Barrick Peru has selected the CiDRA SONARtrac system for a critical chemical reagent line within the Lagunas Norte gold mine. CiDRA’s non-invasive SONARtrac system is a new class of industrial flowmeter, utilising measurement principles that are distinct from all other flowmeter technologies operating in the mining industry, and will measure flow on a collector discharge line running from the filter presses to the barren solution tank. The SONARtrac flowmeter is capable of operating on pipes with or without internal linings, and is completely insensitive to internal pressure, making it easy to install in the most desirable locations for flow measurements.

An invasive meter would require Barrick to stop the line and change the meter, incurring considerable cost and time as it may take a day or more to stop a line and drain it in preparation for opening the line for service. The installation of the SONARtrac meter also saved time and money as it did not require the use of a crane, despite the large size of the meter.

The mine is located on the Alto Chicama of north-central Peru and lies on the western flank of the Peruvian Andes at an elevation of 4,000 to 4,260 m above sea level. The Lagunas Norte mine is an open-pit, crush, valley-fill leach operation.