Study on the coal dust deposition fraction and site in the upper respiratory tract under different particle sizes and labor intensities

• Published in: The Science of the total environment 2023-04, Vol.868, p.161617, Article 161617
• Main Authors: Cheng, Yu, Yu, Haiming, Xie, Sen, Zhao, Junwei, Ye, Yuxi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Coal; Coal mine environment; Coal Mining; Dust - analysis; Dust exposure amount; Escape rate; Humans; Labor intensity; Larynx - chemistry; Lung; Particle Size; Upper respiratory tract
• ISSN: 0048-9697; 1879-1026
• DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161617

In order to study the dust exposure amount and coal dust deposition rule of coal miners under different labor intensity in coal mine environment, an airflow-particle two-phase coupling calculation model of human upper respiratory tract was established based on Euler-Lagrange framework, and the airflow field in the upper respiratory tract and the characteristics of coal dust deposition were simulated and studied. By comparing the experimental data, the relative error of simulation is in the range of 1.5 %–11.2 %. The results showed that the total deposition fraction of 1 μm dust was the smallest (0.61–1.20 %), and was relatively less affected by respiratory intensity, and the overall distribution was uniform. When the dust particle size increased to 7.07 μm, the total dust deposition fraction in the nasal cavity, pharynx and larynx was in the range of 11.10 %–20.91 %, and increased with the respiratory intensity. When the dust particle size was large, the dust particles of 20 μm and 80 μm were mostly concentrated in the front of the nasal cavity, and the deposition amount of 80 μm dust was about 99.52 %. It was found that with the increase of dust particle size or the increase of labor intensity, the possibility of dust being transported into lungs became smaller. The fitting function of 7.07 μm dust escape rate and labor intensity was obtained, for example, Y7.07μm = 91.73–0.22n (n is labor intensity), and the escape rate of dust with 7.07 μm particle size was up to 88.90 %. Most of them escape from the upper respiratory tract and enter the lungs, which provides theoretical guidance for quantifying the accumulated dust exposure amount in the lungs and monitoring respiratory dust concentration. [Display omitted] •The respiratory waveform diagram of different labor intensities was obtained.•Dust exposure experiment was conducted in an upper respiratory tracts model.•Deposition characteristics of coal dust and harm to human health were analyzed.•The fitting functions of dust escape rates and labor intensities were obtained.