English Develop Ventilation Analogue System Featuring Mine Plan Diagram

The problems of getting air to the working face of a mine (or perhaps the problems caused by not getting air to the working face) have led to the development of an analogue system in England that reputedly bypasses many of the drawbacks that such systems have encountered in the past. The unit was developed for the Wolstanton Combined mine, an underground operation consisting essentially of three collieries situated in the center of the North Staffordshire coalfield. This combination of workings, which employs a total of eight shafts, brings with it complex ventilation problems, and in order to study these problems and to assist in the control of the established ventilation system, a Ventilation Analogue has been designed and installed to permanently represent the mine's ventilation system.