Blog Post #3 => Upper Big Branch Mine Disaster

We all remember the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster that occurred a few years ago in West Virginia in which many miners died in that terrible tragedy.  A lot of us responded in anger, denouncing the mining industry and demanding a new source of energy as an alternative to coal to become our leading producer of electricity in this country.  Few want our nation's energy source to come from such a dangerous practice that seems to treat their employees so terribly as to risk their lives each and every day.

As a previous mining engineering major and former miner myself, I can speak for the mining industry and say that yes, mining is an extremely dangerous occupation.  But coal is extremely important for our country today.  I of course do believe that we as a nation need to develop a new source of energy that can be an effective alternative to coal and slowly and easily transition into it.  Specialists predict that we have around 700 years left of coal to mine in our country, which is not a lot of time.  700 years however is definitely more than enough time to develop a new source of energy rather than to jump in to ineffective sources such as solar and wind, which rely on a windy or sunny day so they are not consistent, they don't produce much energy, and really who wants a wind turbine in everyone's backyard?

So right now we really need coal in this country, but like I said, coal mining is extremely dangerous.  Coal miners understand the dangers, and are paid a very high salary due to the risks of it, but that isn't a justifiable reason to keep things the way they are.  Coal mining has improved drastically over the last 40 years.  If anyone has seen the show on Spike TV, "COAL," that is exactly the way coal mining was done back then.  Today coal mining is not like that.  Roofs and Ribs (walls) are completely bolted and supported by wire mesh.  Ventilation is well organized and methane readers are located at every coal face.  Problems still always happen that can risk the lives of miners though.  In the case of the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster, methane levels were known to be high, which mainly due to poor safety regulations by the owning company, Massey Energy.  High methane itself though does not cause an explosion.  Something caused a spark, and the gas pressure in the mine caused a massive explosion which spread down the breaks of the mine.

Despite the corruption within Massey and the Mine Safety and Health Administration, disasters like this can potentially be prevented by newer technologies, rather than just simple regulations, and that is where materials engineering can come into play.  No one knows what caused the spark in the Upper Big Branch Mine, but what I believe it was was probably a broken cable.  In underground mines, machinery does not run on gas, because that would be far too dangerous.  The continuous miner, the shuttle cars, the roof bolters, and all other various machinery in the mine move around while automatically reeling in and out an electric cable that runs back to a single power source in the mine that is connected to a generator outside the mine.  While the machinery is moving around the mine, sometimes these cables get twisted or hooked on something and break.  Not only are these dangerous to the miners who have to hang the cable from the roof, (I've seen quite a few get badly shocked from grabbing them) but if there were ever to be unsafe methane levels in the mine, these broken cables are the likeliest cause of an explosion.  I personally believe that the number one thing needed to be developed for better mine safety is a material that insulates these cables and can stretch, bend, and withstand massive compressive and shearing forces (From machines running over them) much more easily than they can now.  If there is one thing that I think can improve mine safety the most, it is a new material engineered to do this.