Mine safety dust and method of production
AssigneeE. Dillon & Company
InventorsMike Miller, Thomas Harmon Harris
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A mine safety dust exhibiting improved dispersion in water. The rock dust includes dolomitic limestone particles which, when mixed at the mine site to form a slurry, stay in suspension during intermittent operation of spray machinery and with a reduced need for continuous mixing. The rock dust composition includes an inorganic salt that acts as a dispersant to improve dispersion of the rock dust in water and further acts as a deflocculant to keep the dust particles in suspension in the resultant slurry.
Claims16
A mine safety dust that disperses easily in water and has a reduced tendency for agglomeration of particles in the resultant mix, comprising a composition of:
- crushed rock selected from the group consisting of limestone and marble, and wherein 70% of the crushed rock has a particle size of less than 74 microns and
- sodium chloride (NaCl) added to the crushed rock;
- wherein the mine safety dust has a rodded density of between 78 and 90 pounds/ft3 after undergoing a compaction process by rodding under standard conditions.
A method for forming a mine safety dust including:
- crushing rock selected from the group consisting of limestone and marble to reduce the particle size;
- and
- adding sodium chloride (NaCl);
- the crushed rock comprising particles at least 70% of which are less than 74 microns, and wherein the mine safety dust has a rodded density of between 78 and 90 pounds/ft3 after undergoing a compaction process by rodding under standard conditions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.