Study of the Water Build-Up Effect Formation in Upcast Shafts

Abstract

A theoretical study of the formation of water build-up, or water blanketing, and its influence on the ventilation of mine upcast shafts was carried out. Two scenarios for droplet moisture accumulation in the shaft were considered: condensation from saturated air rising up the shaft and groundwater inflows through the leaky shaft lining. Analytical dependencies of the pressure drop due to the influence of water build-up versus the outgoing air flow velocity and the height of the groundwater source were obtained, taking into account the fractional composition of the droplet moisture. Practical arrangements are proposed to reduce the influence of the effect of water build-up in upcast shafts in the case of groundwater inflows through the leaky shaft lining.