#mineral_processing #data #economy
Friends, colleagues, hello everyone!
Martine Mshana has inviteted me in the Mining Life group, one of the goals of which, as I understand it, is to share real stories based on work experience. I fully support this initiative and sincerely hope that other colleagues will join us.
Accordingly, I would like to share one interesting experience from my own practice. Once, I conducted a technological audit at one of the processing plants. At that time, one of the main problems at the enterprise was the high circulating load in the grinding-classification circuit. The flowchart was a classical one — grinding in an SAG mill with a discharge screen (shown in the diagram).
It turned out that the circulation issue was directly related to the granulometric composition of the hydrocyclone feed (HC) due to the use of the screen in the 1st stage:
The particle size of the HC feed was within a wide range (-25 + 0 mm).
The predominant fractions were coarse particles (-25 + 5 mm) and fine ones (-0.150 + 0 mm).
The undersize product of the screen was not only coarse but also very abrasive, with irregular sharp-edged shapes, which significantly impacted the wear of sand nozzles and complicated process control.
As a result, the theoretically correct calculation of the energy required to grind ore pieces in the ball mill did not match the real working conditions due to the mill being filled with a large volume of pulp containing fine particles and a high flow rate. The solution to this problem was achieved only by changing the technological scheme, implementing a second hydrocycloning operation, and coarsening the discharge in the 1st stage.
What I would like to highlight with this example is that theoretical calculations (especially regarding granulometric characteristics) are often based on the assumption of a normal distribution (standard composition curves, etc.) and do not consider the influence of subsequent operations, particularly in cyclic circuits. To reduce project commissioning time, technical requirements are formed, and equipment is ordered based on characteristics that differ from those incorporated into the initial technological solutions. All of this ultimately leads to higher OPEX, failure to achieve design parameters, and the inability to improve operational efficiency.
Technology is interconnected, and at each stage, it requires maximum involvement of specialists in the process, including during and after procurement procedures. A project is a "single organism" that demands a comprehensive approach and evaluation at all stages; the technology must be “complete”, as should its execution!
What do you think?
Occupational Hygiene Officer at WorkSafeBC
7moProud to be a small part of this during my years at UBC! I’m glad to see that it’s finally available for BC miners,