Keywords
Mining
RSLogix 500
LabVIEW
MATLAB
Crushing Plant
How to Cite
Abstract
Excessive dust generation in mineral processing and crushing plants poses serious occupational and environmental health challenges. Prolonged exposure to fine particulate matter—particularly Total Suspended Particulates (TSP) and Particulate Matter below 10 µm (PM₁₀)—has been linked to respiratory diseases and reduced air quality in surrounding areas. Dust concentration data collected over a nine-year period revealed that approximately 20 % of TSP values exceeded the 150 µg/m³ safety limit, while 25 % of PM₁₀ readings surpassed the 70 µg/m³ threshold, with peak levels reaching over 300 µg/m³ during dry months. These findings underscore the need for continuous and responsive dust control in processing environments. This study presents the design and simulation of an automated dust suppression system using a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) integrated with dust and water-level sensors. Developed in RSLogix 500 and visualized in LabVIEW, the system automatically detects hazardous dust levels and activates low-pressure water spray nozzles in 15-second suppression cycles, with dust concentration re-checked after each cycle until levels fall below safe thresholds. MATLAB was employed to analyze nine years of historical dust concentration data and establish the threshold parameters used to configure the PLC control logic. Simulation results demonstrate reliable real-time monitoring, automated threshold-triggered suppression, and elimination of manual intervention in dust concentration control. The proposed automation framework provides a scalable solution for improving air-quality compliance, worker safety, and operational efficiency in mineral processing facilities.
References
H. Yu and I. Zahidi, “Environmental hazards posed by mine dust, and monitoring method of mine dust pollution using remote sensing technologies: An overview,” Science of The Total Environment, vol. 864, p. 161135, Mar. 2023, doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.161135.
L. Fan and S. Liu, “Respirable nano-particulate generations and their pathogenesis in mining workplaces: a review,” Int. J. Coal Sci. Technol., vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 179–198, Apr. 2021, doi: 10.1007/s40789-021-00412-w.
P. P. Nyayapathi, S. Namuduri, and S. K. Kolli, “A comprehensive review of vertical profiling of ambient air quality-particulate matter and its impacts on climatic & environmental health,” Air Qual. Atmos. Health, vol. 18, no. 5, pp. 1569–1595, May 2025, doi: 10.1007/s11869-025-01697-5.
B. P. Singh, “Understanding the dynamics and implications of airborne microplastics in atmosphere,” Air Qual. Atmos. Health, vol. 17, no. 11, pp. 2661–2674, Nov. 2024, doi: 10.1007/s11869-024-01593-4.
H. Luo, W. Zhou, I. M. Jiskani, and Z. Wang, “Analyzing Characteristics of Particulate Matter Pollution in Open-Pit Coal Mines: Implications for Green Mining,” Energies (Basel)., vol. 14, no. 9, p. 2680, May 2021, doi: 10.3390/en14092680.
S. K. Ambastha and A. K. Haritash, “Emission of respirable dust from stone quarrying, potential health effects, and its management,” Environmental Science and Pollution Research, vol. 29, no. 5, pp. 6670–6677, Jan. 2022, doi: 10.1007/s11356-021-16079-4.
Z. Wang, W. Zhou, I. M. Jiskani, H. Luo, Z. Ao, and E. M. Mvula, “Annual dust pollution characteristics and its prevention and control for environmental protection in surface mines,” Science of The Total Environment, vol. 825, p. 153949, Jun. 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.153949.
Z. Wang, W. Zhou, I. M. Jiskani, J. Yan, and H. Luo, “Optimizing open-pit coal mining operations: Leveraging meteorological conditions for dust removal and diffusion,” Int. J. Coal Sci. Technol., vol. 11, no. 1, p. 54, Dec. 2024, doi: 10.1007/s40789-024-00699-5.
J. Duarte, J. Castelo Branco, F. Rodrigues, M. Vaz, and J. Santos Baptista, “Occupational Exposure to Mineral Dust in Mining and Earthmoving Works: A Scoping Review,” Safety, vol. 8, no. 1, p. 9, Jan. 2022, doi: 10.3390/safety8010009.
L. H. Garcia-Granda, W. A. Sanchez-Shapiama, C. E. Albujar-Verona, C. A. Alvarado-Silva, and F. de Azevedo Silva, “Risk Analysis and Control Strategies for Dust Exposure in Aggregate Crushing Plants,” Chem. Eng. Trans., vol. 108, pp. 67–72, 2024.
K. P. Vlahovich and A. Sood, “A 2019 Update on Occupational Lung Diseases: A Narrative Review,” Pulm. Ther., vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 75–87, Jun. 2021, doi: 10.1007/s41030-020-00143-4.
E. Ayaaba, Y. Li, J. Yuan, and C. Ni, “Occupational Respiratory Diseases of Miners from Two Gold Mines in Ghana,” Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, vol. 14, no. 3, p. 337, Mar. 2017, doi: 10.3390/ijerph14030337.
N. Murgia and A. Gambelunghe, “Occupational COPD—The most under‐recognized occupational lung disease?,” Respirology, vol. 27, no. 6, pp. 399–410, Jun. 2022, doi: 10.1111/resp.14272.
J. F. Colinet, C. N. Halldin, and J. Schall, “Best Practices for Dust Control in Coal Mining,” Pittsburgh, PA, 2021–119, Aug. 2021. [Online]. Available: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2021-119/default.html
S. Panicker et al., “Online coal dust suppression system for opencast coal mines,” Int. J. Coal Sci. Technol., vol. 10, no. 1, p. 60, Dec. 2023, doi: 10.1007/s40789-023-00624-2.
A. Manjunath and K. M. Kanthraju, “An Efficient Automatic Water Sprinkler Design for Operate in Dust Environment,” Trends in Sciences, vol. 19, no. 14, p. 4982, Jun. 2022, doi: 10.48048/tis.2022.4982.
S. K. Leghari, M. A. Zaidi, M. F. Siddiqui, A. M. Sarangzai, S.-U.-R. Sheikh, and Arsalan, “Dust exposure risk from stone crushing to workers and locally grown plant species in Quetta, Pakistan,” Environ. Monit. Assess., vol. 191, no. 12, p. 740, Dec. 2019, doi: 10.1007/s10661-019-7825-1.
T. Salamah et al., “Effect of dust and methods of cleaning on the performance of solar PV module for different climate regions: Comprehensive review,” Science of The Total Environment, vol. 827, p. 154050, Jun. 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.154050.
S. R. Silver, W. A. Alarcon, and J. Li, “Incident chronic obstructive pulmonary disease associated with occupation, industry, and workplace exposures in the Health and Retirement Study,” Am. J. Ind. Med., vol. 64, no. 1, pp. 26–38, Jan. 2021, doi: 10.1002/ajim.23196.
Q. Zhang et al., “A review of physical and chemical methods to improve the performance of water for dust reduction,” Process Safety and Environmental Protection, vol. 166, pp. 86–98, Oct. 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.psep.2022.07.065.
K. Saurabh, S. K. Chaulya, R. S. Singh, S. Kumar, and K. K. Mishra, “Intelligent dry fog dust suppression system: an efficient technique for controlling air pollution in the mineral processing plant,” Clean Technol. Environ. Policy, vol. 24, no. 4, pp. 1037–1051, May 2022, doi: 10.1007/s10098-020-01991-z.
A. Ayub, H. Yoo, and I. Ahmed, “Empirical Study of PLC Authentication Protocols in Industrial Control Systems,” in 2021 IEEE Security and Privacy Workshops (SPW), IEEE, May 2021, pp. 383–397. doi: 10.1109/SPW53761.2021.00058.
M. Wang et al., “Prediction of road dust concentration in open-pit coal mines based on multivariate mixed model,” PLoS One, vol. 18, no. 4, p. e0284815, Apr. 2023, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0284815.
S. Kong, B. Han, Z. Bai, L. Chen, J. Shi, and Z. Xu, “Receptor modeling of PM2.5, PM10 and TSP in different seasons and long-range transport analysis at a coastal site of Tianjin, China,” Science of The Total Environment, vol. 408, no. 20, pp. 4681–4694, Sep. 2010, doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2010.06.005.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2026 Moses Kwesi Annan, Isaac Papa Kwesi Arkorful, Ramatu Al-hassan (Author)