Material Sciences

Keeping in mind the requirement need by the industries and as per the Indian mining conditions the support should be of greater longevity, light enough for easy portability and requiring less maintenance. Further, it should have facilities for height variation, sufficient yielding, continues load monitoring and releasing remotely as the coal seam thickness varies widely in Indian mines. Then, it should have ease in operation by even an unskilled worker. Additionally, the device must be economically viable and acceptable to the miners. Many standing props have been designed in past like friction prop, hydraulic prop, screw prop, pit prop etc., but none has the all facilities. After numerous attempts such innovative prop consisting of multiple disc springs has been designed and developed at CSIR-CIMFR of which the details description has been given above. This device useful for support of underground mine tunnel / roadways in accordance with the specification. Laboratory trial was conducted at CIMFR Laboratory on the advice of Directorate General of Mines Safety (DGMS), a statutory body of Govt. of India / ECL. This prop was tested for axial load test, eccentric load test, and overload test. In addition to that fatigue load test was also conducted for 500 cycles and initial 50 cycles were observed and studied. After successful laboratory trial ,field trials were conducted thereafter in Chinakuri Mine -1 Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL), Sanctoria, Burdwan (West Bengal) in longwall panel and development district. The systematic field trial was widely accepted by the mining authority . This product has been DGMS approved and the patent thereof has been granted in India USA including PCT countries.