Advanced Mining Safety: Real-Time Gas Monitoring and Emergency Response System

Abstract

As we know coal mine are hazardous as it contain harmful gasses like carbon monoxide methane etc. Also we need to take care of the surrounding temperature and humidity of the mine. Along with, it is necessary to also continuous monitor the health of workers of the mine like pulse rate, rate of oxygen in blood for which we have used various type of sensors to make this system work more efficient along with that we also have integrated the buzzer which will give signal to the main control room via Wi-Fi as we have used ESP8266 microcontroller to communicate through the mines.

Introduction

Coal mining is a vital industry providing energy but involves hazardous environments due to toxic and flammable gases like carbon monoxide (CO) and methane (CH?), as well as varying temperature and humidity. These conditions pose risks such as explosions, asphyxiation, and health issues for workers. Therefore, a real-time monitoring system is essential to ensure miner safety and prevent accidents.

System Overview:
The proposed system integrates three key functions—gas detection, environmental monitoring, and worker health monitoring—managed by an ESP8266 microcontroller. This setup continuously measures hazardous gases, mine environmental conditions, and vital signs of workers, providing real-time alerts and communication to a control room.

Sensors Used:

• MQ7 Sensor: Detects carbon monoxide gas levels.

• MQ4 Sensor: Detects methane gas concentrations to prevent explosions.

• DHT11 Sensor & DS18B20: Measure temperature and humidity inside the mine.

• MAX30100 Sensor: Monitors worker pulse rate and blood oxygen levels (SpO?) to detect health risks.

• ESP8266 Microcontroller: Processes sensor data, compares against safety thresholds, triggers alerts, and transmits information via Wi-Fi to the control room.

Data Processing and Alerts:
The microcontroller compares real-time sensor data against predefined safety limits. If dangerous gas levels, extreme environmental conditions, or abnormal health signs are detected, it triggers audible alarms and sends alerts to the control room for immediate action.

Communication & Monitoring:
Wi-Fi enables continuous data transmission to a remote control center. A ThingSpeak dashboard provides real-time visualization of sensor readings, facilitating quick responses.

Testing & Results:
The system underwent controlled environment testing to ensure sensor accuracy, proper threshold calibration (based on OSHA standards), rapid alert response, and stable Wi-Fi communication. Initial results showed reliable detection of CO levels, with alerts triggered if dangerous thresholds were exceeded.

Conclusion

This project presents a real-time monitoring system for coal mines that combines gas detection, environmental monitoring, and worker health tracking to improve mine safety. Using sensors like the MQ7 for carbon monoxide, MQ4 for methane, DHT11 for temperature and humidity, and MAX30102 for pulse and oxygen levels, the system continuously checks for hazardous conditions and health risks. When dangerous levels are detected, alerts are sent to both miners on-site and a control room via the ESP8266 Wi- Fi module, ensuring quick responses. Although testing showed high accuracy, challenges like sensor drift, Wi-Fi signal issues, and environmental effects on health monitoring sensors suggest that periodic maintenance and improvements are needed. Future enhancements include predictive analysis and better sensors for better measurements

References

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Copyright

Copyright © 2025 Kiran Ingale, Aditya Kale, Sanika Kadam, Vedika Kadam, Venkatesh Korde. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.