khaniani, V. Androulakis, M. Hassanalian, S. Shao & P. Roghanchi
Heat mitigation for underground coal mine refuge alternatives 550
D.S. Yantek & L. Yan
Occupancy derating for underground coal mine refuge alternatives 559
D.S. Yantek & L. Yan

Renewable / alternative energy in mine ventilation

Incorporating droplet dynamics to improve the reduced-order model of spray freezing for
mine heating applications 569
M. Mohit, S. Akhtar, M. Xu & A.P. Sasmito
Analysis of small-scale lithium-ion batteries under thermal abuse 578
A. Iqbal, G. Xu, R.I. Pushparaj & O.B. Salami

Ventilation monitoring and measurement

Gauge and tube surveys: What is their future and that of underground measurements generally
as mines transition towards greater use of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence systems? 589
D.J. Brake
Improving the accuracy of field airflow measurements for tunnel ventilation fans 595
R.E. Ray & E. Fuster

Ventilation network analysis and optimization

Case study on the abnormal airflow diagnosis method using atmospheric monitoring data 607
L. Zhou, D. Bahrami & R.A. Thomas
Ventilation system upgrades at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant 615
K.G. Wallace & I. Peña
Ventilation network optimization: Realizing energy savings while promoting worker health
and safety 624
A.K. Ngcibi, M. Mochubele & F.S. Bergh

Ventilation planning and design

Design highlights for Agnico Eagle’s Macassa 4 Shaft primary ventilation systems 635
K. Boyd, T. Mehedi, D. Witow & M. Pinheiro-Harvey
Upper Keel mine ventilation strategy at Eagle mine 642
K. Boyd, D. Witow, C. McGuire & C. Gobbs
Empirical and numerical investigation on the optimal length of eddy airflow in dead-end tunnel 649
R. Morla, J. Chen, S. Karekal, A. Godbole, P. Tukkaraja & P. Chang
Author index 559

ix
 Underground Ventilation – Tukkaraja (Ed)
© 2023 The Editor(s), ISBN 978-1-032-55146-3

Preface

This volume contains the proceedings of the 19th North American Mine Ventilation Sympo­
sium held at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology (South Dakota Mines) in
Rapid City, South Dakota, June 17-22, 2023. South Dakota Mines organized this symposium
in collaboration with the Underground Ventilation Committee (UVC) of the Society for
Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration (SME).

The North American Mine Ventilation Symposium series was initiated by the UVC in 1982. The
UVC is a Joint Technical Committee of the Coal and Energy and the Mining and Exploration
Divisions of the SME. The purpose of the UVC is to promote engineering interest and techno­
logical progress in the ventilation of mines, tunnels, and other subsurface openings. The UVC
accomplishes its purpose by conducting technical sessions at SME-AIME meetings, sponsoring
the North American Mine Ventilation Symposium with host universities and other organizations,
and soliciting papers for publication in Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration Journal and SME con­
ference proceedings. The UVC offers an affiliation home for SME members, and others engaged
in the practice of underground ventilation. In these ways, the UVC seeks to encourage research,
education, publications, and technology transfer in the field of underground ventilation.

The North American Mine Ventilation Symposium, held every two to three years since 1982,
provides a forum for practitioners, educators, and researchers to exchange the latest informa­
tion on the ventilation of mines, tunnels, and other underground facilities.

Past Symposia were held and organized by…

1982 – University of Alabama – Howard L. Hartman

1985 – University of Nevada, Reno – Pierre Mousset-Jones

1987 – Pennsylvania State University – Jan Mutmansky

1989 – University of California, Berkeley – Malcolm J. McPherson

1991 – West Virginia University – W. J. Wang

1993 – University of Utah – Ragula Bhaskar

1995 – University of Kentucky – Andrzej Wala

1999 – University of Missouri-Rolla – Jerry Tien

2002 – Queen’s University, Canada – Euler De Souza

xi
2004 – University of Alaska Fairbanks – Sukumar Bandopadhyay and Rajive Ganguli

2006 – Pennsylvania State University – Jan Mutmansky

2008 – University of Nevada, Reno – Pierre Mousset-Jones

2010 – Laurentian University – Stephen Hardcastle and Dale McKinnon

2012 – University of Utah – Felipe Calizaya

2015 – Virginia Tech University – Kray Luxbacher and Emily Sarver

2017 – Colorado School of Mines – Jurgen F. Brune

2019 – McGill University and University of British Columbia, Canada

– Ali Madiseh, Agus Sasmito, Ferri Hassani, and Jozef Stachulak

2021 – South Dakota School of Mines & Technology – Purushotham Tukkaraja

With the help of the organizing committee, a solid 3-day program was assembled, with tech­
nical papers, panel discussions, and keynote presentations organized in 21 sessions. A total
of 82 abstracts and 67 final papers were received. Session ventilation themes include case
studies, computational fluid dynamics applications, diesel particulate control, electric
machinery, mine cooling and refrigeration, mine dust monitoring and control, primary and
auxiliary systems, mine fans, mine fires and explosion prevention, mine gases, mine heat,
ventilation management, automation, occupational health and safety, renewable/alternative
energy, monitoring and measurement, network analysis and optimization, and planning and
design.

I would like to thank the UVC and Review Committee members for their help with peer-
reviewing papers, chairing technical sessions, and advice to make this symposium a success.

Finally, I would like to thank the Center for Alumni Relations and Advancement (CARA)
and the Office of Marketing and Communications at South Dakota Mines for assisting with
the symposium registration, advertisement, and website services.

Purushotham Tukkaraja, Ph.D., QP

Symposium Chair

xii
 Underground Ventilation – Tukkaraja (Ed)
© 2023 The Editor(s), ISBN 978-1-032-55146-3

Organizing committees

Underground Ventilation Committee (UVC)

Arash Habibi, Freeport-McMoRan, USA David Brokering, Freeport-McMoRan, USA

Arun Rai, Compass Minerals, USA Jack Trackemas, CDC-NIOSH, USA
Bharath Belle, Anglo American, Australia John Bowling, SRK Consulting, USA
Craig Stewart, Minware, Australia Purushotham Tukkaraja, South Dakota Mines, USA

Review committee

Adrianus Halim Euler De Souza Pramod Thakur

Agus Sasmito Felipe Calizaya Ramakrishna Morla
Aleksandar Bugarski Frank von Glehn Rao Balusu
Alex Hatt Gerrit Goodman Richard Ray
Ali Haghighat Guang Xu Rick Brake
Alex Rawlins Heather Dougherty Rohit Pandey
Andrea Brickey Hua Jiang Rudrajit Mitra
Ankit Jha Ian Loomis Sekhar Bhattacharyya
Arash Habibi Jack Trackemas Shimin Liu
Ashish Kumar John Bowling Srivatsan Jayaraman
Bharat Belle Jon Fox Sridharan
Brian Prosser Joseph Finn Stephen Hardcastle
B S Sastry Jozef Stachulak Steven Schafrik
Calen Beaune Jurgen Brune Vaibhav Raj
Charles Kocsis Kayode Ajayi Vasu Gangrade
Cheryl Allen Keith Wallace William Reed
Craig Stewart Lihong Zhou Yi Zheng
Daniel Stinnette Liming Yuan Zach Agioutantis
Darryl Witow Marcia Harris
David Brokering Matthew Gray
D P Mishra Moe Momayez
Duncan Chalmers Myriam Francoeur
Emanuele Cauda Pedram Roganchi
Emily Sarver Pierre Mousset-Jones

xiii
 Underground Ventilation – Tukkaraja (Ed)
© 2023 The Editor(s), ISBN 978-1-032-55146-3

Sponsors

Platinum
Freeport-McMoRan
G+ Plastics
Hatch
Howden
Minetek
SRK Consulting, Inc.

Gold
Accutron Instruments
Turnstone – ABC VS & JENNMAR

Silver
BBE Consulting
Maestro Digital Mine
Mecanicad
Spendrup Fan Co.

Exhibitors
Accutron Instruments
BBE Consulting
CDC Dust Control & Air Blow Fans
CFT Compact Filter Technic
G+Plastics
Howden
Hyperflo
Maestro Digital Mine
Mecanicad
Minetek
Pinssar
Quick Supply Co
Spendrup Fan Co
SRK Consulting
TLT-Turbo
Turnstone – ABC VS & JENNMAR
Zitron

xv
Auxiliary ventilation
 Underground Ventilation – Tukkaraja (Ed)
© 2023 The Author(s), ISBN 978-1-032-55146-3

An investigation of booster fan placements in a large opening

underground stone mine utilizing CFD

N. Gendrue, S. Liu & S. Bhattacharya

Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering, G3 Center and Energy Institute, The Pennsylvania State
University, University Park, PA, USA

ABSTRACT: The optimization and planning of the mine ventilation system is a key compo­
nent of mine operation given that ventilation related costs can range between 20% and 50% of
the total operating cost of the mine. In large opening mines (LOMs) utilizing perimeter venti­
lation schemes minimal guidance is available for determining optimal booster fan (BF) place­
ments. A ventilation survey was conducted and published previously by the author which
established a CFD model for a section of an underground room and pillar large opening lime­
stone mine. In this work the previously created CFD model was utilized to investigate a total
of 15 BF positions with a focus on recirculation patterns, overall airflow within the BF entry,
and airflow around face area. It was found that the maximum airflow around the face areas
can be achieved with fan positioned on the same side of the entry as face area; with the max­
imum airflow through the BF entry being achieved when the fan is placed in the center of the
entry on the upstream side of the pillar line. The recirculation percentages were similar in all
cases reaching a maximum between 35%-40% of the total air movement. However, the highest
recirculation percentages also facilitated, via air entrainment, the highest airflow magnitudes
through the BF entry. The booster fan’s ability to stimulate airflow through adjacent entries
was found to be reduced by approximately 30% for each adjacent entry. Therefore, the recom­
mendation was given to position the BF within 3 entries of the face to achieve adequate
airflow.

1 INTRODUCTION

Mine ventilation is an essential part of any underground mining system and accounts for
between 20% and 50% of the total operating cost of the mine (Carter, 2018, Leonida, 2019,
Babu et al., 2015). In large opening mines (LOMs, mines with cross-sections >~1000 ft2), par­
ticularly in stone mines utilizing perimeter ventilation schemes, the placement of booster fans
is typically empirically determined by rule of thumb or trial and error until satisfactory condi­
tions are achieved. Many LOMs do not utilize typical auxiliary ventilation systems with an
auxiliary fan and bag. Therefore, proper BF placement is imperative considering the lack of
other ventilation controls.
In place of typical auxiliary systems many LOMs utilize large diameter fans that produce
high-volume with low-pressure; and commonly referred to as box fans or propellor fans. Com­
pared to jet fans these fans provide the increased airflow needed to maintain regulatory com­
pliance; however, the low-pressure tradeoff creates other concerns over the increased role of
natural ventilation plays in the system due to the low system pressure, ventilation efficiency,
recirculation, and short circuiting of mining sections. Specifically for large opening stone
mines there is little quantitative guidance on how to combat these issues. This work will inves­
tigate the effect of BF placement within the entry and its influence on recirculation and face
ventilation efficiencies.

DOI: 10.1201/9781003429241-1

3
 In Gendrue et al. (Gendrue et al., 2023), a ventilation survey was conducted and used to
create a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model of a section of a large opening stone
mine. The simulations resulted in a discussion of the mines selected BF placement and its
effectiveness as well as discussions on measurement locations for ventilation surveys. In this
work, the same model will be utilized to simulate different BF placements and discussions on
the BF effectiveness around the face area and airflow directions and quantities will be given.
This work aims to provide a foundation for future CFD BF placement studies on perimeter
ventilation systems and discuss important considerations when selecting a position for a BF.

2 BACKGROUND

Previous mine ventilation studies related to face ventilation focus on auxiliary ventilation of
drifts or dead-end headings with an emphasis on contaminant distributions and removal. Vari­
ables typically considered when evaluating face ventilation are fan selection, curtain or auxiliary
tubing placement, airflow penetration depth, entrainment ratios, recirculation, and jet fan
angles being common among the studies listed below. However, large opening stone mine venti­
lation schemes are unique and must be evaluated separately. Studies specifically in LOM envir­
onments are limited however, the same quantitative variables are used to evaluate the systems.
Dunn et al. (Dunn et al., 1983) studied how BF inclination, fan elevation and ultimately air­
flow around open entries and the face area in large and medium sized airways. However, their
results and discussions were derived from field data which inherently limits the analysis due to
the smaller number of sampling locations when compared to numerical simulations. Nonethe­
less, their recommendations for optimizing face ventilation were to: (i) utilize a pushing system
rather than a pulling system, however, no pulling systems were investigated, (ii) place fans to
direct flow diagonally across the face, (iii) place fans one pillar inby the general flow to minimize
recirculation. They also noted that larger capacity fans ventilate more effectively and inclination
and elevations of the fans have little effect on face ventilation. Krog and Grau (Krog and Grau,
2006) discussed the use of vane axial or propellor fans in terms of their recirculation, overall
airflow, and entrainment ability for use in LOMs. Ultimately giving recommendations that pro­
pellor fans be placed in the fresh air stream and work best for regional ventilation applications
while vane axial fans be placed 1 entry behind the airstream and work best for dead end ventila­
tion i.e., headings. They also tested pushing and pulling systems for a new mine utilizing
a textbook example of a split mine ventilation scheme concluding that a BF positioned just
outby a portal is effective for mine airflow. Later, Grau and Krog (Grau III and Krog, 2009)
discussed BF placement and mine design criteria such as long pillars in terms of ventilation effi­
ciency for LOMs. Recommendations were given to place the booster fans outby the last open
crosscut. Furthermore, it was noted that fans positioned in the middle of the entry will increase
recirculation and that “not all recirculation is detrimental.”
These three studies, however, do not cover all the common ventilation schemes used today in
LOMs. The study by Krog and Grau (Krog and Grau, 2006) studied only one adjacent entry
when three to five entries are common in perimeter schemes. They also investigated a split mine
ventilation scheme for a new mine. Grau and Krog (Grau and Krog, 2009) utilized a 3-entry
heading which operated under a pseudo split ventilation scheme with fresh air on one side and
return air on the other. The BF as directed perpendicular to the face opposite what is done in
perimeter ventilation where the fan is directed parallel with the face. Furthermore, the study by
Dunn et al. (Dunn et al., 1983) may initially seem like a perimeter ventilation scheme but all the
tested fan positions were at a 90° angle from the general airflow direction which is more analo­
gous to a unit ventilation scheme. These studies also utilized smaller fans than are typically seen
today with the largest studies being an 8 ft. in Krog and Grau, 2006. Therefore, these studies are
fundamentally different not only in terms of fan technology but also in terms of their fundamen­
tal ventilation system design as defined by Krog et al. (Krog et al., 2004) as split, unit, and per­
imeter schemes.
BF placement and ventilation system designs have been noted in many studies as the most
or one of the most important factors in LOM ventilation systems, however, there are minimal

4
studies that discuss optimal BF placement (Thimons et al., 1985, Dunn et al., 1983, Grau and
Krog, 2009, Grau III et al., 2006). Thus, BF placement must be reexamined with current fan
capacities and in a perimeter ventilation context with the fan directing airflow parallel to the
face area rather than at a 90° angle to it.

3 METHOD

3.1 Partner mine description and CFD model creation

A full-scale geometry was developed based on the mine map from a limestone mine located in
Pennsylvania, USA. The entry widths and heights average 12.2 m (40 ft.) and 9.1 m (30 ft.)
respectively, with 24.4 m (80 ft.) pillar centers. The mine utilizes curtains, stoppings, and booster
fans to deliver fresh air across the mine with a perimeter ventilation scheme, with curtains estab­
lished approximately 5-6 entries back from the mining face. Figure 1 shows the plan view for
the mine with the curtains, stoppings, and booster fans highlighted in black. The general airflow
pattern is also shown with the red and green arrows with the different colors on the mine map
indicate the different levels of benching. The yellow highlighted section in Figure 1 indicates the
section of the mine that was utilized for regional CFD modeling. This section of the mine was
chosen for simulations because the shape is consistent with a typical in a perimeter ventilation
scheme. Furthermore, no benching was done throughout the region allowing for a consistent
mining height which is common around the face areas of perimeter schemed mine. These two
factors allow the results to be broadened to other LOMs utilizing perimeter schemes.
To summarize, the model creation that was reported in Gendrue et al. (Gendrue et al., 2023),
the boundary conditions for the model were measured directly from the mine during a ventilation
survey utilizing a velocity (mass) inlet condition with a pressure outlet. Curtain lines on the east
and north side of the geometry as well as the mine boundary on the south and west were utilized
as the edges of the geometry. Two booster fans are located within the model domain, one near the
center of the geometry labeled inner BF (IBF) and the second near the exhaust portal labeled
exhaust BF (EBF). The EBF was held consistent throughout all simulations with only the location
of the IBF changing. The specific BF location that was utilized by the mine at the time of the
survey can be seen in Figure 2A as location 1 in the original fan locations callout. Table 1 shows
the measured airflow velocity from the mine survey as well as the BF settings and descriptions.
The measurement locations and labeling system used in Table 1 can be seen in Figure 2B

Figure 1. Plan view of the partner limestone mine with curtains, stoppings, and booster fans highlighted
in black, with the selected CFD simulation region highlighted in yellow.

5
Table 1. Measured airflow velocities and fan settings observed during the ventilation survey that were
used for the boundary conditions of the CFD simulation, measurement locations and names are shown
in Figure 2B.

3.2 Booster fan placement scenarios

To evaluate multiple BF locations two scenarios were created totaling 15 BF locations as
shown by the blue fan symbols in Figure 2A. Scenario one hereby called original fan location
consisted of the original mine selected BF location, on the floor in the center of the entry the
6N and pillar line 7W in Figure 2B. Eight other fan positions within the same entry and pillar
line were investigated in a 3x3 grid pattern around the mines original position for a total of 9
positions in the original fan location scenario. The 3x3 grid pattern was set up within the
entry so there was 5 ft. of air space between the edge of the IBF and the pillars edge. Given
the fans are 12 ft. diameters the center of the fan was aligned 11 ft. from the pillar and crosscut
edge. The center of the entry and center of the pillar line was then used for the positions in the
middle of the grid. All nine positions are marked as ‘original fan location’ can be seen in the
callout of Figure 2A. This 3x3 grid pattern enables fan positions at the front, back, and center
of the pillar line to be examined while also investigating positions nearer to each pillar edge
and the center of the entry. The second scenario was created because two different Groups
Dunn et. al., and Krog and Grau (Dunn et al, 1983, and Krog and Grau, 2006) came to simi­
lar conclusions about placing the fan in a forcing fashion one pillar inby the general airflow
without providing any data in their works for pulling fans. Therefore, two new locations were
investigated one that was three pillars upstream to examine a more forcing fan location and
another location three pillars downstream to study the effect of pulling airflow through the
region. These two locations are hereby called inby fan location and outby fan location respect­
ively and are labeled as such in Figure 2A. Only 3 fan positions were investigated for each of
the inby and outby locations positioned in a similar fashion to the original scenario: in the
center of the pillar line 11 ft. from the pillar edge in the outer positions and in the center of the
entry for the middle position. The same boundary conditions were used for all simulations
with only the location of the BF changing within the domain.

4 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

4.1 Calculation of airflow from simulation files

The airflow through north to south entries labeled 1N-8N and east to west entries labeled
1W-12W in Figure 2B was calculated from the simulation file at the centerline of pillars.
Figure 2B shows the XZ and YZ planes that were used to calculate the airflow in each simula­
tion along with the corresponding labels. The airflow values were calculated directly from the
simulation file by velocity vector integration multiplied by the calculated cross-sectional area
of the entry. Since the cells in the mesh are not guaranteed to be uniform in size and the fluid
was treated as incompressible, an area weighted average was used for vector integration. The
volume of airflow entering the model excluding inlet 9 due to its location in the domain based
on the ventilation survey was ~280 m3/s (~487,000 CFM) including the airflow measured from
the S-CC and N-CC crosscuts which are 3 entries outby and 5 entries outby the original BF
pillar line. Thus, any airflow values calculated from the simulations above 280 m3/s indicates

6
some level of recirculation. The air flowing South-North (1N-8N) will be referenced as ‘entry’
airflow while the air flowing West-East (1W-12W) will be referenced as ‘crosscut’ airflow. Air­
flow that is opposite the BF direction (flowing from north to south) in the entries and from
east to west in the crosscuts is labeled as negative airflow and is used to calculate
a recirculation ratio. The recirculation ratio is defined as the sum of negative airflow across
a pillar line divided by the total airflow across the pillar line.

Figure 2. A) Booster fan placements inside the model geometry, 15 different booster fan locations were
simulated with 9 arranged in a grid pattern between the same pillar marked original fan location, another
3 locations are 2 pillars inby the original location and the final group of 3 locations being 2 pillars outby
the original location B) Location of airflow measurements from the simulation files, entries parallel to the
booster fan direction are labeled 1N-8N while the crosscut entries are labeled 1W-12W with the original
booster fan placement shown as the blue fan symbol.

4.2 Scenario one: Original fan location

The calculated airflow values from the entries and crosscuts of the nine original BF positions
are shown in Figures 3 and 5. The positive and negative airflow values are shown for each
pillar line segregated by the entry, 1N through 8N in Figure 3. The BF entry label on the y-axis
is the pillar line on the 7W plane shown in Figure 2B. Location 7 shows the highest positive
airflow in entry 6N of ~680 m3/s two pillars outby the BF with location 3 showing the lowest
airflow of 407 m3/s in the BF pillar line. Locations 3 and 5 show the highest absolute airflow
across the pillar line with the BF entry while all other locations reach a maximum one to 3
pillars downstream the BF. Location 2, 3, 5, and 9 all show similar patterns with high airflow
at the BF pillar line followed by a decrease in airflow one pillar downstream. This is due to
the placement of the BF and the pillar geometry. As noted in Krog and Grau (Krog and
Grau, 2006), when higher velocity is observed through the main entry the airflow catches the
corners of the pillars and is directed perpendicularly through the crosscuts. This is what was
observed at the first crosscut in location 3,4,5,6 and 9 causing a lower airflow value to be
observed along the first pillar line downstream. The velocity contour around the breathing
height (Z=2m) for original locations 6 and 8 are shown for comparison in Figure 4 with the
airflow around the BF circled in black. In Figure 4A the airflow hits the first pillar corner
downstream in entry 6N leading to immediate and intense recirculation around the left adja­
cent BF pillar. comparatively, the airflow in Figure 4B fully engulfs entry 6N leading to higher

7
airflows and the traditional entrainment pattern at the first crosscut. Furthermore, the airflow
entering the model through inlets 1-8 in Figure 4A is mainly pulled though entry 8N while the
inlet airflow in Figure 4B is more uniformly distributed throughout all entries. This shows the
importance of BF placement within the context of pillar geometry. The pillar geometry was
created from the mine map, and when pillars are offset, or not perfectly aligned due to blast­
ing, then BF airflow and effectiveness can be minimized due to the airstream disruption as
described above. In typical mine ventilation surveys that an operator would perform daily it is
common to measure airflow downstream of the BF and in an adjacent entry when time per­
mits. With these minimal measurement locations, the region cannot be fully quantified. In
Figure 4A and 4B the red circled areas on the left upstream side of the region have minimal
airflow of under 0.5 m/s and are insignificantly affected by all fan positions in scenario one.

Figure 3. Airflow through entries 1N-8N for scenario one, fan locations are marked 1 through 9 in
a counterclockwise direction, positive airflow indicates flow in the booster fan direction (downstream)
and negative airflow indicates flow opposite the booster fan direction (upstream).

The right fan positions in the entry (locations 2, 3, and 9) show the lowest total air move­
ment across the pillar lines and through entry 6N in Figure 3; these locations also have the
highest downstream positive airflow through entries 7N and 8N which is likely hindering air
entrainment as noted in Krog and Grau (Krog and Grau, 2006) that a more uniform distribu­
tion of airflow will not induce entrainment. Since this uniform airflow does not occur when
the BF is on the right side of the entry it is likely due to the fan positioned on the same side of
the entry as the adjacent curtain line. Indicating that a fan positioned on the same side of the
entry as a curtain/stopping line in adjacent entries will minimize BF airflow due to the loss of
the booster fans entrainment abilities.
Table 2 shows the recirculation percentage across the pillar lines 1W-12W as defined in
Figure 2B in section 4.1. Recirculation percentages above 30% are highlighted in orange while
percentages below 10% are highlighted in blue. When no recirculation occurs, the cell is
marked with a dash (-). With the BF positioned in the center of the entry (positions 1, 4,
and 8) there are similar airflow magnitudes in Figure 3 as to when the BF is positioned on the

8
left side of the entry but with less recirculation as seen in Table 2. An increase in airflow and
recirculation can be seen in the first two pillars upstream from the BF when the fan is posi­
tioned on the left-side of the entry (positions 5, 6, and 7) which is not seen with the center
positioning (Org 1). The left-side locations (Org 5, 6, and 7) also account for the highest recir­
culation percentages in Table 2. With the fan positioned on the left side the cone effect of the
BF is maximized allowing for the airflow to be distributed across the entry without pillar/rib
interaction; however, with these fan positions the recirculation around the left adjacent pillars
are the highest compared to all other positions in Figure 3. Due to the large airflow (velocity)
gradient between the BF entry and the adjacent entries in the left positions it is unsurprising
these locations also have the highest airflow due to recirculation and entrainment properties.
Interestingly, in Figure 3 the position 8 graph is more similar to the left-side graphs in terms
of total airflow, recirculation amounts, and face airflow. Indicating that more total air move­
ment can be achieved when the BF is positioned in either position 8, in the middle of the entry
in line with the upstream side of the pillar edge, or in the left positions, on the same side of the
entry as the open/face area.

Table 2. Recirculation percentages across the Pillar lines (1W-12W) from

scenario one showing all 9 booster fan positions.

Figure 5 shows the recirculation percentage through the entries as in Section 4.1. When the
BF is positioned in the center of the entry (positions 1, 4, and 8) there are similar airflow mag­
nitudes in Figure 3 as to when the BF is positioned on the left side of the entry but with less
recirculation as seen in Figure 5. An increase in airflow and recirculation can be seen in the
first two pillars upstream from the BF when the fan is positioned on the left-side of the entry
(positions 5, 6, and 7) which is not seen with the center positioning. The left-side locations
also account for the highest recirculation percentages for all pillar lines (1W-12W) in Figure 5.
With the fan positioned on the left side the cone effect of the BF is maximized allowing for the
airflow to be distributed across the entry without pillar/rib interaction; however, with these
fan positions the recirculation around the left adjacent pillars is the highest compared to all
other positions in Figure 3. Due to the large airflow (velocity) gradient between the BF entry
and the adjacent entries in the left positions it is unsurprising these locations also have the
highest airflow due to recirculation and entrainment properties. Interestingly, in Figure 3 the
position 8 graph is more similar to the left-side graphs in terms of total airflow, recirculation
amounts, and face airflow. Indicating that more total air movement can be achieved when the
BF is positioned in either position 8, in the middle of the entry in line with the upstream side
of the pillar edge, or in the left positions, on the same side of the entry as the open/face area.
Figure 5 shows the airflow through the crosscuts labeled1W-12W with each bar representing
a north to south pillar lines labeled as right or left of the BF entry. Again, positive airflow in
Figure 5 represents air moving from west to east in the geometry in Figure 2B. The total bar
height represents the magnitude of airflow through the crosscuts or the exchange between the

9
Figure 4. Velocity contour of positions 6 and 8 of scenario one near the breathing plane (Z=2m), A)
location 6, B) location 8.

entries. The BF location in scenario one is between crosscuts 6W and 8W. Given the large
amounts of air entrainment seen in positions 1, 4, 6, 7, 8, in Figure 3 it is expected that the air­
flow in the first and second crosscuts (7W and 8W) are high in magnitude and positive on the left
and negative on the right side of the BF entry indicating air flowing inwards towards the BF
entry i.e., entrainment. Furthermore, the maximum airflow at these locations in Figure 3 is
reached a maximum either one pillar (80 ft.) or two pillars (160 ft.) downstream the BF which is
consistent with the finding of Krog and Grau (Krog and Grau, 2006) as described by Figure 6 in
their work that maximum airflow for propeller fans being reached ~ 52 m (170 ft.) downstream.
Moving to ventilation effectiveness across the face area the ability to dilute contaminates
generated near the face is also related to crosscut flow due to the geometry, the only way to
transport containments out of the mine is towards the general airstream in the BF entry which
must be achieved through crosscut airflow. Therefore, it is important to maximize the crosscut
airflow near the face (5 and 4 pillars to the left of the BF entry). Locations 5, 6, and 8 in
Figure 5 shows similarly high values for airflow 5 entries to the left of the BF entry (between
entries 1N and 2N) compared to all other fan positions. This may be due to the higher overall
airflow generated by the BF across the region however, location 7 also has high absolute air­
flow of ~804 m3/s which does not translate to higher face airflow. Interestingly at position 7 in
Figure 5, marked by the red box, the first left adjacent entry (1 left) has the highest positive
and overall airflow through it which does not translate to high face airflow. Thus, leading to
the conclusion that not only is high regional airflow necessary to ventilate further adjacent
entries but some amount of airstream disruption via air diversion from pillar corners is
needed to maximize crosscut exchange between entries.
To quantify the influence of the BF to adjacent entries the percent reduction in airflow
exchange (crosscut airflow) between the BF entry and adjacent entries can be calculated.
When face airflow is higher, as seen in positions 5, 6, and 8 a reduction in crosscut airflow can
be seen starting from 1 pillar to the left of the BF entry until approximately 4 pillars to the left
as shown by the red arrows in position 5 on Figure 5. When averaged across these positions
a total decrease in airflow of 91% on the positive side and 84% on the negative side is seen.
Indicating that crosscut airflow is reduced by approximately 46% to 55% for every consecutive
adjacent entry from the BF entry. Therefore, the BF effectiveness to facilitate airflow past
four adjacent entries is seen to be less than 15% of the BF entry and may not be sufficient to
be relied upon for mine ventilation planning.

4.3 Scenario two: Three pillars inby and outby the original fan location
Six more simulations were conducted three pillars inby and three pillars outby the original BF
location. Booster fan positions 1, 2, and 6 were selected for these inby and outby locations.
The calculated airflow values were obtained in the same way as the previous section.

10
Figure 5. Airflow through the crosscuts (1W-12W) from scenario one, fan locations marked 1 through 9
in a counterclockwise direction, positive airflow indicates flow from west to east in the crosscuts (1W to
12W) while negative airflow values indicate airflow in the opposite direction.

Figure 6 shows the calculated airflow values through entries 1N through 8N with the ori­
ginal inby and outby BF locations marked on the y-axis. Inby location 1 shows the highest
airflow through entry 6N with a value of ~ 575 m3/s with inby position 6 showing the lowest
airflow through entry 6N of ~330 m3/s. Inby location 1 showed significant negative airflow
values in entries 3N to 5N throughout the middle portion of the geometry, which facilitates
the high airflow in entry 6N through air entrainment as discussed in Section 4.2. The outby
fan locations in Figure 6 shows minimal airflow through the majority of the geometry due
to the BF being in the outby position. However, similar maximum airflow values are still
reached downstream from the BF. All three of the outby fan positions did not have negative
airflow until 3 pillars upstream from the BF location which allows the majority of the sec­
tion to have positive airflow. This leads to all three outby simulations (similar to original
location 2) having positive airflow throughout the face area (entries 1N-3N). However, the
magnitude of the positive airflow seen around the face area was not significantly larger than
any of the other simulations that saw negative airflow. Indicating that if avoiding negative
airflow is a necessity then a more outby BF location would be desired with a preference
towards a fan placement in the middle of the entry or on the same side as the adjacent cur­
tain/stopping lines.
The recirculation percentages in Table 3 of the outby and inby fan locations are similar in
magnitude to that of the original locations. The recirculation at the original, and outby loca­
tion 6 have the highest magnitude and occurrence while inby location 1 has the highest mag­
nitude and occurrence. Recirculation across the BF pillar line can be thought of as the
‘overall sections recirculation’ given that the air is directly recirculating from downstream to
upstream of the BF. Location 6 has the largest magnitude in all positionings, 36% for outby,
30% for original, and 33% for inby positions. This is consistent with the results from Table 2
showing the highest recirculation percentages in original locations 5, 6, and 7 of scen­
ario one.
Lastly, the crosscut airflow from the inby, outby, and original locations are shown
in Figure 7. A similar reduction in airflow in adjacent entries can be seen in both the
inby and outby locations. Inby location 6 shows a significantly different pattern than

11
the rest of the locations due the high airflow through entry 4W. Similar to Figure 4A,
the airflow in entry 6N in the inby location 6 simulation caught the corner of a pillar
and split the air stream between entry 6N and crosscut 4W. This air stream continued
towards the face and split resulting in positive airflow downstream and negative air­
flow upstream through entry 1N as shown by the red circle in the inby location 6
graph in Figure 6. Even with this extreme example of airflow being directed towards
the face the average reduction in crosscut airflow still remains and is 79% and 74% for
positive and negative airflow respectably in the inby locations. The average reduction
for outby locations is 91% and 77% for positive and negative airflow respectably.
These reductions correspond to a 25-30% reduction per pillar line in all cases, indicat­
ing that positioning the BF at an inby or outby locations does not have a significant
effect on crosscut airflow.

Table 3. Recirculation percentage of the inby, original, and outby fan locations,
fan locations 1, 2, and 6.

Figure 6. Airflow through entries 1N-8N for booster fan locations 1, 2, and 6 at the inby, original, and
outby fan locations, positive airflow indicates flow in the booster fan direction (downstream) and nega­
tive airflow indicates flow opposite the booster fan direction (upstream).

12
Figure 7. Airflow through the crosscuts (1W-12W) from the inby, original, and outby fan locations, posi­
tive airflow indicates flow from entries west to east in the crosscuts (1W to 12W) while negative airflow
values indicate airflow in the opposite direction.

5 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

A CFD model was created based on a mine ventilation survey of a typical perimeter ventilation
schemed large opening room and pillar underground mine. 15 BF positions were investigated in
two scenarios: the first scenario consisted of nine fan positions around the original BF placement
selected by the mine operator with the second scenario consisting of three fan positions three pil­
lars inby and outby the original location. The airflow around the BF was investigated through
recirculation patterns and overall airflow within the BF entry and the room and pillar region with
a focus around the face velocity. The following conclusions were made based on the simulations:
(1) The highest total airflow in the section may not always be obtained when the BF is posi­
tioned at the center of the entry but rather when the BF is positioned on the same side of
the entry as the open room and pillar areas.
(2) As noted in Krog and Grau (Krog and Grau, 2006) and confirmed in these simulations
air entrainment is maximized when high velocity gradients or non-uniform distribution
of airflow is seen through the adjacent BF entries. Furthermore, the maximum airflow
through the BF entry was confirmed through the simulations to be ~ 160 ft downstream
the BF which is consistent with their findings of ~170 ft.
(3) Not only is high regional airflow necessary to ventilate further adjacent entries from the
BF but some amount of airstream disruption via air diversion from pillar corners is
needed to maximize crosscut exchange between entries.
(4) The airflow through the crosscuts observes a 46%-55% reduction per entry indicating
that booster fans in this geometry have minimal effect past 4 adjacent entries. Leading
to a recommendation to keep the BF within 3-4 entries of the face.
(5) In situations where recirculation must be avoided a BF located more outby from the
center of the section is preferable. This outby fan location was shown to create ‘positive’
airflow around the face areas i.e., non-recirculating airflow.
While all mine geometries are unique and BF positioning should be investigated on a case-
by-case basis with the purpose of the BF in mind, these simulations and recommendations can
act as a starting point for LOM operators who utilize a perimeter ventilation scheme.

13
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This work was financially supported by The National Institute of Occupational Safety and
Health (NIOSH) under contract No. 75D30119C05743.

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Dunn, M., Kendorski, F., Rahim, M., Mukherjee, A., 1983. Testing Jet Fans in Metal/nonmetal Mines
With Large Cross-sectional Airways.pdf.
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booster fan for a large opening mine through field study and CFD modeling. Tunn. Undergr. Sp.
Technol. 132.
Goodman, G., Taylor, C., Thimons, E., 1992. Jet Fan Ventilation in Very Deep Cuts-A Preliminary
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a rapid development drivage. Tunn. Undergr. Sp. Technol. 22, 150–160. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
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Krog, R.B., Grau III, R.H., Mucho, T.P., Robertson, S.B., 2004. Ventilation planning layouts for large
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Krog, R.B., Grau, R.H., 2006. Fan selection for large-opening mines: Vane-axial or propeller fans -
Which to choose? Proc. 11th U.S./North Am. Mine Vent. Symp. - 11th U.S./North Am. Mine Vent.
Symp. 2006 535–542.
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 Underground Ventilation – Tukkaraja (Ed)
© 2023 The Author(s), ISBN 978-1-032-55146-3

Quantifying assemblage losses in auxiliary ventilation systems

E. De Souza
AirFinders Inc., Kingston, Canada

ABSTRACT: While mine ventilation systems may account for 40% to 50% of the energy con­
sumption of a mine operation, auxiliary ventilation alone may be accountable for half of this con­
sumption. In effect, auxiliary ventilation systems comprise a significant portion of a mine
operation’s base energy demand and is consequently responsible for a large percentage of the total
mine operating costs. This paper presents how engineering design principles can be applied to
design efficient and reliable auxiliary ventilation systems, especially focusing on assemblage losses.
Case studies are presented to demonstrate the effect of design, installation and maintenance prac­
tices on system reliability and operating costs. In particular, the effect of assemblage losses is
quantified in terms of operating efficiencies, energy consumption and costs.

1 INTRODUCTION

Increasing costs of electricity have resulted in emphasis on energy-efficient designs and oper­
ation for all energy-consuming systems in mining. Since ventilation systems normally account
for 25-40% of the total energy costs and 40-50% of the electrical consumption of a mine oper­
ation (De Souza, 2018, 2013), the optimization of ventilation systems is today a ventilation
engineer’s top priority.
While modern duct-fan systems require precise engineering design, meticulous attention to
installation and regular maintenance practices, many installations are often designed based on
outdated rules of thumb and with disregard to best installation practices. In the course of
many years of investigations of duct-fan systems, the author has found them to be, in general,
fairly energy inefficient, with many systems operating at efficiencies below 65% and with air
leakages ranging between 25% and 75% (De Souza, 2004).
Auxiliary ventilation systems comprise a significant portion of a mine operation’s base energy
demand and may be accountable for half of a mine ventilation system energy consumption.
Typical auxiliary ventilation systems are fairly energy inefficient; factors affecting mechanical
and ventilation efficiencies loss include design flaws, installation practices and air leakage.
General solutions and tactics for improving auxiliary ventilation systems as presented in
this paper come from multiple ventilation audits performed by the author. They target sub-
system components which affect shock losses and mechanical and ventilation efficiencies. By
increasing the efficiency of auxiliary ventilation system components and by correcting
inappropriate designs or system degradation caused by poor maintenance, the overall capacity
of the system in delivering air to the required active faces can often be improved.

2 CASE APPLICATION

A case application associated with extensive engineering work conducted by the author is pre­
sented in this section to demonstrate how, by conducting detailed ventilation efficiency audits,
simple low-cost solutions can be devised to increase efficiency, reduce power consumption,
and lower operating costs.

DOI: 10.1201/9781003429241-2

15
 The case study is based on the auxiliary ventilation system illustrated in Figure 1. A series
of analysis are performed to quantify the contribution of each component of the complete
system to energy consumption and costs: inlet bell, screen, silencers, system friction, couplings,
bends, duct exit. The effect of air leakage and of installation practices is also quantified. The
analysis was based on analytical procedures and scientific guidelines developed by the author
(De Souza & Dirige, 2022) and use of specialized software (AirFinders, 2022).
The auxiliary ventilation system, to be installed in a development drift to supply 18.88 m3/s
air for a diesel production fleet rated at 298.3 kW, has the following design characteristics:
– layflat duct - new, 1.2192 m diameter, provided in 15.24 m long sections, 10 sections of
ducting. Multi clip joints.
– spiral duct, new, 1.2192 m diameter, 1 section 15.24 m for bend. Multi clip joints.
– total column length - 167.64 m.
– fan: 1.219-0.80-1780 (fan diameter-hub diameter-rpm) with a 149.14 kW motor. 600 V.
Motor efficiency 95%. Power factor 0.84.
– inlet bell - 1.651 m diameter, 0.2159 m long.
– screen - wire mesh screen of 95% net free area.
– silencers - two podless flow through silencers.
– bend - right angle normal bend of 1.524 m radius.
– cost of power: $0.08/ kW.hr.
– operation - 24 hours/day, 365 days/year.
– standard density conditions.
Three cases, with operational features presented in Table 1, are considered. Case 1 represents
the system design to meet the flow requirements of at the face of 18.88 m3/s and considers
a design air leakage of 20%. The fan supply flow is 23.6 m3/s. An ‘installation quality factor’ of
10%, representing a ‘good’ installation, is used to adjust the system static resistance pressure.
Case 2 represents the system as installed. Attained flows at the face of 15.56 m3/s do not meet
requirements, and is based on an air leakage of 30%. The fan supply flow is 22.23 m3/s. An
‘installation quality factor’ of 30%, representing a ‘poor’ installation, is used. Case 3 represents
the system with the fan blade setting adjusted to achieve the required face flow of 18.88 m3/s.
Air leakage is not constrained, remaining at 30%. The fan supply flow is 26.97m3/s. The system
installation quality is not improved; an ‘installation quality factor’ of 30% is used.

Table 1. Operational features of three duct system cases.

Case 1 2 3
Face Flow 18.88 m3/s 15.56 m3/s 18.88 m3/s
Leakage 20% 30% 30%
Fan Flow 23.6 m3/s 22.23 m3/s 26.97 m3/s
Installation Quality Good Poor Poor
Inlet Bell Installed No Bell No Bell
Screen 95% Net Free Area 30% Net Free Area 30% Net Free Area
Silencers Proper Connection Non-Aerodynamic Non-Aerodynamic
Friction Head Loss Same Resistance Same Resistance Same Resistance
Coupling Losses Same Resistance Same Resistance Same Resistance
Bend Proper Installation ‘Kinked’ ‘Kinked’
Duct Exit Full Section Reduced Section Reduced Section

The contribution of each duct system component to power consumption and operating
costs is presented in the following sections.

2.1 Inlet bell

The fan inlet bell ensures smooth air flow through the fan intake and serves to minimize
entrance losses. Case 1 has a proper inlet bell installed and in Cases 2 and 3 the fan is installed

16
without an inlet bell. Table 2 presents a summary of results for the 3 cases. For cases 2 and 3,
substantial increases in operating cost of 723% and of 1,370% are noted when an inlet bell is
not used. Table 2 clearly shows that, when an inlet bell is installed, significant energy and cost
savings can be achieved.

Table 2. Head losses, power, and operating costs for inlet bell.
Case Head Loss (Pa) Power (kW) Cost/Year ($/y) % Change in Cost
1 14.73 0.59 412.28 –
2 108.90 4.84 3,393.06 723
3 160.27 8.64 6,058.39 1,370

Figure 1. Auxiliary ventilation system configuration.

2.2 Screen
The fan screen prevents debris from entering the fan. Case 1 has a screen of 95% net free area
installed and in Cases 2 and 3 the fan screen is partially blocked by the deposition of debris.
Table 3 presents a summary of results for the 3 cases. For cases 2 and 3, substantial increases
in operating cost of 340% and of 686% are noted when the screen is partly blocked with debris
and not well maintained.

Table 3. Head losses, power, and operating costs for screen.

Case Head Loss (Pa) Power (kW) Cost/Year ($/y) % Change in Cost
1 11.29 0.45 315.99 –
2 44.65 1.99 1,391.19 340.26
3 65.71 3.54 2,483.91 686.06

2.3 Silencers
Silencers provide a level of noise reduction to meet specific needs and for compliancy with
regulations. Case 1 has silencers properly connected to the fan and in Cases 2 and 3 the silen­
cers have a non-aerodynamic connection to fan. Table 4 presents a summary of results for the
3 cases. For cases 2 and 3, relatively large increases in operating cost of 19.7% and of 45% are
noted when the silencers are not properly installed.

17
Table 4. Head losses, power, and operating costs for silencers.
Case Head Loss (Pa) Power (kW) Cost/Year ($/y) % Change in Cost
1 49.77 1.99 1,392.95 –
2 53.50 2.39 1,666.93 19.67
3 53.50 2.89 2,022.36 45.19

2.4 Friction head losses for layflat duct

For the three cases, the layflat duct has the same frictional resistance, however the resistance
pressures vary as a function of the airflow volumes passing through the duct column due to
leakage effects. Table 5 presents a summary of results for the 3 cases. Because of the reduced
flows, case 2 has a reduced operating cost of 19.1% and, for case 3, because of the increased
fan flow, an increase in operating cost of 44.4% is noted.

Table 5. Head losses, power, and operating costs for layflat duct friction losses.
Case Head Loss (Pa) Power (kW) Cost/Year ($/y) % Change in Cost
1 604.66 21.60 15,136.12 –
2 469.54 17.47 12,240.01 –19.13
3 691.04 31.19 21,854.54 44.39

2.5 Friction head losses for spiral duct

For the three cases, the spiral duct has the frictional resistance, however the resistance pres­
sures vary as a function of the fan flow. Table 6 presents a summary of results for the 3 cases.
Because of the reduced fan flow, case 2 has a reduced operating cost of 1.2% and, for case 3,
because of the increased fan flow, an increase in operating cost of 76.4% is noted.

Table 6. Head losses, power, and operating costs for spiral duct friction losses.
Case Head Loss (Pa) Power (kW) Cost/Year ($/y) % Change in Cost
1 226.75 9.06 6,346.37 –
2 201.23 8.95 6,269.83 –1.21
3 296.16 15.97 11,195.12 76.40

2.6 Coupling losses for layflat duct

For the three cases, the layflat duct has the same resistance due to couplings, however the
resistance pressures vary as a function of the airflow volumes passing through the duct
column due to leakage effects. Table 7 presents a summary of results for the 3 cases. Because
of the reduced flows, case 2 has a reduced operating cost of 19.1% and, for case 3, because of
the increased fan flow, an increase in operating cost of 44.4% is noted.

Table 7. Head losses, power, and operating costs for layflat duct coupling losses.
Case Head Loss (Pa) Power (kW) Cost/Year ($/y) % Change in Cost
1 64.27 2.30 1,608.96 –
2 49.91 1.86 1,301.10 –19.13
3 73.46 3.31 2,323.12 44.39

2.7 Coupling losses for spiral duct

For the three cases, the spiral duct has the same resistance due to couplings, however the resist­
ance pressures vary as a function of the fan flow. Table 8 presents a summary of results for the

18
3 cases. Because of the reduced fan flows, case 2 has a reduced operating cost of 1.2% and, for
case 3, because of the increased fan flow, an increase in operating cost of 76.4% is noted.

Table 8. Head losses, power, and operating costs for spiral duct coupling losses.
Case Head Loss (Pa) Power (kW) Cost/Year ($/y) % Change in Cost
1 71.42 2.85 1,998.86 –
2 63.38 2.82 1,974.75 –1.21
3 93.28 5.03 3,526.02 76.40

2.8 Bend
Case 1 has a properly designed bend and, in Cases 2 and 3, the installed bend is ‘kinked’,
resulting in a higher resistance pressure. Table 9 presents a summary of results for the 3 cases.
For cases 2 and 3, relatively large increases in operating cost of 97.6% and of 252.8% are
noted when the bend is not properly installed.

Table 9. Head losses, power, and operating costs for bend losses.
Case Head Loss (Pa) Power (kW) Cost/Year ($/y) % Change in Cost
1 45.40 1.81 1,270.75 –
2 80.59 3.58 2,510.85 97.59
3 118.60 6.40 4,483.27 252.80

2.9 Exit losses

Case 1 has a properly installed duct end, with its full cross-section open, and in Cases 2 and 3
the installed duct end has its exit reduced in section, resulting in a higher resistance pressure.
Table 10 presents a summary of results for the 3 cases. For cases 2 and 3, relatively large
increases in operating cost of 109.2% and of 273.5% are noted when the duct end is not prop­
erly installed.

Table 10. Head losses, power, and operating costs for exit losses.
Case Head Loss (Pa) Power (kW) Cost/Year ($/y) % Change in Cost
1 157.07 5.02 3,516.58 –
2 337.29 10.50 7,356.40 109.19
3 496.41 18.74 13,134.63 273.51

2.10 System component contribution summary

Table 11 presents the contribution of each individual component, relative to Case 1, to annual
operating costs. For case 2 the overall system component contribution to costs is 19.1% and
for case 3 it reaches 109.6%. This clearly indicates the potential for cost savings when an auxil­
iary ventilation system is properly designed, commissioned, and maintained.

2.11 Fan operation

Figure 2 presents the fan curve and operating points for the 3 cases and Table 12 presents
details of the fan operation. For cases 2 and 3, relatively large percent increases in fan input
power and operating cost of 10% and of 94.5%, relative to case 1, are noted. It is pointed that,
for case 2, the system is not in compliance since the face supplied flow does not meet regula­
tory requirements. Also, for case 3, the fan operates very close to stall. To reduce risk in both
cases, the installed system components should be improved including, installing an inlet bell,
maintaining the fan screen, correcting the silencer connections, installing a proper bend, and

19
 Table 11. Component percent contribution to annual operating costs.
Component Percent $/year change relative to case 1
Case 2 Case 3
Inlet bell 723.0 1,369.5
Screen 340.3 686.1
Silencers 19.7 45.2
Friction layflat –19.1 44.4
Friction spiral –1.2 76.4
Joints layflat –19.1 44.4
Joints spiral –1.2 76.4
Bend 97.6 252.8
Exit 101.2 273.5
Overall 19.1 109.6

the correcting duct outlet. Also, the duct column installation quality should be improved, and
air leakage controlled. These actions will bring the system operation close to the design
specifications.

Figure 2. Fan characteristics and operating points for the three cases.

Table 12. Fan operation for the three cases.

Input
Flow Blade Angle Efficiency Brake Power Power Cost/Year % Increase
Case (m3/s) TP (Pa) (degrees) (%) (kW) (kW) ($/y) in Cost
1 23.6 1,615.30 19.5 64.5 59.1 62.2 43,773 –
2 22.23 2,049.48 19.5 70 65.09 68.51 48,160 10
3 26.97 2,983.49 28 70 114.94 120.99 84,797 94.5

20
2.12 Operational costs
Table 13 presents annual fan operating costs as a function of the number of duct installations.
Independent on the number of installations, fan operating costs increase by 10% and 93.7%
for cases 2 and 3, relative to case 1. Typical hard rock mines may have well over 40 auxiliary
ventilation systems installed to support development and production activities. For the case
study presented, annual cost savings reaching some $1.65M can be realized when a system is
installed and maintained according to design.
It is noted that the comparative analysis was based on direct costs only. It is recognized that
ventilation training, asset management and preventive maintenance produce significant reduc­
tions in ventilation operating costs. While indirect costs are site dependent, the author has
observed that when workers acquire practical ventilation training prior to working under­
ground, which normally comes at a very nominal cost, considerable improvements in ventila­
tion system performance are readily realized.

Table 13. Annual operating costs for multiple duct system installations.
Number of Duct System Installations
Case 1 5 10 20 30 40
1 43,773 218,865 437,730 875,460 1,313,190 1,750,920
2 48,160 240,800 481,600 963,200 1,444,800 1,926,400
3 84,797 422,983 847,965 1,695,930 2,543,895 3,391,860

3 CONCLUSIONS

This paper has demonstrated how the use of proper engineering design for optimal duct
system installations would dramatically result in reduced energy consumption and in reduced
operating costs. When properly designed, installed, and maintained, an auxiliary ventilation
system can operate efficiently with substantial power and operating cost savings.
In a case study presented, it has been illustrated that savings in fan energy consumption
exceeding 94% can be achieved by correctly commissioning and maintaining a properly
designed auxiliary ventilation system.

REFERENCES

AirFinders, 2022. AirFinders Force Auxiliary Ventilation System Design. Engineering Design software.
De Souza, E. 2004. Auxiliary ventilation operation practices. Proceedings of 10th U.S./ North American
Mine Ventilation Symposium. Anchorage:Balkema. 341–348.
De Souza, E. 2013. Improving the energy efficiency of mine fan assemblages. Proceedings of the 23rd
World Mining Congress, Montreal, QC. pp 9.
De Souza, E. 2018. Cost saving strategies in mine ventilation. CIM Journal. Volume 9. Issue 2.
De Souza, E. & Dirige, P. 2022. Auxiliary mine ventilation manual. Version 2.0. Workplace Safety
North. Pp 261.

21
Case studies of mine ventilation
 Underground Ventilation – Tukkaraja (Ed)
© 2023 The Author(s), ISBN 978-1-032-55146-3

Kucing-Liar (KL) mine LOM preliminary ventilation design –

PT Freeport Indonesia

A.A. Habibi
Technical Expert, PT Freeport Indonesia

I. Setiawan
Chief Ventilation Engineer, PT Freeport Indonesia

R. Prasojo
Mine Engineer, PT Freeport Indonesia

C. Stewart
Principal Engineer, Minware Consulting

ABSTRACT: A ventilation study was conducted on Kucing Liar (KL) mine. KL is the add­
ition to PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) panel cave operations and is anticipated to operate in
parallel to Grasberg Block Cave (GBC). The study consisted of model construction, budget
preparation and investigating multiple scenarios to meet the minimum budget requirements.
Utilization of new engine technologies controlled partial air reuse, push-pull and utilization of
Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) were considered during this feasibility study. A main intake
and exhaust drift size optimization study was also conducted to determine the number of add­
itional main fans and drift sizes required to support the KL mine. The results show the
requirement for two additional 5MW main fans, two intake drifts and two exhaust drifts
(7 m x7 m). The results also show the requirement for eight 6m ventilation raises to support
primary air delivery to KL mine. Proof of concept trials are deemed necessary to determine
the feasibility of applying some of the proposed concepts in underground operations (such as
BEVs). The trial results will be used to complete a detailed ventilation network design.

1 INTRODUCTION

GBC mine development started in 2004 with initial drifting and the first drawbell blast in 2018.
GBC mine is expected to achieve full production rates of 130 kt/d to 160 kt/d of ore by 2025.
Currently, the three active underground mining operations in the Grasberg Mining District are
the GBC block cave mine (target 130-160 kt/d ore), the Deep Mill Level Zone (DMLZ) panel
cave mine (target 80 kt/d), and the Big Gossan open stoping operation (7 kt/d). The Deep Ore
Zone (DOZ) panel cave mine (80 kt/d) has been closed and is no longer in operation.
The KL orebody is a new large caving operation where development started in 2021 and pro­
duction is due to begin in 2027. The Grasberg Open Pit commenced production in 1990 with
active pit production ending in late 2019. Figure 1 is a schematic view of the Grasberg District
orebodies. The concentrating plant has a peak capacity of about 240 kt/d. Peak production targets
from the underground district will remain at 240 kt/d and will be entirely from underground. The
GBC will be the primary source of mill feed targeted at 130-160 kt/d (Brannon et al. 2020).

1.1 Existing ventilation infrastructure and network layout

KL mine is located at a lower elevation from GBC. The main exhaust and intake drifts (labled
the Grasberg Vent Drift (GVD) system) will be shared between the existing GBC mine and future

DOI: 10.1201/9781003429241-3

25
KL mine. Five Howden mixed flow rated at 5 MW each are currently installed in a parallel in an
exhaust configuration to support the GBC mine. Fresh air from the mill valley is downcast to the
mine through four parallel primary intakes (GVD 1-4) mined at 6.8 mW × 9.0 mH, at 2.6 km
from the portals to the footprint. Air is distributed to the working areas of the mine using ventila­
tion drifts and raises mined at various dimensions. The return air reports back to the under­
ground main exhaust fans and out into the valley. Figure 2 displays the main components of the
ventilation system. The system capacity is 3500 m3/s when all five fans are running.
Based on the recent LOM baseline estimate, the current GBC mine (which will be operating
in parallel with KL block cave) consumes approximately 25 m3/s/ktpd. Other block cave
mines typically have ratios from 17 to 40 m3/s/ktpd (Brannon et al. 2020). while the ratio cur­
rently sits at the lower end of the scale, a Ventilation On Demand (VOD) system has been put
in place to improve the efficiency of air distribution.

Figure 1. PTFI mining district overview.

Air velocity and diesel exhaust dilution requirements form the main design criteria. The air­
flow velocity requirements air primarily for dust control in the ore flow system, and diesel
dilution for development and production activities.

Figure 2. GBC and KL mines network layouts.

26
1.2 Ventilation budget
The KL mine shares primary intake and exhaust drifts with the GBC mine the ventilation cap­
acity of this system is insufficient for the combined GBC and KL development and produc­
tion, and will need to be expanded by the year 2026 with additional intake and exhaust drift(s)
and additional primary ventilation fan(s).
Based on current activity forecasts, GVD ventilation capacity is required to increase from
3500 m3/s to 5100 m3/s, proportional to planned production increases from the combined
mines. KL mine requirements peak briefly at 2400 m3/s, although as this peak is short-term,
2200 m3/s is used as an economic design target for long-term requirements.
Freeport PT mine airflow requirements are based on diesel equipment and minimum air vel­
ocity criteria, depending on location and activity.
• All working areas must maintain a minimum 0.3 m/s velocity standard.
• Fixed facility infrastructure with working personnel adopts a higher 0.5 m/s velocity
standard.
• Remotely operating diesel equipment (MineGEM) requires a minimum air velocity of
0.8 m/s to ensure equipment cooling.
• Diesel activities with personnel present, until recently were required to meet an 0.08 m3/s/kW
standard at a nominal machine utilization factor (typically 80%). This has since been simpli­
fied to 0.067 m3/s/kW at 100% machine installed engine power.
• For BEV ventilation budget calculations, minimum velocity of 0.6 to determine the budget,
which exceeds the minimum velocity requirement. This approach resulted in higher airflow
requirement compared to kW-based approach.
The above criteria represent minimum flows that should be met or exceeded at the work
location. To allow for operational loss and leakage, a leakage factor is applied to some activ­
ities, and a ‘balancing’ factor to maintain minimum airflow delivery to multiple locations is
also applied. In addition, an air density factor at the primary fans is applied to account for
density differences due to elevation.

2 DESIGN SCENARIOS

The GBC mine production is scheduled to increase to 136 ktpd by 2024. KL mine develop­
ment has commenced, with steady-state full production planned for 90 ktpd by 2033. The
mine will supplement GBC mine production which reduces to 103 ktpd by 2033, giving
a combined total tonnage from both mines from 2033 of 193 ktpd. Five scenarios were con­
sidered as case studies for this design.

2.1 Scenario 1. Base case - diesel mine using existing strategies

The base case represents a diesel equipment mine, operated to existing strategies and airflow
guidelines. To meet planned production requirements, the proposed baseline ventilation
design increases total airflow through the combined GBC + KL primary system from
3500 m3/s to 5100 m3/s, an increase of 42%, in line with the production increase. Economic
analysis using mining and fan capital costs and discounted life of asset operating costs
revealed there was no prospect of increasing airflow through existing mining infrastructure
due to high system resistance, existing fan performance limitations, and other practical consid­
erations (such as mine and ventilation disruption during construction).
The primary surface system design requires an additional two (2) exhaust drifts, with pri­
mary fans (two 5MW mixed flow fans) totaling 5.2 km development drifts. In addition, two
intake drifts totaling 4 km DEQ are required. Air to KL mine is delivered from the GVD
exhaust and intake system via four (4) intake raises and four (4) exhaust raises totalling
2.9 km at 6m in diameter.

27
2.2 Scenario 2 - KL mine air resuse
An air reuse option redistributes 600 m3/s of cleaned infrastructure exhaust to the extraction
level, effectively reducing the airflow drawn to and from the surface by 600 m3/s. This permits
a reduction in primary main fan infrastructure requirements, and a resultant reduction in cap­
ital and operating costs.
Infrastructure level exhaust is proposed for reuse as it is lower (per unit volume) in diesel
activity (DPM is more difficult to scrub and reduce). Reintroduction of the scrubbed air to
the extraction horizon is a form of ‘series’ ventilation meaning gases will not continue to build
as may be the case in a recirculated design.
This proposal is speculative, in that no effective validated air-reuse scrubber arrangement
has been proven for this mine. To do this, the characterization of dust and contaminants
would need to be performed, and available technologies evaluated for cost and efficiency.
A proposed arrangement is to parallel 80 m3/s capacity scrubbing units together in at least
two locations on the infrastructure air return level, linked by raises into the extraction level.
Several proven wet and dry technologies exist for removing fine silica and nuisance dust
from the air. Removal of DPM from the air requires dry filter scrubbing which should be
avoided from a likely cost and maintenance perspective. The most likely robust fine dust
removal technology is ultra-fine wet spray chambers, using water atomized with the assistance
of air compressors. For design purposes, power totaling 400 kW is assumed to overcome 2
kPa of filter media or sprays with collectors, and 1.5 kPa air reinjection into the mine extrac­
tion level.

2.3 Scenario 3 - BEV utilization at extraction level combined by air reuse

The use of BEVs for loader extraction activities is expected to reduce airflow requirements by
275 m3/s. To achieve a step change to 600 m3/s airflow reduction (required to eliminate an
intake and exhaust drift), a further 325 m3/s is assumed to be re-used – a limited version of the
previous option.
The option reduces infrastructure requirements similar to the previous air reuse case (one
less intake and exhaust drift/fan) but is slightly cheaper and lower in power cost due to the
reduction of air scrubbers. The capital and productivity assumptions of BEV loaders are
excluded from this cost.

2.3.1 BEV design details

Consideration of BEVs for production mucking and loading activities was undertaken to
determine potential ventilation improvements to the KL mining zone. BEVs are considered
zero-emission vehicles, emitting no discernible gases or diesel particulates. Oxygen levels
remain constant and heat emissions are estimated at less than 20% compared to diesel equip­
ment (McGuire, et. Al. 2022).
The minimum airflow requirement for BEVs is therefore limited by only:
• Minimum air velocity requirements
• Build-up and removal of dust that would otherwise cause health & safety issues, or visibility
problems.
• Other noxious gases that enter the atmosphere – e.g., blasting fumes or oxidation of ores.
• Heat build-up from all sources, but primarily from external sources such as rock strata or
hot water, instead of BEV machinery.
Fire risk and resultant toxic gas emissions from BEV fires have been flagged as serious haz­
ards. Despite several mining BEV fires reported worldwide, no evidence to date suggests BEV
fires in underground mining are more common or more hazardous than diesel machine fires
(Stewart, 2022). Nonetheless, hydrogen fluoride emissions during lithium battery fires have
been flagged as a potentially lethal atmospheric hazard, and when coupled with burning
hydrocarbon products (such as tires) and potentially reduced airflows for BEV use, the con­
centrations of fire combustion products may be more hazardous than an equivalent well-

28
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
saint Pouderous.

Car, voyez-vous, saint Pouderous n’est pas un saint comme tant

d’autres. Pour un cent de messes et autant de neuvaines, on ne
saurait obtenir de lui qu’il sèche une plaie, qu’il équilibre un bancal
ou qu’il redresse un bossu. Pouderous répugne aux emplâtres, aux
béquilles ; ses miracles à lui sont gais, et sa spécialité joyeuse.

Ce à quoi il excelle, c’est à racommoder les amoureux, et surtout

à donner un gros poupon aux bonnes femmes qui en souhaitent.
Sur ce dernier point, il est infaillible ; et fussiez-vous, madame,
aussi stérile que Sarah, il suffirait, pour vous transformer en mère
Gigogne, d’un pèlerinage à saint Pouderous, le jour de sa fête, avec
l’accompagnement obligé des pèlerinages d’été, courses dans la
montagne, visite à l’ermitage, dîners sur l’herbe, et nuit passée à
camper, tous ensemble, à la belle étoile.

Quelquefois, par exemple, le bon saint Pouderous va trop loin.

Ainsi, l’année passée, deux sœurs du village voisin montèrent
ensemble à la chapelle. L’aînée, qui était mariée, voulait demander
un garçon, la cadette ne demandait rien, ayant ses dix-sept ans à
peine.
Saint Pouderous entendit mal, sans doute, car c’est la cadette,
pécaïré ! qui, un peu moins de dix mois après, mettait au monde un
bel enfant, brun et frisé comme sa mère.

La chose, d’ailleurs, n’a pas trop nui au pèlerinage.

Les mécréants de l’endroit, cette engeance pullule partout ! ont
bien ri quelque peu d’abord. Puis ils se sont fatigués de rire. Et
maintenant saint Pouderous et son ermite sont plus en vogue que
jamais.
 Je plaisantais un jour, avec ce dernier, de l’aventure :
— Que voulez-vous, me répondit-il, saint Pouderous a fait erreur,
erreur n’est pas compte !
III
Les saints se font lourds.
Pamparigoust est un petit village tapi sur le versant nord de Lure,
dans une prairie, entre deux torrents pleins d’eau claire, à l’ombre
d’une douzaine de vieux noyers.
Eh ! bien, à Pamparigoust la religion s’en va ! Quand je l’affirme,
vous pouvez m’en croire : l’ermite lui-même, l’ermite de Saint-
Barbejou me l’a dit.

C’était l’an passé, vers cette même saison. Je faisais mon

ouverture de chasse, et j’avais choisi pour cela le terroir de
Pamparigoust, non pas qu’il soit plus giboyeux qu’un autre, mais
parce que, à défaut du gibier que je ne tuerais point, j’étais certain
de trouver, sur le midi, au village, dans une salle d’auberge voûtée et
fraîche, un arrière-train de chevreau rôti, peut-être une truite, et,
dans tous les cas, arrosé du petit vin du crû, quelqu’un de ces
merveilleux fromages, mûris dans la neige, tout l’hiver, sous une
quadruple enveloppe de poivre d’âne et d’épis de lavande.

En arrivant dans la Grand’rue, je vis un rassemblement devant la

porte du charron.
Tout le pays était là : hommes, enfants et femmes !
Le vieux Cogolin, armé de sa grande tarière à moyeux, taraudait
une pièce de bois, au milieu des rires ; et comme l’ouvrage
n’avançait guère, il ne se gênait pas de jurer.
L’ermite de l’endroit, suant dans sa soutane trouée, semblait lui
donner des conseils.
— Capucin de sort ! disait Cogolin, en voilà un saint qui a l’âme
dure !
 Et l’assistance éclatant de rire :
— Chut ! Cogolin, soupirait l’ermite, tu blasphèmes saint
Barbejou.
C’était, en effet, saint Barbejou, le cou sur un chevalet, ses pieds
joints sur l’autre, que Cogolin taraudait ainsi, en longueur.

Ce saint Barbejou, barbarement taillé dans un tronc de poirier

sauvage, était un vieux saint d’origine fort contestée, païen sans
doute, ainsi que l’indique son nom, qui veut dire en latin : barbe de
Jupiter.
Mais, païen ou pas, ce saint Barbejou avait de tout temps été
pour ses ermites une source de revenus et de gloire.
Les Pamparigoustais, braconniers et contrebandiers, ne
hasardaient pas de coup sans lui faire un vœu, et Notre-Dame-de-la-
Garde, elle-même, n’était pas plus riche en ex-voto que ce
problématique saint de bois.
De plus, une fois par an, le jour de sa fête, tout Pamparigoust, en
procession, s’en allait le tirer de la niche qu’il occupait dans l’église
paroissiale ; et les quatre plus gaillards du village le portaient par des
sentiers pierreux et rudes, jusqu’à la chapelle de l’ermite située à
deux lieues de haut dans la montagne.
Voir tarauder un tel saint m’intrigua.

— Bonjour, l’ermite !
— Vous voilà, mécréant.
— Qu’arrive-t-il à votre saint ?
— Ce qu’il lui arrive… Regardez : il lui arrive que je le vide !
Et montrant le poing aux assistants mis en joie :
— Tas de damnés, paroissiens du diable, c’est votre impiété qui
m’en a réduit là !
Il se retourna vers moi, plus calme :
 — Vous savez ou vous ne savez pas que c’est demain la fête…
Autrefois les gens se disputaient l’honneur de monter le Saint, pieds
nus, sur leurs épaules. On payait pour ça ; c’était le bon temps. Je
me rappelle, moi, qui vous parle, étant tout petit, sous mon
prédécesseur, avoir vu mettre la chose aux enchères… Les
mauvaises idées vinrent ; on portait encore le saint pieds nus, mais
sans payer… Puis on se chaussa, et je dus me tenir content…
L’année passée ne m’a-t-il pas fallu aller chercher par force mes
pénitents à l’auberge ?
Enfin, cette année…, ah ! cette année…, ils m’ont déclaré, les
brigands, que le tronc de poirier était trop lourd, qu’on en riait dans
tous les villages de la vallée, et qu’enlever un peu de bois à saint
Barbejou ne saurait lui faire du mal… Mais halte-là charron ! c’est
poussé assez loin. Avec ta tarière d’enfer, tu vas faire sauter à mon
saint le crâne et la mitre.

— Le voilà léger comme un carton, votre saint ! Si demain, les

paroissiens refusent, vous pourrez le monter vous-même sous le
bras.
Et, retirant sa longue tarière de l’intérieur de saint Barbejou,
Cogolin la cogna du bout sur sa forte semelle pour en faire sortir les
copeaux.
— Tais-toi, huguenot ! dit l’ermite, qui les ramassa, probablement
avec l’intention de les vendre comme reliques.
Puis, marmotant je ne sais quoi, et faisant aller sa barbe de
bique :
— Notre évêque l’a bien dit au prêche : « Les saints pèsent trop
aux épaules, il n’y a plus de religion à Pamparigoust ! »
 LE BON TOUR D’UN SAINT.

Ceci sera donc l’aventure du Diable et du Saint, aventure aussi

admirable que véridique, par laquelle il est parfaitement prouvé que
l’esprit jésuitique existait sur terre des siècles avant Loyola, et qu’il
en cuisit toujours même aux diables du plus fin poil de s’en fier à la
parole des gens d’église.
Je vous la raconterai simplement, telle qu’elle m’a été racontée, il
n’y a pas plus de huit jours, par un vieux pâtre en manteau couleur
d’amadou qui, tandis que ses chèvres paissaient, s’était étendu au
grand soleil et prenait le frais à la provençale.
— « En ce temps-là, me dit le vieux pâtre, le Diable et le Saint,
chacun de son côté, prêchaient dans les Alpes. Il est bon de savoir
qu’en ce temps-là les Alpes valaient la peine qu’on y prêchât. Les
torrents n’avaient pas encore emporté toute la bonne terre en
Provence, ne laissant aux pauvres gens d’ici que le roc blanc et les
cailloux ; les montagnes, décharnées maintenant, s’arrondissaient
pleines et grasses ; des bois verdoyaient sur les cimes, et les
sources coulaient partout. En si beau pays, le Diable et le Saint
faisaient assez bien leurs affaires ; ils convertissaient d’ici, de là, l’un
pour le Paradis, l’autre pour l’Enfer ; le Saint enseignait tout ce qu’il
savait, c’est-à-dire le chemin du ciel, un peu de latin et de prières ; le
Diable apprenait aux gens à s’occuper plutôt des biens terrestres, à
bâtir des maisons, faire des enfants, semer le blé et planter la vigne.
Bons amis, d’ailleurs, ne s’en voulant pas trop pour la concurrence
(le Diable du moins le croyait !) et s’arrêtant volontiers au détour d’un
chemin pour causer un instant et se passer la gourde.
Certain jour, paraît-il, au soleil couchant, le Diable et le Saint se
rencontrèrent à la place même où nous sommes : le Saint en
costume de saint, crossé, mitré, nimbé, doré ; le Diable, noir et cuit à
son habitude, cuit comme un épi, noir comme un grillon.
— Eh ! bonjour, Saint.
— Eh ! bonjour, Diable.
— On rentre donc ?
— C’est donc l’heure de la soupe ?
— Si on s’asseyait sur cette roche ? La vue de la vallée est belle,
et la fraîcheur qui monte fait du bien.
Il y avait là un peu de mousse sèche, le Diable et le Saint
s’assirent côte à côte, le Diable sans défiance et joyeux, car il avait
fait bonne journée, le Saint tout dévoré de chrétienne jalousie, et
jaune comme sa mitre d’or.
— Voyons, ça va-t-il ? dit le Diable.
— Ça ne va pas mal, ça ne va pas trop mal ! répondit le Saint.
Les pauvres d’esprit deviennent rares, et il y a parfois des moments
durs ; néanmoins, au bout de l’an, on se retrouve.
— Voilà qui fait plaisir ! allons, tant mieux !
— J’ai même trouvé moyen, ce mois dernier, de me bâtir une
chapelle, petite il est vrai, mais c’est un commencement. Veux-tu
que je te la montre ?
— Volontiers, si ce n’est pas loin.
Et les voilà partis tous deux, le Saint en tête, le Diable derrière,
suivant les vallons, gravissant les pentes, dans les grands buis, dans
les lavandes, montant sans cesse, montant toujours.
— Mais c’est au ciel que tu demeures ?
— Non, c’est simplement au haut de la montagne. La place est
bonne ; on aperçoit le clocher de loin, et, quand je donne ma
bénédiction, vingt lieues de pays tout au moins en attrapent les
éclaboussures.
Enfin ils arrivent à la chapelle.
— Joli ! très joli ! dit le Diable en regardant par le trou de la
serrure, car l’eau bénite l’empêchait d’entrer ; les bancs sont neufs,
les murailles blanchies à la chaux, ton portrait sur l’autel me semble
d’un effet magnifique : je te fais mon sincère compliment.
— Tu dis ça d’un ton !
— De quel ton veux-tu que je le dise ?
— C’est donc mieux, chez toi ?
— Un peu plus grand, mais voilà tout.
— Allons-y voir, répondit le Saint.
— Allons-y ! répondit le Diable, mais à une petite condition : c’est
qu’une fois dedans tu ne feras pas de signe de croix ; vos sacrés
signes de croix portent malheur aux bâtisses les mieux construites.
— Je te le promets.
— Ça ne suffit pas, jure-le moi !
— Je te le jure ! dit le Saint qui avait déjà son idée.
Aussitôt un char de feu parut, et tous deux, si vite, si vite, qu’ils
n’eurent pas le temps de voir le chemin, se trouvèrent transportés
dans le plus magnifique palais du monde. Des colonnes en marbre
blanc, des voûtes à perte de vue, des jets d’eau qui dansaient, des
lustres, des murs en argent et en or, un pavé en rubis et en diamant,
tous les trésors de dessous terre.
— Eh bien ? demanda le Diable.
— C’est beau, très beau ! murmura le Saint devenu vert ; c’est
beau d’ici, c’est beau de là, c’est beau à gauche, c’est beau à droite.
En disant cela, le Saint montrait du doigt les quatre coins de
l’édifice. Ainsi sans manquer à son serment, il avait fait le signe de
croix. Aussitôt, les colonnes se rompirent, les voûtes s’effondrèrent ;
le Saint, qui avait eu soin de se tenir près de la porte, n’eut pas de
mal ; et le Diable, pincé sous les décombres, se trouva encore trop
heureux de reprendre, pour se sauver à travers les pierres, son
ancienne forme de serpent. »
— « Mais votre saint est un pur jésuite ! » m’écriai-je.
— « Les deux chapelles, celle du Diable et celle du Saint, sont
encore là-bas, on peut les voir », conclut le vieux pâtre sans avoir
l’air de m’avoir entendu, et il me montrait sur le flanc du roc une
chapelle rustique construite à l’entrée d’une grotte que j’avais visitée
avant d’en connaître la légende, et qui, avec ses parois étincelantes
de cristaux, sa voûte à jour, ses couloirs obstrués, ses rangées de
blanches stalactites, peut donner en effet l’idée d’un palais féerique
écroulé.
 LE CHAPEAU DE SANS-AME.

Il y avait autrefois à Entrepierres, pays rocailleux comme le nom

l’indique, un paysan qui possédait si peu, si peu, que ce n’était
vraiment pas la peine.
Pour tout avoir, un coin de terre très en pente avec moins de
terre que de cailloux ; pour demeure, une masure en ruines ; pour
amis, une chèvre et un âne qui faisaient leur bergerie et leur étable
de l’unique pièce du logis.
La masure, tant bien que mal, parait de la pluie ; le coin de terre,
quand Dieu ne le grêlait point, donnait au bout de l’an quelques épis
maigres, juste assez pour vivre ; la chèvre, après avoir tout le jour
couru au travers des lavandes, rapportait à la nuit en moyenne un
litre de lait ; et si le pauvre homme (cela lui arrivait une fois par
mois !) avait envie de se régaler d’un coup de vin, il s’en allait dans
la montagne, coupait douze fagots de genêt vert, les chargeait sur
l’âne et descendait les vendre à la ville, où les douze fagots
rendaient vingt-quatre sous. Ce qui fait que, le soir, l’âne le ramenait
vaguement gris, brimbalant au roulis du bât, mais joyeux et plein de
courage pour boire de l’eau le restant des quatre semaines.
Ce pauvre homme se trouvait heureux, et n’enviait le bien de
personne. Seulement, il avait des idées à lui et n’entrait jamais dans
les églises. On l’accusait d’avoir dit un jour, au grand scandale de
ceux qui l’entendirent : « Le bon Dieu, le voilà ! » en montrant le
soleil. Depuis, les dévotes racontaient qu’il avait vendu son âme au
diable, n’attendant pas même, selon l’usage, l’heure d’agonie pour
opérer la livraison ; et tout le monde dans le pays l’appelait le Sans-
Ame, sobriquet qui d’ailleurs ne le fâchait point !
Une après-midi, Sans-Ame s’en revenait de son expédition
mensuelle à la ville, jambe de çà, jambe de là, sur sa monture, fier
comme un artaban, et fort peu taquiné de n’avoir plus son âme à lui.
C’était la fête du village. La procession qui descendait et le Sans-
Ame qui montait se rencontrèrent. Comme le chemin se trouvait
étroit, entre un grand rocher gris et un torrent qui roulait au bas du
talus des flots d’eau claire, Sans-Ame fit ranger son âne pour laisser
passer. Malheureusement Sans-Ame ne salua point, moins par
malice que par habitude. Les paysans de là-bas disent volontiers
« bonjour » mais ne saluent guère. Le curé fend les rangs, rouge
dans son surplis comme un bouquet de pivoines dans le papier
blanc d’un cornet, et, d’un revers de main, jette à l’eau le chapeau
de Sans-Ame. Un chapeau tout neuf, mes amis ! (Sans-Ame, pour
l’acheter, s’était précisément ce jour-là privé de boire ses fagots), un
chapeau garanti sept ans par le chapelier, un chapeau en feutre
collé, dur comme un silex et solide à porter le poids d’une charrette.
Qui peut dire les émotions de Sans-Ame ? Il vit, drame d’une
seconde ! le chapeau flotter sur l’eau bouillonnante, tourbillonner,
s’emplir, puis disparaître dans l’écume fouettée d’un remous. Le curé
riait, Sans-Ame ne disait mot. Un instant il regarda la petite barrette
à pompons que le curé portait sur sa tonsure ; mais cette tentation
dura peu ; la barrette n’avait pas de visière ! Et Sans-Ame, tête nue,
remonta chez lui, tandis que la procession descendait au village.
Le lendemain, les gens qui passèrent devant le petit champ de
Sans-Ame crurent d’abord qu’un curé piochait. C’était le propriétaire
lui-même en train de rustiquer au soleil sous un large couvre-chef
ecclésiastique.
Le vieux Sans-Ame, homme de rancune, était allé tout
simplement attendre le curé à la promenade : — « Pardon, excuse,
monsieur le curé, vous m’avez noyé mon chapeau, il m’en faut un
autre, donnez-moi le vôtre. » Le paysage était pittoresque, mais
solitaire, et le curé avait donné son chapeau.
Les malins essayèrent bien de railler Sans-Ame sur
l’extravagance de sa coiffure ; lui se déclara ravi de l’échange,
affirmant que rien n’est commode comme un chapeau de curé, avec
sa coiffe ronde et ses larges bords, pour garantir à la fois des rayons
trop chauds et de la pluie.
La joie de Sans-Ame ne dura guère. Dès le surlendemain, le curé
qui avait réfléchi, le sommait par huissier d’avoir à lui rendre le
chapeau.
— « Pas du tout, dit Sans-Ame, on ira samedi prochain en justice,
le chapeau est mien d’ici-là. »
Ce fut une fête à la ville quand, cinq jours après, Sans-Ame
arriva, coiffé d’un chapeau de curé, avec ses fagots et son âne.
Sans-Ame vendit les fagots, but douze sous sur vingt-quatre, et
puis se rendit au prétoire. — « Audience, chapeau bas ! » glapit
l’huissier ; injonction superflue, au moins pour Sans-Ame, car, en
apercevant le curé, son premier mouvement avait été de fourrer
l’objet du litige sous la banquette.
Le juge de paix conclut à la conciliation : Sans-Ame avait eu tort,
le curé aussi ; Sans-Ame rendrait le chapeau, et le curé lui en
payerait un autre pareil à celui qu’il avait noyé. — « C’est juste », dit
Sans-Ame en tendant au curé sa coiffure. Mais le curé recula
d’horreur. On ne sait pas ce que huit jours de vie paysanne peuvent
faire d’une coquette coiffure de curé. Hérissé, cabossé, souillé, rougi
par le soleil, amolli par la pluie, et battant des ailes sous ses brides
lâches comme un corbeau près d’expirer, le chapeau n’avait plus
forme humaine. — « Puisqu’il ne le veut pas, je le garde ! » dit Sans-
Ame ; et, fièrement, il remit sur sa tête ce chapeau maintenant bien à
lui.
Dès lors, à ce que dit la légende, il ne se passa pas un jour sans
que l’heureux paysan ressentît les effets miraculeux de la sacro-
sainte coiffure. Le ciel fut dupe ; et, trompée sans doute par le pieux
emblème qu’elle ne pouvait d’ailleurs apercevoir que par en haut, la
Providence semblait se plaire à faire pleuvoir sur l’intrigant qui s’en
parait la rosée de ses bénédictions. Un orage ravageait-il le pays, il
épargnait le champ de Sans-Ame. Sans-Ame engrangeait tous les
ans double récolte. Sans-Ame faisait des héritages. Sans compter
que, son procès l’ayant rendu populaire, les ménagères ne voulaient
plus d’autres fagots que les siens, ce qui l’obligeait à aller se griser
deux fois par semaine à la ville au lieu d’y aller une fois par mois.
Enfin, toujours couvert de son chapeau dont il ne voulut pas se
séparer un seul instant au cours d’une vie qui fut longue, Sans-Ame
s’éteignit doucement entre sa chèvre et son âne, riche, honoré,
rempli de jours et obstinément béni du ciel sans avoir jamais
consenti à se réconcilier avec l’Église.
De là le proverbe si connu là-bas :

« C’est la religion de Sans-Ame qui faisait la nique au bon

Dieu dessous un chapeau de curé. »
 LES ABEILLES DE M. LE CURÉ.

Le délicieux jardin que le jardin du curé chez qui, encore au

collège et tout petit, on m’avait envoyé passer les vacances ! Les
beaux carrés de choux, les belles rangées de salades en bordure, et
comme tout cela était bien entretenu, pioché, biné, sarclé, ratissé, et
arrosé matin et soir, avant et après le soleil, à l’eau courante d’une
vieille fontaine encroûtée de tuf, verte de mousse et de cresson, d’où
s’échappaient par mille trous des filets de cristal et de chantantes
cascatelles. C’était Sarrasin le fossoyeur qui faisait l’office de
jardinier. Cette idée d’abord m’offusquait. Je trouvais que l’herbe
sentait le mort et que les groseilles avaient un goût de cimetière.
Peu à peu cependant, je m’y habituai ; d’ailleurs, on mourait
rarement au village, et l’ami Sarrasin, comme lui-même le disait,
était un peu fossoyeur pour rire.
En haut du jardin, derrière la fontaine, se trouvait un endroit
solitaire où M. le curé passait tous les instants que son saint
ministère lui laissait. Le bréviaire dépêché, la messe dite sur le
pouce, il accourait là ; et je le voyais de loin, seul avec le fossoyeur,
pendant de longues heures, s’agiter, tempêter et faire de grands
gestes.
On m’avait défendu d’approcher. « M. le curé ne veut pas, me
disait Sarrasin ; ce sont les ruches ! » Et, en effet, ces ruches
mystérieuses remplissaient le jardin d’abeilles bourdonnantes qui se
roulaient tout le long du jour, ivres de pollen, dans le calice des
passe-roses.
Mais pourquoi m’empêchait-on de les voir, ces ruches ? A quels
travaux d’alchimie les abeilles travaillaient-elles en compagnie d’un
fossoyeur et d’un curé ?
 Une après-midi, je n’y tins plus. M. le curé et Sarrasin étaient
allés quelque part enterrer une vieille femme. Demeuré seul, je me
dirigeai, le cœur palpitant, vers l’endroit interdit, derrière la fontaine.
C’était un bout de terrain caillouteux et sec, planté de romarin, de
lavande et de toutes sortes de plantes grises qui craquaient sous le
pied et sentaient bon. Un nuage serré d’abeilles, tournant dans le
soleil et luisant comme l’or, m’indiqua le coin où se trouvaient les
ruches. Car Sarrasin n’avait pas menti, c’étaient bien des ruches,
mais quelles ruches ! Elles ne ressemblaient ni aux élégantes
maisonnettes coiffées d’un léger faîtage en paille qu’habitent les
abeilles bourgeoises, ni au tronçon d’arbre creux avec une tuile
cassée pour toit, domicile habituel des essaims rustiques. Figurez-
vous un alignement de boîtes bizarres ne tenant debout qu’à force
d’étais et par un miracle d’équilibre, boîtes longues, boîtes bossues,
boîtes ayant des becs et des bras avec un vague aspect de bêtes
monstrueuses. Ces boîtes étaient percées de trous par où les
abeilles entraient et sortaient aussi tranquillement que s’il se fût agi
de ruches ordinaires. Mais cela ne me rassura point, et je me sauvai
bien vite dans le paisible jardin aux légumes, rêvant du « Grand
Albert », et parfaitement persuadé que le curé et son fossoyeur se
livraient journellement à toutes sortes d’incantations et manigances
diaboliques. Le soir, les vacances finissaient, et l’on me ramenait à
la ville.
J’avais presque oublié cette histoire. Parfois même, y songeant,
je me demandais si mon cerveau d’enfant, halluciné par une après-
midi de solitude et de grand soleil, ne l’avait pas un peu rêvée. Dix
ans plus tard, un hasard de promenade me ramena dans le village.
Je trouvai le curé cassé et vieilli. Le fossoyeur était mort ; mais le
petit jardin, envahi par les herbes et presque retourné à l’état
sauvage, m’apparut dès la porte tout bourdonnant d’abeilles comme
jadis. Cela me rappela mon aventure, et je résolus d’avoir le cœur
net cette fois. Interrogé, le vieux curé se mit à rire, et voulut bien me
montrer ses ruches. C’était bien, derrière la fontaine, le même triste
bout de lande semé d’herbes grises et de cailloux, et c’étaient bien
les mêmes étranges ruches que mes yeux d’enfant avaient vues.
 Le curé me dit : — « C’est une idée à moi, il y a vingt ans que j’y
travaille ; elle m’a coûté pas mal d’argent et donné pas mal de
tracas, mais je touche à la réussite. » Et savez-vous à quoi le
bonhomme travaillait, ce qui lui avait fait les cheveux blancs avant
l’âge ? Je vous le donne en cent, je vous le donne en mille… Il
travaillait à faire écrire ses abeilles. Oui, à leur faire écrire : Vive
l’empereur ! en lettres de miel. Il me montra une de ses ruches, car il
en avait de rechange. C’était comme un gigantesque moule à
biscuit, avec la forme et les proportions d’une lettre d’enseigne. On
laissait les abeilles faire leur gâteau là-dedans, et le gâteau, une fois
le moule ouvert, se trouvait être un V ou un R. Et c’est pour cela que
les buveuses de rosée du poète avaient, vingt ans durant, parcouru
les coteaux pierreux et la vallée verte, se gorgeant de pollen doré et
recueillant l’ambre liquide ! Ah ! si les abeilles avaient su !…
Seulement les abeilles ne savaient pas.
Le curé, qui, en sa qualité de curé, ne manquait pas de quelque
ambition, nourrissait à propos de ce qu’il appelait son idée, les
espérances les plus chimériques. Une fois les treize lettres bien au
complet, il les clouait — rousses comme le soleil, et toutes brodées
de fines cellules hexagonales — sur une grande planche taillée en
fronton d’arc-de-triomphe, il exposait son chef-d’œuvre à Paris, et
l’empereur ne pouvait faire moins que de lui accorder la croix et le
canonicat honoraire.
Mais que de tracas pour arriver à ce résultat ! Ces diablesses
d’abeilles sont capricieuses. Certaines lettres leur déplaisaient sans
qu’on pût savoir pourquoi. Et le fait est qu’habitant une S ou un T
elles pouvaient trouver étranges ces demeures tortueuses et
biscornues. Et puis d’autres inconvénients : le V de Vive se gâtait et
coulait déjà, tandis que l’r d’empereur commençait à se remplir à
peine. Enfin on était arrivé, les treize lettres marchaient de front, et le
bon inventeur ayant un essaim de reste, songeait déjà à se payer un
point d’exclamation supplémentaire.
Un mois plus tard l’empire s’écroulait à Sedan, et la République
était proclamée.
 — « Comment faire ? disait le curé. Donner d’autres lettres à mes
abeilles… Hélas ! Vive la République ! c’est bien long, et puis
Monseigneur ne permettrait pas. »
 LES CENT HEURES.

Depuis fort longtemps, chose invraisemblable, les citadins de

Canteperdrix n’avaient plus tremblé. Cela ne laissait pas de les
taquiner, car un peu de terreur sans motif, un léger frisson
artificiellement obtenu sont pour tout bon bourgeois français une
sensation délicieuse.
Mais voilà ! tout allait malheureusement sur des roulettes : le blé
se dorait, le raisin gonflait, les journaux prêchaient la confiance.
Vainement la haute société feignait encore de s’effrayer,
vainement la douairière de Castel-Croulant décommandait ses robes
d’hiver, vainement le vicomte de Castel-Croulé, prêt à une nouvelle
émigration, faisait ouvertement réparer sa berline, une berline à
ressorts de cuir, à panneaux écussonnés, d’antiquité vénérable, que
tout le monde pouvait voir au Portail neuf, devant l’atelier du charron,
levant vers le ciel ses brancards dans une attitude d’effarement et de
vague fuite !
La confiance régnait quand même ! Plus de conférences
effarées, au cercle, tous les dos en rond ; plus de promenades
autour des remparts, avec des silences subits, des regards inquiets
quand passe quelqu’un, et la conversation continuée à voix basse.
On rentrait sans revolver à travers les rues désertes après minuit ;
on ne poussait guère les verrous que par habitude ; et l’éclair de
l’allumette-bougie faisant reluire comme argent les murs du corridor
passé au lait de chaux ne montrait désormais, même aux moins
braves, aucun fantôme d’individu suspect se dissimulant dans un
angle noir. Et pourtant on était en République ! Comme républicains,
les Cantoperdiciens étaient satisfaits, mais, comme bourgeois
aimant à trembler, quelque chose manquait à leur bonheur.
 Tel était l’état des esprits à Canteperdrix quand survint un
événement qui, de longues années encore, défraiera les
conversations.
Il faut savoir que, pour marquer les heures lentes de son
existence, cette paisible et peu industrieuse cité possède de temps
immémorial une vieille horloge à jaquemart, perchée tout en haut
d’une vieille tour. Cette tour, qui a des meurtrières pour fenêtres et
dont la porte étroite et basse est comme une fente entre deux blocs
énormes que retiennent des crampons de fer, jouit dans le pays
d’une renommée mystérieuse. Les conseillers municipaux qui
parfois y pénétrèrent pour vérifier une réparation ou dresser un état
des lieux ont rapporté de là l’impression peu rassurante d’un voyage
dans le vide et le noir, par des escaliers vermoulus, sur des
passerelles branlantes, avec la menace perpétuelle de lourds
contre-poids en pierre de taille pendant sur la tête au bout de
poulies, sans compter l’effrayant va-et-vient du balancier, et, si l’on
est surpris par l’heure de la sonnerie, le tapage infernal de toute la
mécanique subitement détraquée, du cliquet qui part, du volant qui
ronfle, des roues qui grincent et des grands coups de cloche qui font
trembler la tour et tomber le crépi des murs.
C’est, en somme, un endroit que personne ne visite guère ; et le
vieil horloger qui, depuis près de quarante ans, une fois tous les trois
jours, remonte l’horloge, a bien raison de considérer l’horloge et la
tour comme sa propriété.
Un original, ce vieil horloger. Grand chasseur à ses moments
perdus, éducateur passionné de toutes sortes d’animaux, il avait fini
par faire de la tour d’horloge une arche de Noé véritable. Des
pigeons y nichaient, des lapins y gîtaient, une famille de furets y
vivait paisible sous une caisse, et, sur la porte, dans une cage, une
chouette de la bonne espèce, excellente pour la pipée, roulait des
yeux d’or et faisait de grands saluts en soufflant. Tout cela n’était pas
sans inconvénients : les pigeons, au temps des amours, se posaient
par couples sur les contre-poids, accélérant le mouvement et
précipitant la fuite des jours d’une manière exagérée ; d’autres fois,
comme il arrive au boa repu qui digère, l’horloge s’arrêtait net, toute
apparence de vie suspendue, ayant quelque lapin trop curieux pris
aux dents de ses engrenages.
Des observations furent faites, et le vieil horloger, pour ne pas
heurter l’opinion publique, supprima pigeons et lapins ; puis, l’opinion
publique calmée, peu à peu il avait repris ses habitudes, les pigeons
étaient revenus, les lapins avaient suivi les pigeons, et, le jour même
où se passe cette histoire, à la nuit tombante, on aurait pu voir notre
homme introduire dans la tour furtivement et attacher au bas de
l’escalier, par une forte ficelle, un renardeau qu’un amateur lui avait
donné à dresser.
L’horloger, sans doute, ne prévoyait pas que la présence de ce
renardeau dans la tour dût être pour Canteperdrix un événement
considérable.
La lune brillait, la ville dormait, et les habitants, sous leurs
rideaux, rêvaient voluptueusement à des commotions politiques.
Soudain Jaquemard se met à sonner : un coup, deux coups, trois
coups… douze coups ! — « Déjà minuit ! comme le temps passe ! »
Treize coups ! — « Ce n’est pas possible ! sûrement, nous aurons
mal compté. » Quatorze coups, et quinze, et seize ! — « Les cent
heures, on sonne les cent heures ! » Et Jaquemard en effet sonnait
les cent heures, il en sonnait même un peu plus de cent, répandant
dans l’air le souvenir des époques troubles où tant de fois, dans la
nuit, les cent heures sonnèrent, souvenirs un peu brouillés de terreur
blanche et de terreur rouge, de 93 et de thermidor.
Les bonnes gens qui aiment à trembler en eurent leur compte
cette nuit-là. Des fenêtres s’ouvraient, des têtes coiffées de blanc
apparaissaient, des dialogues s’échangeaient d’une maison à
l’autre : — « Le branle-bas, monsieur ! mon journal l’avait bien
prédit !… — C’est drôle, il n’y a personne dans les rues… —
Recouchons-nous, si vous m’en croyez ; On saura à quoi s’en tenir
demain matin. »
Le lendemain il y eut de la désillusion quand on apprit qu’un
simple renardeau était cause de tout ce vacarme.
 Voici comment, d’après l’horloger, s’était passée la chose :
l’animal, c’est du renardeau qu’il s’agit, probablement pris
d’épouvante au bruit nouveau pour lui du balancier et des roues,
rompant son attache et se culbutant dans le noir de la tour à travers
cordages et engrenages, avait fini par sauter d’un bond éperdu sur
le contre-poids de la sonnerie qui, sous cette surcharge, s’était mis à
descendre furieusement, tirant sur le battant à casser la cloche.
N’importe, on avait tremblé (c’est bien le moins qu’on tremble un
peu en République), et les citadins de Canteperdrix se souviendront
longtemps avec plaisir des cent heures du renardeau.