GUIDE ROPE LUBRICATION

A CASE STUDY IN UCIL’s

JADUGUDA MINE

PINAKI ROY
 PREAMBLE
• In underground mines, the entry into the mine is mostly
through a mine shaft by means of the mine winder and its
conveyances. With the entire workforce to be daily transported
through this form of transport deep into the mine, the winding
system must maintained optimally and safely.
• In order sustain very high safety standards, all the components
of the winding system i.e. the entire winding mechanism,
controls, shaft accessories, conveyances and specifically the
various steel wire ropes, require utmost care - as any laxity can
prove to be disastrous with critical rescue operations.
• The challenges of evacuation in a mine accident are different
from other accidents as in these accidents the approach route
(whether a mine shaft or decline) gets blocked.
• One such example may make it clear.
 The Chilean Mining Accident
This mine accident took place on 5th
August because of a cave-in a 120 year
old copper–gold mine.
The mine is located deep in the Atacama
Desert in northern Chile, South America.
33 miners were trapped 2,300 ft below
ground and about 5 Km from the mine's
entrance connected via spiraling
underground ramps.
The mixed crew of old and young
Miners and technical support personnel
survived for a record 69 days deep in
the mine before their rescue.

These 33 persons were lucky to

have come out alive because in
most cases – images could be different
 IMAGES YOU WOULDN’T LIKE TO SEE
A rock fall, roof collapse or even a wire rope failure can put many
lives below ground to severe risk and cause untold trauma to their
families. Thus regular inspection, care and upkeep of all mine
areas and equipment assumes critical importance.
 MINE WINDERS
Before talking about mine ropes one should
know where they are used as it may help
understand their importance.

Mine Winders are fundamentally elevators

which hoist and lower men, mineral and
materials into and out of the mine. While the
principle of working is similar the main difference is
that mine conveyances are bigger, more rugged and
travel much deeper into the ground carrying heavier
loads and at higher speeds, through the mine shaft.
A mine shaft can thus be envisaged as an elevator
well in reverse, going thousands of feet into the
ground.
The mine conveyances are driven from the
surface by means of wire ropes - the only
connection.
Understanding an Elevator
In elevators, the passenger compartment is
raised and lowered by steel traction ropes. The
ropes are attached to the elevator car and
looped around a sheave (3) which can be a drum
or a pulley with grooves around the
circumference. The sheave when rotated makes
the ropes move.
The sheave is connected to an electric motor
(2). The rotation direction of the motor causes
the elevator to go hoist or lower.
The ropes that lift the car are also connected to a
counterweight (4), which hangs on the other
side of the sheave. The purpose of this is to
conserve energy as with the counterweight it
only takes a little bit of force to tip the balance
one way or the other. Both the elevator car and
the counterweight ride on rigid guide rails (5)
along the sides of the elevator shaft.
The sheave, the motor and the control system
(1) are all mostly housed in a machine room
located above the elevator shaft.
 What is a wire Rope ?

Wire rope is a type of rope which consists of several strands of

metal wire laid (or 'twisted') into a helix. Initially wrought iron wires
were used, but today steel with a carbon content of 0.4 to 0.95% is
the main material used for the manufacture of wire ropes.
Wire rope systems are used as a means of transmitting
mechanical power.

Stranded ropes are manufactured in 3 operations:

1. Manufacture of the core (center)
2. Spinning the wires into strands
3. Laying the strands to form the rope
7
Construction of a Wire Rope
wire The wires are the smallest elements which form
the strands.
The strands are helically around the core.
Strand The core forms the foundation for the strands.

Strand

Wire
Rope

Wire Rope
8
 Properties & Types of Wire Ropes
Tensile Strength Wire ropes may be of open spiral or locked
Tensile strength is the strength necessary to types.
withstand a certain maximum load applied to
the rope. Open spiral ropes have round wires with
Crushing Strength
round strands laid helically over
Crushing strength is the strength necessary to a centre.
resist the compressive forces that distort the
cross section of a wire rope, as it runs over Half-locked and full-locked coil ropes
drums under a heavy load.
have a centre made of round wires
• Fatigue Resistance but these ropes have one or more
• Fatigue resistance is the ability to withstand the outer layers made of Z shaped profile
constant bending and flexing of wire rope that wires. This construction prevents the
runs continuously on sheaves and hoist drums.
penetration of dirt and water and it also
• Abrasion Resistance protects the loss of lubricant.
• Abrasion resistance is the ability to withstand
the gradual wearing away of the outer metal, as Another very important advantage is
the rope runs across sheaves and hoist drums.
that the ends of a broken outer wire
stays in place and cannot leave the
rope.
 The Importance of Lubrication in Wire
Ropes
• All wire ropes require consistent maintenance and proper care in
order to remain in good condition and functionally efficient.
• During operation the strands that make up a wire
rope are under constant stress and strain.
• The strands constantly rub against one another
causing friction.
• The friction cause strands to wear.
•The friction heat causes oxidation resulting in high
internal core temperatures which in turn accelerates
rusting and causes premature rope failure.
Proper lubrication reduces the friction, thus
resulting in the full and functional lifespan
of the rope. Besides, the lubricant also
provides total protection against corrosion.
 Wire Rope Lubricants
Wire rope lubricants should perform two principal functions:

1. To reduce friction as the individual wires move over each other.

2. To provide corrosion protection and lubrication in the core and
inside wires and on the exterior surfaces.
• The lubrication treatment during rope manufacture provides the
finished rope with protection for a reasonable period of time
which sustains for the early stages of the rope's working life.
However this lubrication has then to be supplemented, at regular
intervals depending upon the type of rope application.

• In most cases it thus becomes necessary to either thoroughly

clean the rope or to use a high pressure lubrication device which
forces new lubricant into the rope

• LETS NOW SEE A SPECIFIC CASE STUDY … 11

 An ISO 9001:2008, ISO 14001:2004, IS 18001:2007 company

A CASE STUDY IN UCIL’s JADUGUDA MINE

Soon after India’s independence, the
exploration for uranium ore began in
order to meet the requirement of
DELHI uranium for the country’s nuclear
programme.

INDIA
KOLKATA

MUMBAI Bihar
U.P
. DHANBAD
RANCHI
JADUGUDA
JAMSHEDPU GHATSILA
R
ORISSA
CHENNAI

The first find of Uranium was

made at a place called Jaduguda,
in Jharkhand (then Bihar)
URANIUM MINE AT JADUGUDA
JADUGUDA MINE, located in the forested
tribal belt in East Singhbhum district of
Jharkhand, is the FIRST URANIUM MINE
OF THE COUNTRY
It was initially developed to a depth of 315m in
the FIRST STAGE and then deepened to 640m in
the SECOND STAGE. Today after THIRD STAGE of
sinking, it is 905m (almost 3000 feet) deep–
making it one of the deepest mines in the
country.
The entry into the mine is through a vertical shaft
having two conveyances – a double deck cage for
men & materials and a skip for ore transportation.
Both the cage and the skip are balanced with
counterweights. The winders for these are
housed in the 45 m high head frame on surface. A
second underground sub-vertical shaft from
555m depth then provides entry till the final
depth of 905m.
Jaduguda Winding System
The winding system at Jaduguda
Mine comprises of motors,
gearboxes, drums, brakes etc all
housed in a 7.5m diameter and
46m high concrete tower (head
frame) located exactly above the
5m diameter mine shaft. The control
room is located on the surface.
 WIRE ROPES IN JADUGUDA SHAFT
WINDING SYSTEM
The cage (passenger compartment)
movement is by 3 numbers of 20 mm
diameter locked coil wire ropes
balanced with one 41mm tail rope
while the skip travel is by 4 Nos. of 20
mm diameter full locked coil wire
ropes & two 34mm tail ropes. The
cage moves on rails while the skip and
both the counterweights travel on
guide ropes.

There are a total of 8 nos. of guide

ropes all of 41mm diameter, half
locked construction and lengths
varying between 630 to 635 m.

Wire Ropes in Jaduguda Shaft

 GUIDE ROPES
Guide rope Tensioning Weights Guide ropes are used to ensure
that the conveyances travel along a
fixed path from the shaft top to shaft
bottom safely -without fouling or
causing any damage. Rope guides
provide minimal frictional resistance
to the travel of the conveyance with
lesser fatigue and tensile stresses
being imparted to the winding ropes.

Guide ropes are fixed at the shaft top

and tensioned by attaching weights at
the other end located near the
Bottom of the mine shaft.
As guide ropes have to be kept in
tension a value of about 10 kN/100 m
of depth is generally applied.
 GUIDE ROPES FUNCTIONS
Guide ropes are used to ensure
that the conveyances travel along a
fixed path from the shaft top to shaft
bottom safely -without fouling or
causing any damage. Rope guides
provide minimal frictional resistance
to the travel of the conveyance with
lesser fatigue and tensile stresses
being imparted to the winding ropes.
Guide ropes are fixed at the shaft top
and tensioned by attaching weights at
the other end located near the
Bottom of the mine shaft.
As guide ropes have to be kept in
tension a value of about 10 kN/100 m
of depth is generally applied.
Guide ropes are mostly of half-lock construction
with the proviso that the wires of the outer layer
must be of particularly large altitude because of
the wear to be expected.
• Guide ropes should be lubricated in the course
of manufacture with a corrosion - inhibiting
grease or in some cases may be galvanised.
• The tensile strength of the wires is 1140 N/mm -
1570 N/mm .
• It is recommended that where several ropes are
used the tension weights should be staggered by
5% to 10% to avoid resonance.
• Geometric analysis for the best arrangement of
the guide ropes reveals that corner guides give a
greater restoring moment.
 Guide Ropes in Jaduguda Mine
As mentioned earlier there are of 8 nos.
of 41mm diameter guide ropes in
Jaduguda shaft .

One end is fixed on top of the Head

Frame while the other end is tensioned
by weights attached to the guide rope in
the shaft bottom.

41 mm Guide ropes
hanging in
One end is fixed on top of Head Frame Jaduguda shaft
 CHALLENGES IN GUIDE ROPE LUBRICATION
The first major challenge - selecting the proper lubricant
The first step was to assess the properties required from the
lubricant for our stationary guide ropes suspended in the shaft, in
varying environmental conditions. After detailed study we came to
the following conclusions regarding the properties to look for:

a) the lubricant should adhere firmly to the wires and be viscous

enough to resist gravitational forces as the ropes hang vertically.
b) must have water-repellent properties to protect internal and
external surfaces from corrosion
c) should not deteriorate with age, exposure or temperature
changes, e.g. by hardening or cracking.
d) The selected lubricant must be non-corrosive and stable over the
range of temperatures and environmental conditions likely to be
encountered and should not give rise to any by-products which
could attack the metal strands.

Next, the causes of guide rope deterioration were assessed

 Deterioration of Guide Ropes
CAUSES: The deterioration of guide ropes occurs because of two major
reasons: corrosion and abrasion.

Corrosion- causes shortened rope life due to metal loss, pitting and
stress risers from pitting. Proper and adequate lubricant application
in field conditions is the only way to reduce corrosive attack on the
guide rope.
Abrasion- Studies revealed that in guide ropes abrasive wear occurs on
the inside and outside of the ropes. The outside of the rope
accumulates dirt and contaminants from the mine environment
causing 3 body abrasive wear(i.e. foreign hard particles trapped
between two sliding surfaces and abrading one or both surfaces or
embedded in a softer surface and abrading the opposing one and
thereby eroding the outer wires and strands. Abrasive wear can
reduce rope diameter resulting in core failure and internal wire
breakage.
The solution is to apply wire rope lubricants having penetrating
properties to reduce abrasive wear inside the rope and also wash
off the external surfaces to remove contaminants and dirt.
 Zeroing on to the proper lubricant
With the above information detailed discussions were held with
technical representatives of two leading Indian oil companies who
visited our site & saw the application. After study one company
suggested the use of a heavy duty grease while the other proposed
usage of a heavy bodied, adhesive type black lubricant (used for open
gears).
Samples were supplied by both the companies and the respective
lubricant was applied on different guide ropes.
While the application of the heavy duty grease was comparatively easy
but after a few days it was found that some areas of the rope were
exposed with the grease having been washed off. In the second case
(while the high viscous and tackability properties made application
rather difficult) but even after six weeks the lubricant had largely
retained its location with only a minimal amount of downward travel.
 The final selected lubricant
• A small sample of this lubricant was scraped off the rope and given
for testing. Test results revealed only marginal differences in
kinematic viscosity and specific gravity with external dust particles
clinging on to the rope surface but without any internal ingress.
• This lubricant was procured, applied on all the 8 guide ropes and kept
under close visual inspection. With no negative fallouts over a period
of time, this lubricant became our standard lube for all guide ropes.
• The lubricant is a heavy bodied, adhesive type black bitumen based
lubricant which (as per data sheets) has been formulated using
extremely refined steam cylinder oils having good thermal and
chemical stability. It has a kinematic viscosity of 200-250 cSt at 40 °C.
• The bituminous component has been providing a long lasting lube
film and excellent adhesiveness with minimal throw off. This lube has
protected the guide ropes against rusting and has provided effective
resistance against water, which drips in the shaft.
• The lubricant’s adhesive property has resulted in applications in small
quantities thus actually reducing lubrication cost.
 CHALLENGES IN GUIDE ROPE LUBRICATION
The second major challenge - selecting the proper
method of application
The proper and even application of very high viscosity
lubricants on guide ropes is a problem being faced in all
deep mines.
The major problem is that unlike other ropes which travel,
guide ropes are stationary and run all through the shaft
depth. Thus either there should be a device which
can travel along the rope and lubricate automatically
or else a person/s should travel on cage or skip tops to
access the guide rope and lubricate the ropes manually.
 Mechanical Method of Application.
Over the years we at UCIL have tried out
some mechanical methods of application.
A short write-up on a mechanical method
tried out a few years ago is explained and
the reason why it had to be abandoned.
• The system comprised of a high pressure
air pump with flow controlling valve, ball
valve, drum cover, flow control value,
follower plate, flexible hoses, lubricating
chamber and anchoring chains.
• The air supply to the pump had to be
atleast 8 bar. Split seals were fitted around
the rope and clamped in placed by the two
halves of the lubricating chamber. The unit
was anchored by two chains to some
stationary object. The pump was started
and the wire rope was to be pulled
through the Lubricator.
 The failure of this method
The lubricant under high pressure penetrated, cleaned and lubricated the
wire rope but it was noticed that in order to obtain total penetration
through the rope the pressure required in the chamber was actually much
higher - around 20 bar.

The reasons for the failure of this method was as follows:

• In this system the rope had to be pulled through the lubricator for
lubrication to take place. This was not possible in case of guide ropes
which were fixed and stationary. An attachment was thus made by fixing
the lubricator to the edge of the conveyance with the seals clamped to the
adjoining guide ropes and the conveyance was made to move downwards
or upwards. However this method was only possible till a few meters from
the ground level as with the compressors being located on the surface, it
was impossible to supply high pressurized air to the pump due to hose
length restrictions.

• With such high pressures being encountered it also became a potential

risk for persons standing on the mine conveyance very close to the
machine in a restricted area and operating the lubricator.
 Manual Lubrication
Thus in spite of the general
assumption that lubricating with
the aid of brushes, rags, gloves or by
other means is costly, risky and not
very effective, the good old hand
application method has still proved to
be the most convenient in UCIL.

If the rope is dirty or has

accumulated layers of hardened
lubricant or other contaminants, it is
cleaned with a wire brush and solvent
before re-lubrication. The wire rope is
then dried and lubricated immediately
to prevent rusting.
 Precautions while lubricating guide ropes
Although the lubricant does not contain
any hazardous ingredient but mild eye
and skin irritations have been observed at
times.

As such all personnel involved in lubrication

wear nitrile rubber gloves, aprons, rubber
shoes and goggles (although due to humid
underground conditions these have to be
occasionally cleaned as they become foggy.

Lubrication is carried out by at least two

persons on a rotational basis who are
advised to take occasional breaks at a fresh
air base.
 WRAPPING UP….
• Proper lubrication of guide ropes with the correct lubricant can
result in the long life of guide ropes and prevent unforeseen
problems, provided correct maintenance practices are followed
and regular inspections are carried out.
• Hence all personnel involved in lubrication should have a
passion to perform without considering the job to be dirty or
demeaning.
• Believe me its easier said than done & its for those occasions
that the passion to love one’s job – should be instilled.
 SO ITS VERY IMPORTANT-TO TEACH ALL
PERSONNEL TO LOVE THEIR JOBS
Remember the famous words of Mother
Teresa when she said:
“God doesn't look at how much we do, but
with how much love we do it”

THESE WORDS ECHO THE ESSENCE OF PROPER LUBRICATION

THANK YOU