As part of the work the high-pressure sorptomat - a novel apparatus for sorption tests under conditions of high gas pressure was developed. The sorption measurement is carried out using the volumetric method, and the precise gas flow pressure regulator is used in the device to ensure isobaric conditions and regulate the sorption pressure in the range of 0-10 MPa. The uniqueness and high precision of sorption measurements with the constructed apparatus are ensured by the parallel use of many pressure sensors with a wide measurement range as well as high precision of measurement - due to the use of precise pressure sensors. The obtained results showed, i.a. that the time of reaching the isobaric conditions of the measurement is about 6-7 seconds and it is so short that it can be considered a quasi-step initiation of sorption processes. Moreover, the results of the measurement pressure stabilization tests, during the CO ₂ sorption test on activated carbon, have shown that the built-in pressure regulator works correctly and ensures isobaric sorption measurement conditions with the precision of pressure stabilization of ±1% of the measurement pressure. The maximum range of sorption measurement using the high-pressure sorptomat is 0-86400 cm ³/g, and the maximum measurement uncertainty is ±2% of the measured value. The activated carbon sample used for the tests was characterized by a high sorption capacity, reaching 104.4 cm ³/g at a CO ₂ pressure of 1.0 MPa.

Rock and gas outburst is a phenomenon in which fragmented rock material is transported deep into a pit. The transport of rock material by gas is a two-phase process. The article deals with the fluidisation of rock material. Considerations on the fluidisation phenomenon were carried out, and experiments were performed to help clarify whether the fluidisation of dolomite is possible. In the last chapter, a discussion was carried out, and the results obtained were analysed regarding the possibility of occurrence in mine conditions.

The article discusses the validation process of a certain method of balancing gas contained in the pore space of rocks. The validation was based upon juxtaposition of the examination of rocks’ porosity and the effects of comminution in terms of assessing the possibility of opening the pore space. The tests were carried out for six dolomite samples taken from different areas of the ‘Polkowice-Sieroszowice’ copper mine in Poland. Prior to the grinding process, the rocks’ porosity fell in the range of 0.3-14.8%, while the volume of the open pores was included in the 0.01-0.06 cm3/g range. The grinding process was performed using an original device – the GPR analyzer. The SEM analysis revealed pores of various size and shape on the surface of the rock cores, while at the same time demonstrating lack of pores following the grinding process. The grain size distribution curves were compared with the cumulative pore volume curves of the cores before grinding. In order to confirm the argument put forward in this paper – i.e. that comminution of a rock to grains of a size comparable with the size of the rock’s pores results in the release of gas contained in the pore space – the amount of gas released as a result of the comminution process was studied. The results of gas balancing demonstrated that the pore space of the investigated dolomites was filled with gas in amounts from 3.19 cm3/kg to 45.86 cm3/kg. The obtained results of the rock material comminution to grains comparable – in terms of size – to the size of the pores of investigated rocks, along with asserting the presence of gas in the pore space of the studied dolomites, were regarded as a proof that the method of balancing gas in rocks via rock comminution is correct.

The paper presents research on the influence of grain size of selected coals and their structural parameters on the diffusion coefficient and methane sorption isotherms. Two coals from Polish hard coal mines, differing in the coal rank, were tested. Sorption isotherms for methane were determined. An unconventional sequence of pressures 0→0.1→0→0.5→0→1.5 MPa was employed to assess the speed of achieving sorption equilibrium at different pressures. The studies of CH4 accumulation kinetics were performed on various grain classes of the tested coals. Both the sorption capacity of coal and the diffusion coefficient proved to be highly sensitive to the experimental methodology. Critical measurement parameters in terms of determining the diffusion coefficient concerning the assumptions of the Crank model were indicated. The influence of the equivalent radius of coal grain on the process kinetics was demonstrated. The stepwise pressure increase factor was examined in the context of minimising the impact of sorption isotherm non-linearity on the results. The importance of the width of the grain class of coals was determined to reduce their maceral inhomogeneities. These factors are the most common reason that makes it difficult to quantitatively compare diffusion coefficient values.