How to Monitor and Send Early Warnings for Spontaneous Combustion of Coal Dumps? Applications of Thermal Cameras in Coal Bunker Safety Monitoring

In the coal mining industry, coal ores are generally stacked in the ore yard after being minded from mines and then transferred to coal storage yards or coal bunkers after being processed. Periodic static storage easily leads to temperature increases in coal bunkers and the gathering of gasses such as CH₄ and CO can cause spontaneous combustion. With traditional manual temperature measurement approaches, real-time coal bunker temperature cannot be monitored, spontaneous combustion cannot be accurately located, and CO₂, SO₂, and other hazardous gasses released through coal oxidation are harmful to the health of operators. Through non-contact temperature measurement, thermal cameras are capable of monitoring coal bunker temperature at all times. Functions, such as quick response, accurate temperature measurement, fire temperature monitoring, rapid fire alarms, and accurate location of origin of the fire, prevent the occurrence of fire and large-scale fire spread, avoiding major losses.

I. Main Applications of Thermal Cameras in Coal Bunker Monitoring

1. Heat distribution of coal is automatically scanned to generate intuitive images and automatically capture the point with the highest temperature. When the temperature reaches the preset threshold, the system software displays the alarm temperature and the image of the position where the temperature is high.

2. The temperature increase trend is analyzed automatically for the image of the monitored coal bunker or a specific zone to detect in advance areas where spontaneous combustion of coal is possible.

3. Zone temperatures are analyzed as needed. Monitored and shielded zones can be added to focus on the temperature of key target zones and circumvent the impact of irrelevant factors on temperature measurement.

4. Real-time thermal imaging information is transmitted to the control room, informing staff on duty of the changes in the coal bunker temperature to facilitate their response.

II. Unique Advantages of Thermal Cameras

1. Non-contact monitoring does not affect coal handling. All-day real-time display of the heat distribution of coal enables accurate positioning of places of spontaneous combustion.

2. Featuring natural smoke and fog penetration capabilities, thermal cameras are insusceptible to the interference of dust and gases, making themselves a good choice to use in coal mines.

3. Thermal cameras support the setting of the fire point threshold. This means that the heating and temperature increases of coal that are smoldering can be monitored, making intelligent early warnings possible. This also leaves sufficient time for correlating fire extinguishing devices, significantly lowering the probability of fire.

III. Recommended Models

1. AT31/61 Electric Focusing Online Temperature Measurement Thermal Camera

Thermal Vision to Make Temperature Visible and Facilitate Analysis

Automatic focusing: More convenient field application

POE power supply: Simplified cabling

Comprehensive software functions: Correlation with external alarm devices

SDK for multiple platforms: Secondary development support

2. AT31F/61F Fixed Focusing Online Temperature Measurement Thermal Camera

It measures temperature for visible reading and analysis.

Wide-angle lens: No blind spot

I/O alarm output: Correlation with external alarm devices

Comprehensive software functions: All-round analysis of temperature data

SDK for multiple platforms: Secondary development support

3. Dual-Spectrum Bullet IP Camera-FB4 Series Bullet Thermal Camera

Dual-spectrum fusion: Image detail enhancement

Various alarm correlation rules: Alarm for fire point detection supported

IP66 ingress protection: Dustproof and waterproof

Intelligent behavior analysis: Detection of zone intrusion and tripwire intrusion

IV. System Software

Use with InfiRay's professional temperature measurement and monitoring system is recommended.

1. Support the connection of multiple devices to the software platform by networking so that these devices can be displayed on the platform. Support the video preview of up to 64 real-time images.

2. Support palette selection and configuration of measurement tools, which can be flexibly and easily applied to provide a simple way for temperature data collection at the backend.

3. Automatically generate curves of temperature data and temperature reports for effective monitoring of changes in the coal bunker temperature.

4. Be able to send abnormal temperature alarms and supports multi-level alarm configuration.

V. How Can I Produce a Thermal Image of Premium Quality?

Please refer to the following suggestions for using a thermal imager to produce a thermal image of premium quality:

1.  It is recommended to equip the thermal camera with a protective cover and dustproof and temperature increase/decrease protection devices. This helps the thermal camera to adapt to the harsh environment of the coal bunker, thus ensuring its reliable operation.

2.  Select thermal imagers with high thermal sensitivity for scenarios with a small regional temperature difference.

3.  Use automatic measurement first, and then enable the temperature width stretch function. Manually set the temperature width to the minimum and include the previously measured temperature range to enrich the image details.