Filter self-rescuer

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Filter self-rescuer

A filter self- rescuer , also known as a self- rescuer or self-rescue device, is a breathing apparatus that is used in underground coal mining in the event of danger. The filter self-rescuer is taken into the pit by the miners in the coal mining industry and is always carried along with them. The filter self-rescuer is not a work device, but a pure escape device.

Basics and history

In mining underground pit fires or firedamp explosions can cause toxic gases to get into the weather stream. In particular in the case of mine fires, but also in the aftermath of firedamp explosions, the weather then contains carbon monoxide . The miner calls such weather fire weather or bad weather . For the miner, such weather can no longer be breathed from a certain, already very low, concentration. The poisonous gases are carried through the mine workings with the weather stream and can endanger many miners as a result. If a miner breathes in such weather, it can lead to severe poisoning and even death. Miners must be able to protect themselves from this danger in the event of an emergency. Since the end of the 1950s, miners in the German coal industry have been equipped with filter self-rescuers. In the mining operations of the European Community, in Australian mining and also in American mining, it is mandatory to carry a filter self-rescuer. The filter self-rescuers are carried during the layer of each miner at the man and after the layer above days in the lamp works stored again.

Layout and function

Sectional view of a Dräger rescuer

The filter self-rescuer consists of a carrying sleeve in which the actual filter is housed. The filter self-rescuer is fitted with either a belt buckle or a shoulder strap so that it can be carried on a man. The actual filter consists of a CO catalyst , a coarse dust filter , a fine dust filter and a desiccant. The catalyst consists of hopcalite , in which the toxic carbon monoxide is converted into carbon dioxide . The hopcalite is strongly heated by the catalysis . So that the catalyst does not become unusable due to the humidity , the breathing air is dried beforehand using a desiccant . This desiccant consists of activated carbon . The coarse dust filter and the dust filter filter present in the punters dust out. In order to be able to inhale the air from the filter, the filter self-rescuer has a rubber mouthpiece. This rubber mouthpiece is provided with bite cams and built into a mouthpiece housing. The mouthpiece is connected to the filter via the air and saliva channel. The breathing air is passed on accordingly via an inhalation valve and an exhalation valve. As a result, the exhaled air is not passed back over the catalytic converter. The filter self-rescuer has a nose clip so that the miner does not accidentally breathe through his nose.

commitment

Filter self-rescuer in action

Filter self-rescuers are used to enable miners to escape into the fresh weather stream from an area contaminated by fire weather. To ensure this, the filter self-rescuer must have a sufficiently long service life. When selecting the device for self-rescue, the company must take into account the type and concentration of the pollutant to be expected and the length of the escape route. The holding time of today's filter self-rescuers is 90 minutes. There are also filter self-rescuers that last two hours or more. How long a filter self-rescuer protects in use ultimately depends on the concentration of the harmful gases (carbon monoxide). Each filter self-rescuer may only be used once. But the lifespan of filter self-rescuers is also limited, averaging four years. The use of filter self-rescuers has already saved the lives of hundreds of miners. In the Ruhr mining industry alone, between 1953 and 1960 more than 600 miners were able to escape from a danger area to safe weather using the filter self-rescuer. By 2013, in around 600 cases, over 7,500 filter self-rescuers were used to escape.

Application limits

The use of filter self-rescuers is primarily limited by the oxygen content in the weather. In order to be able to use the filter self-rescuer effectively, the weather must have an oxygen content of over 19 percent. Filter self-rescuers are ineffective in areas where the required residual oxygen content is not available. In these areas, filter self-rescuers cannot be used in the event of an emergency; oxygen self-rescuers must be used here. These devices can be used independently of the outside air. Another limit of use is the holding time; if this is exceeded during use, the filter self-rescuer loses its protective effect. The filter self-rescuer is also ineffective with gases other than carbon monoxide.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e Walter Bischoff, Heinz Bramann, Westfälische Berggewerkschaftskasse Bochum: The small mining dictionary. 7th edition, Verlag Glückauf GmbH, Essen 1988, ISBN 3-7739-0501-7 .
  2. ↑ a b c d Horst Roschlau, Wolfram Heinze, SDAG Wismut (Hrsg.): Knowledge storage mining technology. 1st edition. German publishing house for basic industry, Leipzig 1974.
  3. ^ A b B. W. Boki, Gregor Panschin: Bergbaukunde. Kulturfonds der DDR (Ed.), Verlag Technik Berlin, Berlin 1952, p. 632.
  4. ↑ a b c d Wirtschaftsvereinigung Bergbau eV: The mining manual. 5th edition, Verlag Glückauf GmbH, Essen, 1994, ISBN 3-7739-0567-X , pp. 54-55.
  5. ↑ a b c d e f g h Eric AC Chamberlain, Commission of the European Communities (ed.): Use of filter self-rescuers in European mining. Luxembourg 1980 1994, pp. 8-23.
  6. ↑ a b Werner Koller: The patron saint is St. Barbara, salvation under the sign of mallets and irons. In: Federal Association for Self-Protection. (Ed.): ZS Magazin, magazine for civil protection, disaster control and self-protection. No. 5'73, Verlag PA Santz (Altena), Cologne May 1973, pp. 4–10.
  7. ↑ a b c d e f g Carl Hellmut Fritzsche: Textbook of mining science. Second volume, 10th edition, Springer Verlag, Berlin / Göttingen / Heidelberg 1962.
  8. ↑ From head to toe. In: Gesamtverband Steinkohle eV (Ed.): Our hard coal and the area , 3rd edition, printed by Boss Druck (Goch), Herne 2010, pp. 16-17.
  9. ↑ a b c MSA Safety Company (ed.): Escape devices program, for a safe escape. MSA Auer GmbH, Berlin, pp. 4-6.
  10. ↑ Trade Association for Precision Mechanics and Electrical Engineering (Ed.): Use of respiratory protective equipment BGR 190. Expert committee "Personal protective equipment" of the BGZ, Cologne 2004.
  11. ^ A b c Heinrich Otto Buja: Engineering handbook mining technology, deposits and extraction technology. 1st edition, Beuth Verlag GmbH Berlin-Vienna-Zurich, Berlin 2013, ISBN 978-3-410-22618-5 , p. 390.

Web links

Commons : Filter Self Rescuer  - Collection of images, videos and audio files
  • Filter self-rescuer. In: The Respiratory Protection Lexicon. Retrieved June 13, 2014 .
  • Siegfried Schönfeld: filter self-rescuer. (Flash video, 6:54 min) A lamp master tells stories in the LWL industrial museum, Zeche Zollern. Retrieved June 13, 2014 .
  • A 1.4.3.1.3 Filter self-rescuer. In: BGR / GUV-R 190: Use of breathing apparatus. BG Bau, accessed on June 13, 2014 .