Coal Seam Gas
Experienced in Coal Seam Gas (CSG)
With an in-depth understanding of all aspects of coal seam gas (CSG), and extensive experience in coal mining operations, CoalGAS is well placed to provide you with a wide-range of coal seam gas drainage and gas management support services. Dennis has active research projects in coal seam gas outburst and ventilation. He is uniquely positioned to provide you with innovative solutions and expertise for all your coal seam gas requirements.
CoalGAS has worked across an extensive range of coal seam gas projects, providing services and support such as:
- Gas data collection, modelling and analysis of gas reservoirs to determine gas-in-place (GIP) and specific gas emission (SGE)
- Forecasting gas emissions (rib emissions and longwall gas make) and return airway gas concentrations
- Designing gas drainage drilling programs for both pre-drainage and goaf drainage
- Design of gas drainage plant and gas reticulation networks.
- Life-of-mine coal mine methane production forecasts for power generation plant design
- Gas emission forecasting for fugitive emission and GHG reduction program design
We also have extensive experience in the assessment, control and management of outburst risk in underground coal mines.
Keeping up to date with the latest developments and innovations in the mining and coal seam gas industries ensures we can identify and deliver efficient and cost-effective solutions to improve gas drainage performance, reduce gas emission and outburst risk, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Dennis has active research projects in the coal seam gas and outburst risk area, giving him leading edge knowledge in this field which allows him to provide innovative solutions for your project.
Managing Director and Principal Consultant, Dennis Black, has published an extensive range of coal seam gas related articles. You can download these from our Publications page.
Our coal seam gas services include:
Gas reservoir modelling
Gas emission forecasting
Fugitive emission reduction
Gas and outburst risk management
Gas drainage system design and planning
Gas production monitoring and analysis
Audit and review of gas drainage systems
Process improvement and optimisation
Gas drainage engineer/coordinator support
Gas production forecast for CMM utilisation and power station design
Contact CoalGAS today to ensure you have the best support available for the control and management of coal seam gas and outburst.
Coal Seam Gas in Australia
Historically, coal seam gas was the cause of most mining explosions and was therefore ventilated out of a coal mine. However, there is now a growing global awareness that coal seam gas is a viable energy resource, enabled by emerging extraction and utilisation technologies. This has lead to the rapid expansion of the CSG industry with increasing interest in the capture and utilisation of coal mine methane (CMM). While some coal mine operators may consider coal seam gas to be a nuisance or threat, there is increasing awareness that the efficient extraction and use of coal seam gas, in addition to being a viable energy resource, can increase productivity and safety through reducing gas emissions and contamination of the mine ventilation air.
Coal seam gas is a significant hazard in underground mining that requires effective safety and health management systems to reduce risk and prevent damage to people and property. Historically, coal seam gas has been diluted and removed by the mine ventilation system. With an intense focus on global greenhouse gas (GHG) management to slow the rate of climate change, there is significant community and political pressure on mining companies to ensure their operations maintain efficient systems to reduce gas emissions.
Gas drainage is becoming essential in an increasing number of underground coal mines to ensure safe mining conditions. This creates a need to design and implement efficient and effective gas management systems to support both safe, and productive mine operations. In gassy mines, gas is drained from the working seam before mining (pre-drainage) to reduce gas emissions and outburst risk. It may also be necessary to drain gas (methane and/or carbon dioxide) from mined areas, such as the longwall goaf (goaf drainage), to reduce the potential for the gas emissions to exceed the diluting capacity of the ventilation system which will result in the gas concentration exceeding the legal statutory limit and increase the explosion and outburst risk.
Where gas concentration limits are exceeded, coal production must cease until the gas concentration measured in the mine ventilation air is reduced below the statutory limit. These production delays result in considerable economic cost to mine operations.
In gassy and highly permeable coal seams, reliance on the ventilation system alone to effectively manage high gas emission may result in frequent, prolonged production delays.
For those mines operating in areas with large gas reservoir and high gas emission potential, gas drainage (both pre and/or post mining) is essential to reduce the gas loading of the mine ventilation system.
The many benefits of a well designed and managed gas drainage system include: improved ventilation air quality, reduced cost of ventilation, reduced risk of accumulation of flammable and noxious gas, and reduced outburst risk, which all contribute to improved safety and productivity.
With a growing industry, comes growing regulatory requirements and compliance. CoalGas understands the changing demands of the industry, from changing regulations, to the increased need to deliver cost-efficient and practical solutions.