Black damp

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Black damp, also known as stythe or choke damp is a mixture of nitrogen and carbon dioxide found in some coal mines. This gaseous mixture has low concentrations of oxygen and can thus act as an asphyxiant gas, suffocating miners. In addition to its danger to miners within the cave, black damp can be "exhaled" in large quantities from mines and cause asphyxiation on the surface.^[1]. The name black damp is believed to derive from the German word for vapors (dampf). The word damp is used in similar mining terms such as white damp (carbon monoxide), fire damp (typically methane), and stink damp (hydrogen sulfide).