Australian mining research and innovation company Mining3 and not-for-profit investment fund Low Emission Technology Australia (LETA), while utilising their catalytic oxidation project, are pushing a vision of a low-methane mining.
The partners are investigating the performance of catalysts under different conditions to combat ventilation air methane (VAM), a system that dilutes underground gas through exhaust shafts.
Catalytic oxidation is expected to offer a solution for mines with lower levels of VAM which cannot abate emissions with combustion systems, a process known as regenerative thermal oxidation. Mining3 and LETA aim to commercialise the technology for widespread deployment across Australia.
Speaking to Mining Technology, LETA chief executive Mark McCallum confirms that the project “is in Phase One as we continue with the selection of catalyst from numerous suppliers for testing and finalise the catalyst test laboratory selection and test procedures”.
According to the MCA, VAM in Australian mines is typically well-below 1%. “The only currently available technologies to abate this involve high-temperature thermal systems of 1,000°C. The risk in this is that it provides an ignition source should an explosive mixture of gas be present in the ventilation stream which is rare but possible. This could cause an explosion in the mine itself with catastrophic consequences.
“Work in Australia to develop a safety system to prevent such an event has been undertaken and the coal industry is planning at demonstrating a number of the technologies safely,” says the organisation.
While such research is promising, Assan identifies a pattern that is holding industry-wide emissions abatement back. “There have been many pilot projects in Australia but none of them pass this stage as there is no economic incentive. New technologies that will be able to oxidize at lower temperatures and methane concentrate will make things cheaper, but there will still be a cost.”
According to Ember’s report, a cut of 370,000t of coal mine methane per year by 2030 using abatement technologies would cost an estimated A$99m ($66m), just 0.2% of the Australian coal industry’s A$51bn ($34bn) income in 2023.
McCallum affirms that associated costs for miners depends on a range of factors: “The emissions intensity of the mine, the cost and availability of technical solutions, and the cost other emissions reduction options.
“The work that we are doing will continue to help inform the costs of these technologies and how they compare to other emissions reduction options, as we have allocated a total of nearly A$60m ($40m) in VAM abatement projects,” he says.
Ultimately, a combined force of commercial viability and regulatory enforcement is crucial to the successful mitigation of coal mine methane on a national level.