Author:
Name & Surname: Petrov G. M.
Company: College of Mining, National University of Science and Technology—MISiS (Moscow, Russia)
Work Position: Professor
Scientific Degree: Candidate of Engineering Sciences
Contacts: petrovgm@mail.ru

Underground mines are hazardous production. Operational code for electrical installations in underground mines requires, among other things, protection of personnel from electrical current. The operating underground mines use mains having voltage up to 1140 V and various protection facilities against electric shock, among which protective grounding, shutoff protection and insulation damage control and prevention are the prime means. Electrical installations in mines are supplied from a network with insulated neutral, where current passing through the body after accidental exposure to high voltage depends on the insulation parameters that are in many ways conditioned by a number of energized electric installations and total length of electric lines. In the 1960s–80s, in underground mines with 380 V mains, experimental research allowed finding insulation parameters and the related limits for energized electric installations and total length of electric lines. These parameters ignore the recent standard requirements and modification of power supply systems at current production plants: in the past 20 years, electrical mains in Russian mines, especially in sections with high total power supply, use voltage of 660 and 1140 V. Such voltage demands heightened attention towards protection against electric shock. This article describes the design procedure for mine mains with voltage up to 1140 V under conditions of maximum and minimum electrical safety. Design engineering of electric mains with the obtained insulation parameters will enable safe power supply in the mining industry.

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