Tests of loading efficiency of worm-type cutting drums in longitudinally inclined longwall working

Abstract

This article presents the execution and results of tests of the loading efficiency of worm-type cutting drums as a function of the slope of a longwall working. The tests were carried out at various angles of longitudinal inclination of a longwall within a range of 0° to 9° along the strike. In real conditions, the separation of the two basic processes that take place during operation of a longwall shearer (i.e., milling and loading) is not possible, therefore, the research was carried out under laboratory conditions at the Department of Mining, Dressing, and Transport Machines at AGH University of Science and Technology in Krakow. The tests were carried out on a special station that allowed for the gradual change of the longitudinal and transverse slope of a longwall working. Based on the conducted tests, it was found that the inclination of a longwall working influences the loading efficiency, i.e., that, along with an increase in the angle of the longitudinal inclination, loading resistance increases while the loading efficiency decreases.