Abstract
The subject is very complex and a great deal of research has been devoted to it on account of its great economic importance. The magnitude of the problems involved is shown by reviewing underground conditions on the Witwatersrand goldfields. Consideration of the limiting air conditions underground enables a specified mine-cooling problem to be enunciated.
The final section of the paper reviews the various methods that have been tried for cooling the air in deep mines; some have been wholly or partially given up and some have survived. In particular, the possibilities of meeting requirements on a large scale have been analysed. Reference is made to cooling schemes which have been inaugurated on the Witwatersrand goldfields during the past two or three years. An analysis sets forth the relative merits of water, brine, and air as media for cooling deep mines, and a comparison of cooling plant performances and costs is made on the basis of: (1) vapour refrigerating plants on the surface and underground, using air and water respectively as cooling media, and (2) compressed air refrigeration.
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