Source apportionment of airborne fine particulate matter in an underground mine

The chemical mass balance source apportionment technique was applied to an underground gold mine to assess the contribution of diesel exhaust, rock dust, oil mists, and cigarette smoke to airborne fine (<2.5 microm) particulate matter (PM). Apportionments were conducted in two locations in the mine, one near the mining operations and one near the exit of the mine where the ventilated mine air was exhausted. Results showed that diesel exhaust contributed 78-98% of the fine particulate mass and greater than 90% of the fine particle carbon, with rock dust making up the remainder. Oil mists and cigarette smoke contributions were below detection limits for this study. The diesel exhaust fraction of the total fine PM was higher than the recently implemented mine air quality standards based on total carbon at both sample locations in the mine.