Tag Archives: ABB

ABB to highlight energy-saving potential of electric motors and VSDs with new digital service

Environmental, Mining equipment, Mining services, Sustainable mining, , , , , , ,

A new digital service from ABB will, the company says, enable industrial operators to maximise energy efficiency and boost sustainability by identifying motor-driven equipment in their facilities with the best energy-saving potential.

The ABB Ability Digital Powertrain Energy Appraisal service will draw on data measured from fleets of digitally connected electric motors and variable speed drives (VSDs) to show where and how much energy can be saved by upgrading to the latest high-efficiency technologies. Industrial operators can then make data-driven decisions when prioritising investments, the company says.

Upgrading to energy-efficient technology is one of the simplest and most cost-effective ways to lower energy consumption and associated greenhouse gas emissions, ABB says. Across the world’s 300 million industrial motor-driven systems, there is potential to cut global electricity demand by up to 10% by switching to high-efficiency systems.

“The challenge for an industrial operator is knowing where to start in a fleet of hundreds of electrical motors,” Adrian Guggisberg, Division President of ABB Motion Services, says. “ABB developed the new Digital Powertrain Energy Appraisal service to provide clarity by analysing motor data and identifying where businesses should focus investment to maximise energy-efficiency gains that reduce operating costs and CO2 emissions.”

Traditionally, an energy efficiency appraisal requires time-consuming manual collection and evaluation of data and covers only the largest motor-driven systems on a site as these are typically seen as having most potential for saving energy, ABB says. However, this could overlook significant energy-saving opportunities for electric powertrains that are smaller, less accessible or where energy-saving potential is not obvious.

The new digital appraisal service uses a plug-and-play approach to simplify energy efficiency assessments by pulling operational data remotely from across an entire fleet of digitally-connected motors. This provides much deeper insight into the business case and carbon footprint benefits of upgrading to high-efficiency motor-driven systems, while being much safer and faster.

Boliden on mining’s differentiation pathway

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When Mikael Staffas joins a panel on stage at the EIT Raw Materials Summit in Berlin, Germany, to discuss building a world-leading raw materials industry for Europe next month, he will be able to reference more than a few examples of sector excellence from his own company.

The Sweden-based mining and metals company has been leading from the front for decades, leveraging new and innovative technology, employing a more diverse workforce and engaging local stakeholders and regulators in a manner viewed as progressive from peers across the globe.

Gaining recognition from your mining company peers is one thing but gaining it from the public and EU-based decision makers is something altogether different.

According to Staffas, CEO of the company, the latest summit, which takes place on May 23-25, is part of a series of actions and events slowly getting these two groups to understand the importance of raw materials and the companies that produce them.

“We are moving this industry away from a perception that we are part of the problem, to an environment where we are seen to be part of the solution,” he told IM.

Staffas says the raw materials industry has been viewed as fundamentally important to Europe for several years in terms of tackling the climate change challenge – which will be reinforced at the summit – but the “regionalisation of economies” that has been brought about by COVID and the more recent geopolitical situation means this importance has, once again, been reinforced.

Within this context, Staffas is due to discuss at the event the fundamental need for copper and nickel in the energy transition. He will also shine a light on the importance of lead and zinc in this evolving landscape.

Boliden, through its mines and smelters in Finland, Sweden, Norway and Ireland, is a producer of all four of these metals. It can also add gold, silver, sulphuric acid, cobalt and palladium to the list.

As the general population is beginning to understand the importance of these raw materials and metals to their future, Boliden is trying to differentiate its own offering from the rest of its peers.

Not satisfied with simply matching the industry’s carbon emission and net zero goals to 2030 and beyond, Boliden has laid the gauntlet down to the rest of its competitors by registering two new products: Low-Carbon Copper and Low-Carbon Zinc.

The formula for these two low-carbon products is based on the production of finished metal, from cradle to gate, that has emissions of less than 1.5 t of CO2 per tonne of copper, compared with the global average of around 4 t of CO2 per tonne. For zinc, the threshold is even lower – less than 1 t of CO2 emissions per tonne of zinc, compared with the industry average of 2.5 t.

To this point, the introduction of both products has resulted in a slim premium over other products on the market, but Staffas still deems the launches as successful.

“The point was to differentiate our products, with many people expected to receive this differentiation,” he said.

The customers represented just one set of recipients, but Staffas said these new products also play into the ‘licence to operate’ equation, as well as discussions with authorities and non-governmental organisations.

The intention was to also lay down a benchmark the rest of the industry could start to use or discuss, he added.

Boliden’s carbon dioxide calculations include emissions along the entire value chain up to the customer according to the Scope 1, 2 and 3 Greenhouse Gas Protocol Product Life Cycle, following the ISO 14064-3 standard.

“While this might not be the only way to measure CO2, we think it is the best one,” Staffas said. “We are trying to force the industry to adopt a common way of measuring the CO2 footprint.”

This has led some of Boliden’s customers to enquire about how much embedded CO2 is in competitor zinc and copper products, ensuring the discussion spreads throughout the industry.

The obvious intention of devising such products is price, but Staffas said they also provide protection.

“When things get bad from an economical perspective, these products could really make a difference,” he said. “The customers might not pay extra for them, but if they scale down their purchases, our contracts should be the last to be cancelled.”

Staffas says Boliden is also aiming to add nickel and lead to its suite of low-carbon products in the future.

“Nickel is a special case for us as we don’t produce finished nickel; we produce a nickel matte,” he said. “We may team up with a refinery to make a joint product or do something else to ensure we can quantify the emissions according to our chosen protocols.

“Whichever way this development goes, we have to ensure we cover cradle-to-gate with these calculations otherwise it is not a true representation of the embedded carbon in that product.”

Electrification

While quantifying the carbon emissions of products is still relatively new in mining and smelting, Boliden has been using a carbon price in its internal technical studies and projections for close to a decade now.

It has been leveraging electrified sources of power for even longer. For instance, its Rönnskär copper smelter in Sweden has been using an electric oven since the 1990s.

More recently, the company has added trolley assist at Aitik and Kevitsa to this electrified base and employed ventilation on demand and heat exchangers at underground mines (the former) and smelters (the latter) to optimise its energy use.

It also has plans for underground trolley-battery haulage operation at its Rävliden (part of Kristineberg) project in Sweden through a project with Epiroc and ABB, while it is conducting a battery-electric vehicle loading trial at the Garpenberg mine, also in Sweden, with Sandvik. On the transport side, the company has recently teamed up with Scania to electrify part of its heavy-duty road transport in northern Sweden.

“It is one thing to review where we started; it is another to look at where we are going,” Staffas said on this topic. “We are planning to get better and better and go on to reduce our CO2 footprint further.”

On its way to achieving a goal of reducing its carbon dioxide intensity by 40% by 2030, the company is also looking at, among other levers, its use of explosives and cement: two key scope 3 inputs.

Staffas is confident Boliden can hit these ambitious goals by leveraging the innovation ecosystem within the Nordic region.

“For the CO2 journey we are now on, the Nordic mining cluster has and will continue to be very important,” he said. “We have big suppliers like Epiroc, Sandvik, Metso Outotec, ABB, Volvo and Scania on our doorstep. They have always worked closely with us, and we work closely with them on joint development projects.

“I think that is the main reason we are so far ahead of our competitors when it comes to our use of technology and innovation, and why we are confident in achieving our ambitious climate goals.”

Etteplan on board Epiroc’s Minetruck MT42 battery-trolley project

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Finland-based engineering firm, Etteplan says it is collaborating with Epiroc to enable fossil free underground heavy transportation without interruptions and, more specifically, helping redesign its Minetruck MT42 Battery into an electric trolley system.

As part of a strategic partnership project that started in 2021, Etteplan’s offices in Finland and Sweden are providing what it says are crucial resources and expertise in the development, helping secure a timely progress of the project. It is providing technical expertise for battery technology, machine electrification, electrical design, system requirements and safety risk assessment.

Last year, Epiroc, for its part, announced a collaboration with ABB and Boliden to develop an all electric battery trolley truck system based on the MT42 Battery truck for underground mining, with the trio planning to demonstrate the system on a test track in the underground polymetallic Kristineberg mine in Sweden.

For Epiroc, the trolley truck project is one of the initiatives to meet its ambitious sustainability targets and forms part of its electrification journey, Etteplan said. The new battery-electric Minetruck MT42 trolley will still be equipped with a battery and, in addition, it will be recharged on the fly via an overhead catenary wire through a pantograph, similar to a trolley bus.

Anders Svensson, Director, Service Solutions at Etteplan’s Engineering Solutions, said: “Globally, electrification of equipment is a major trend in mining, where most vehicles are currently powered by diesel engines. Therefore, the industry needs new types of competences and skill sets that we are ready to cater for. Jointly developed procedures together with major manufacturers such as Epiroc ensure that we address strategically important electrification challenges in a competitive way.”

Etteplan has worked with Epiroc, previously part of Atlas Copco, for over 20 years, and the project aligns with Etteplan’s electrification vision while showcasing how it works closely with customers to enhance their battery performance and functionality in different industries.

ABB to deliver highest payload Koepe production hoist to OZ Minerals’ Prominent Hill

Base metals, Mine operation news, Mine shafts and equipment, Mining services, Precious metals, , ,

ABB says it has won a large order for its highest payload Koepe production hoist, associated infrastructure and safety systems from Australia-based mining company OZ Minerals.

The contract will help to ensure efficient processing performance and a long service life as part of an ongoing $400 million expansion at the Prominent Hill mine in South Australia.

The hoist, which will be designed and supplied by ABB, has a capacity of 39,400 kg and the strongest drivetrain that ABB has ever installed in Australia. ABB specialists will also supervise installation and commissioning.

OZ Minerals’ gold, silver and copper mine began operations in 2009 as an open-pit mine, but it is now an underground mine producing 4.5 Mt/y, moving to between 4.5 Mt/t and 5 Mt/y from 2022 via a trucking operation. The hoisting shaft provides access to mineral resources outside the current trucking mine plan that would have been uneconomical via a trucking operation from around 2033, ABB said.

Installing the Wira shaft will increase the annual underground mining rate, extend the mine life, reduce operating costs, lower emissions intensity, and reduce overall operational risk, according to OZ Minerals.

ABB has been awarded the last four mine hoists installed in Australia.

“The project is important for the country’s mining industry and metals security,” Stuart Cowie, Head of Process Industries, ABB Australia, said. “The local supply chain and workforce also relies on the mine and at ABB we’re enabling it to continue for several more years with increased safety, higher production rates and lower emissions.”

Once operational, the installation at Prominent Hill will have ABB Ability™ Safety Plus for hoists, a suite of mine hoist safety products that brings the highest level of personnel and equipment safety available to the mining industry, the company said. It is the first fully SIL 3 (Safety Integrity Level) certified suite of solutions for hoists, rigorously examined and certified by an independent global functional safety certifying body, and strictly developed in accordance with the International “Safety of Machinery” standard IEC62061, the company said.

The products include Safety Plus Hoist Monitor (SPHM), Safety Plus Hoist Protector (SPHP) and Safety Plus Brake System (SPBS) including Safety Brake Hydraulics (SBH).

ABB to help Savannah with move towards carbon-neutral lithium production at Barroso

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ABB and Savannah Resources have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to explore industrial automation and smart electrification solutions for the development of the Barroso lithium project in northern Portugal.

Under the early-stage agreement, ABB will apply its technical expertise to outline production control and process solutions for lithium concentrate production and integrated spodumene mining operations in line with Savannah’s target of zero emission operations by 2030.

Barroso is 143 km northeast of Porto and is Europe’s largest known resource of hard-rock spodumene. Savannah’s objective is to develop an operation producing premium, carbon-neutral lithium concentrate as a strategic raw material in Europe’s electric vehicle battery supply chain. Local electricity, produced mainly from hydro, solar and wind energy with zero carbon emissions, would be used to provide power to the project.

ABB says its technology solutions are well aligned and would maximise the use of the renewable energy and electrification to move the project towards carbon-neutral production.

Savannah is focused on responsible development of Barroso by using 238 individual measures to eliminate or mitigate environmental impacts. These measures will be included in the definitive feasibility study on the project, which Savannah is currently completing. This will also incorporate the actions from the current project decarbonisation study, which supports Savannah’s commitment to target a zero emission operation by 2030 or earlier.

Just last month, Savannah signed an agreement with ECOPROGRESSO − Quadrante Group − a Portuguese consultant in environmental, sustainability, climate change and resources management to lead on the creation of a decarbonisation strategy for Barroso.

“ABB is at the forefront of the automation and electrification that is required for our decarbonisation journey,” David Archer, CEO of Savannah, said. “We are pleased to have their expertise as we continue to execute on our decarbonisation strategy to build Europe’s first lithium spodumene production facility, as a critical supplier of low carbon raw materials for more sustainable batteries.”

Frederik Esterhuizen, Hub Manager Central and South Europe & Australia, Process Industries, ABB, said: “The development of Savannah’s Barroso lithium project provides us with an additional opportunity to showcase ABB’s leadership in industrial automation and smart electrification in Europe, applied towards key operations for the emerging European battery supply chain. This is another step as we continue to enable more sustainable and fossil fuel free industrial operations.”

ABB will also work towards binding agreements with Savannah in relation to the electrification, automation and digital solutions in the future.

Epiroc shows off sustainability credentials in another record quarter

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In a quarter characterised by high customer activity and a strong demand for aftermarket services, Epiroc had another reason to be positive with the validation of its 2030 sustainability goals by the influential Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).

Further records were broken in the December quarter – this time it was revenue (coming in at SEK11.1 billion (US$1.19 billion) and operating profit (coming in at SEK2.59 billion) – as the company continued to benefit from its in-house efficiency programs; value-added automated, electric and digitalised offering; and strong order pipeline.

At the same time, Epiroc’s sustainability credentials were shown off for the world to see between October 1 and December 31.

In addition to the SBTi validation, over this period, the company laid out plans at its Capital Markets Day for its third battery-electric retrofit project, the Minetruck MT436B; secured its first order for Scooptram ST1030 battery conversion kits from Evolution Mining’s Red Lake gold operations in Canada (on top of the delivery of new ST14 Battery LHDs); extended its range of flexible charging products for battery-electric mining equipment; and announced a project with Boliden and ABB to develop a next-generation battery trolley setup for the Kristineberg mine in Sweden.

The only thing that was missing from this packed three-month period was the launch of a brand-new battery-electric machine, yet this will come. Epiroc has plans to electrify its full fleet of underground load and haul equipment by 2025 – including battery-electric retrofit solutions for its existing diesel fleet – alongside electrifying its surface fleet by 2030.

In line with SBTi requirements, Epiroc is committing to halve its absolute CO2 emissions in its own operations – so called Scope 1 and Scope 2 – by 2030, with 2019 as base year. However, more than 99% of Epiroc’s total CO2 emissions are other indirect emissions, with about 83% of the total coming from when customers use the products. It has, therefore, committed to halve the absolute CO2 emissions from use of sold products – so called Scope 3 – by 2030.

“This is industry leading and well above SBTi’s minimum requirements,” Epiroc said of the Scope 3 target. “The transition from diesel-powered to battery-electric machines will make a significant impact.”

Does this mean Epiroc will turn off the diesel-powered taps at a certain point, saying it will only supply electric equipment to customers?

Mattias Olsson, Senior VP of Corporate Communications, says no such action is planned, explaining that these Scope 3 targets align broadly with its mining customer base’s own CO2 emission cut goals. The majors all have plans to decarbonise their operations, with the most ambitious looking to hit net zero in 2030-2035. Codelco, for example, plans to electrify all its underground operations by 2030.

Demand for this equipment is bound to be high, which is where Epiroc’s retrofit program could become crucial.

Designed to allow miners an ‘entry point’ into cutting emissions underground through its in-demand midlife rebuild program, Olsson said supply of these machines could accelerate the industry’s electrification uptake and provide quicker access to zero emissions equipment compared with the long lead times that come with new battery-electric machines.

In a market that is becoming increasingly crowded, such an option may differentiate Epiroc from the rest of its peers, in the process, helping it achieve its ambitious goals to help keep global warming at a maximum 1.5° C.

ABB adds cloud functionality, app use to Ability Predictive Maintenance for grinding

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ABB has released a new version of ABB Ability™ Predictive Maintenance for grinding which allows users to obtain real-time notifications on gearless mill drive (GMD) systems from a mobile app.

The upgrade also means that ABB Ability Predictive Maintenance for grinding is now cloud-based instead of sited on premises.

The Grinding Connect mobile app, available for iOS and Android, allows mine operators to monitor performance at any time and from any place.

“ABB Ability Predictive Maintenance for grinding provides easy access to GMD system parameters and allows visualisation of performance considering past activity and real-time data and assesses future maintenance requirements,” ABB said. “It aims to extend the lifetime of grinding assets through better use of resources and to support non-stop operation and to avoid unforeseen downtime.”

The update facilitates greater data gathering, according to the company, with the data sample per mine increased and analytics and trends more reliably defined. The solution offers a new user experience with fully customisable dashboards, alarms and events all available on the mobile app.

ABB says GMDs are the preferred grinding solution at mines characterised by higher-capacity production and low-grade ores. By eliminating bolt-on mechanical components such as ring-gears, pinions, couplings and gearboxes, GMDs offer ore producers unrivalled availability, efficiency and durability, while reducing operating costs, according to the company.

Angeles Fernandez, Global Product Manager for Grinding Service in mining at ABB, said: “A gearless mill drive is a major investment and its availability is essential for the process. Unscheduled shutdowns and system failures can lead to significant losses in production.

“ABB Ability Predictive Maintenance for grinding is a state-of-the-art service for analysing system data, assessing the current condition of the equipment and applying predictive methods. The new version is unique in the market and the new Grinding Connect app means you can check that your GMD is performing through your phone or tablet – it is as familiar as the many personal apps we use for monitoring our health, catching up with the news, or checking on the home or children.”

The world’s first gearless mill drive was delivered by ABB in 1969 and is still in operation. Since then, the company has sold more than 150 units in 23 countries and currently has over 50% market share.

Amira Industry 4.0 interoperability project highlights ‘digital mine’ opportunities

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Independent global not for profit organisation, Amira, says its global members are set to reap significant benefits from the finalisation of the Industry 4.0 interoperability project P1208 undertaken in Perth, Western Australia.

The Interoperability Enablement for Natural Resources project concluded in November and was sponsored by miners South32, Fortescue Metals Group and Gold Fields Australia.

The Amira project, which was conducted at the University of Western Australia’s Energy & Resources Digital Interoperability Industry 4.0 (UWA ERDi I4.0) TestLab, was designed to realise “the digital mine”, which requires mature interoperability standards to improve information flow.

The project ran multiple proofs-of-concept using interoperability standards (ISA-95/IEC 62264 and B2MML v7.0 (plus process centric event extensions)) that were originally developed to support the manufacturing industry.

These standards had benefited from many years of work (originally with contributions from BHP and continued by ETP and vendors such as RPMGlobal) in enhancing the standards to support mining requirements.

The resulting updated standards were used in P1208 as a means of exchanging information between common mining software packages from Datamine, ABB, AVEVA, RPMGlobal, Wenco and Manufacturing Intelligence. Each of these vendors played a critical part in the project’s success, according to Amira.

Managing Director at Enterprise Transformation Partners (ETP) and the P1208 Project Lead, John Kirkman, said the project was highly successful, demonstrating manufacturing standards could be adapted and used across various mining methods and commodities.

“In terms of benefits, miners should first note ‘interoperability’ is simply a means to an end, with that end being optimal management of their operations,” Kirkman said.

“By enhancing the core specialist software packages used by geologists, mine planners, mine execution/control, materials tracking and maintenance personnel, etc to work together as if they were always engineered to do so, you are thereby implementing the cornerstone of automating and optimising the processes used to manage your mining operations.

“This is just one of the reasons why interoperability is one of only three core pillars of the Industry 4.0 vision as the idea of achieving highly automated and optimised operations without interoperability is simply not viable.

“Industry 4.0 also recognise ISA-95/IEC 62264 as the standard for supporting modular operations management interoperability, while also recognising OPC-UA as the standard for level 2 (machine/process control) interoperability.”

Benefits of Industry 4.0

Kirkman said Industry 4.0 solutions remove a significant amount of manual effort that are currently an accepted part of the mining process.

“This, in turn, increases data quality by eliminating manual entry errors and aligning semantics, improves timeliness of access to new information and enables users to spend more of their time on the quality of their work,” he said.

“This enables the automated capabilities of the software packages to be fully utilised and opens opportunities for the vendors to develop additional high value automated decision support capabilities within their software packages.”

During the course of the P1208 project, this was most clearly and broadly demonstrated via the materials inventory tracking/management software packages, which were able to automatically receive material movement events (from fleet management systems and fixed plant) and material sample analysis results events (from a Lab Information Management System) and update block and stockpile quantities and grade, then send the updated block and stockpile quantities and grade to a mine planning software packages and data warehouse, all without any user intervention.

“With respect to major successes, the fact that we have been able to demonstrate that standards exist that are able to be applied to mining software packages that can exchange information regardless of what commodity you are mining, by whatever mining method, using whatever equipment, whether you are an open pit or underground mine and also supporting multiple areas of the value chain (ie geology, drilling, blasting, mining, processing, railing, port and shipping) is significant,” Kirkman said.

“With P1208, we have successfully demonstrated that standards do exist and that they can be applied to mining with great success and that miners can now begin to include the application of interoperability in their improvement/transformation strategies and, as a result, maximise their return on investment from future technology projects.”

Interoperability in action

Kirkman said this was exciting news for mining companies looking to make technology investments that have a much higher likelihood of achieving a meaningful return on investment.

Project sponsor Gold Fields Australia took part in the AMIRA P1208 demonstrations sessions at the UWA ERDi I4.0 TestLab in Perth, Australia, recently, examining how interoperability in the mine plan, scheduling, execution, and materials and tracking functions can improve performance.

One of the sponsors said: “I don’t think many mining companies really appreciate the magnitude of the inefficiencies and lost opportunities that exist in a typical mine as a result of systems not working together; I think it’s almost just accepted as we have no other choice today.

“The Amira project has really shone a light on this area and demonstrated how interoperability can significantly improve the way of working across the business.

“To witness schedules being published from one vendor’s software and being received by multiple other vendors’ software, and the same again with actuals and inventory balance updates in real-time, is quite exciting and even more so when you consider that none of the vendors worked directly together; they just applied the standard interfaces to their software under the guidance of the ETP/ERDi team and it all works.”

The ETP team and various vendors involved in P1208 are already implementing these solutions into an open-pit and an underground mine further validating the work, with case studies likely to be produced through 2022.

The ERDi TestLab has noted a recent uptick in interest from both Australia-based and overseas mining companies, which bodes well for the vendors whom can now take advantage of their investment in interoperable solutions.

The ERDi team has already commenced work to extend these solutions across asset management and maintenance, fleet management/autonomous haulage solutions to machines and open process control interoperability via integration of OPAS-based solutions from the Coalition of Open Process Automation (COPA), who have together built the world’s first commercially available OPAS-based control system.

Project findings

Some of the key findings from the project include:

  • There were no instances of an information type required by the end customer or other systems not already catered for by the B2MML v7.0 + process centric events schemas;
  • All vendors were able to enhance their software to support the standards successfully;
  • Software performance would likely be the limiting factor in how much data could be exchanged, not the standard itself, which can be addressed by vendors through various approaches;
  • That being able to receive accurate, real-time information from other systems exposed opportunities for vendors to implement new and advanced features that would not have been useful in a manually updated solution;
  • Though the standard supported all requirements and was able to be implemented by vendors, a number of areas were identified in which the standard could be improved to make it much easier for vendors to implement, maintain and update over time as well ensure it is sufficiently explicit to certify products. ERDi has already kicked off work to address these improvement opportunities;
  • Education is likely the greatest barrier to adoption today. As these Industry 4.0 approaches and opportunities are not yet commonplace in the mining industry, miners will need to make an investment in upskilling their workforce to be able to successfully implement and take advantage of these solutions. Industry 4.0 education and workforce enablement has also been identified by platform I4.0 and the world economic forum as major factors in successful industry 4.0 adoption; and
  • It is possible to establish standards management and governance processes to enable more rapid and frequent update of standards.

ABB, MEDATech demo fully automated fast charging solution on Western Star 4900XD-e

Environmental, Mining equipment, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining, , , , , , ,

A new prototype ultra-fast charging platform for heavy-duty applications that features the ABB Ability™ eMine FastCharge charger and MEDATech ALTDRIVE battery-electric powertrain solution is helping automate the charge of a Western Star 4900XD-e machine in a trial application.

ABB developed an integrated charging infrastructure, with the latest charger technology and a future-proof automated connection device, while MEDATech created a battery-electric powertrain that includes a charge-reception system that can be integrated into any heavy-duty vehicle.

Together with MEDATech’s complete ALTDRIVE battery-electric vehicle system, ABB’s ultra-fast charging forms a complete electric vehicle package that helps OEMs move away from diesel, according to MEDATech. Integrating ALTDRIVE into new vehicle builds will enable OEMs to fast-track their battery-electric offerings, complete with ultra-fast charging.

Offering up to 600 kW of power, the eMine FastCharge solution was launched by ABB in September as part of its ABB Ability eMine portfolio of solutions.

ABB and MEDATech have previously worked together on the conversion of the Western Star 4900 tractor to battery-electric operation, but this is the first time the two have tested the automated charging functionality of the FastCharge solution on ALTDRIVE technology.

“Designed for the harshest environments, this flexible and fully-automated solution can easily be installed anywhere, and can charge any truck, without the need of human intervention,” Mario Schmid, Project Lead Engineer at ABB, said.

Charging occurs with no help from machine operators, according to the companies. Drivers station their vehicles next to the charger and the ABB Ability eMine FastCharge does the rest. When the system senses a vehicle is near, it moves the connection pin into position and inserts it into the receptacle, carrying out charging in a fully-automated fashion.

With ABB’s charging capability matching charging cycles to the production, charging times of less than 15 minutes can be achieved, according to the companies.

On September 10, ABB and MEDATech announced the signing of an MoU to jointly explore solutions to decarbonise mining operations through charging solutions and optimised electric drive systems in BEVs for heavy-duty applications.

Liebherr advances Zero Emission Program with help of ABB, ENGIE

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Liebherr, on the back of an increased industry focus on GHG emissions reduction, has announced at MINExpo 2021 that it is accelerating the implementation of its existing low carbon solutions and triggered future projects to offer completely fossil fuel free mining equipment options.

While much of this development will occur in house, the company has confirmed it is partnering with ABB on trolley assist infrastructure and ENGIE on integrating different renewable energy solutions into loading, hauling and dozing processes.

Liebherr Mining’s strategy to reduce GHG emissions will mainly focus on the operational phase of its machinery, as studies showed that more than 90% of GHG emissions over the complete lifecycle of the equipment occurred during this phase.

Liebherr Mining’s Zero Emission Program, which was established to develop these future solutions, is well aligned with the values of the Liebherr Group as an independent and responsible, family-owned company, it says.

The Liebherr Group has existing in-house core competencies, across all 13 product segments, in electrification, batteries, internal combustion engines, injection systems and alternative renewable fuels. Building from this experience, the Zero Emission Program has clear targets and a roadmap to achieve low carbon solutions for the full range of off-highway trucks and excavators in 2022, and fossil fuel free solutions for the majority of applications by 2030.

The Zero Emission Program strives to deliver long-term sustainable products and services, providing different options centred on environmental sustainability, safety, cost, flexibility and maintainability. Modularisation, along with an energy-type agnostic approach to drivetrains, are key elements in Liebherr Mining’s strategy, easing the transition for customers with the possibility to retrofit modules.

2022 target: Liebherr’s low carbon emission technology

Liebherr Mining has developed and offered electrification solutions for many years and is now about to finalise all initiatives to achieve its first 2022 target to offer low carbon emission solutions for its complete digging and hauling range.

The technologies, including the haul truck Trolley Assist System and electric excavator range, are consistently achieving proven results in the field to lower carbon emissions, according to the company. The newly introduced in-built Liebherr Power Efficiency control system has also shown excellent results since field operation began in 2019, the company says.

Trolley Assist System for Liebherr haul trucks

With the T 264 trolley components production-ready in 2022, all Liebherr trucks will be available with Trolley Assist System, providing a low emission solution for customers.

The Liebherr Trolley Assist System is, the company says, an effective first step on the road to zero emission mine sites of the future. Using an overhead pantograph or trolley bars to connect the electric-drive system to the electrical network, the Trolley Assist System offers increased truck fleet productivity, or reduction in fleet size, while maintaining yearly production when compared with standard trucks. A significant reduction of diesel fuel consumption is also made possible with the Trolley Assist System along with a reduction of the truck fleet CO2 emissions. However, this of course depends on the percentage of renewable energy content in the grid supplied power.

Oliver Weiss, Executive Vice President R&D, Engineering and Manufacturing, Liebherr-Mining Equipment SAS, outlined some of the company’s trolley assist operations at MINExpo 2021 today

Liebherr delivers proven field experience with 39 T 284 units fitted with the Trolley Assist System currently in operation on two different sites, with more to be commissioned in 2022. Liebherr is also the first company to run a 100 t truck under trolley, with a fleet of T 236 trucks running on a 5 km trolley line in Austria at the Erzberg mine – the longest trolley line in the world, according to Liebherr.

‘The largest range of electric excavators’

The Liebherr Group has over 30 years of experience in electric driven machines for earthmoving, material handling and mining applications. Today, Liebherr Mining says it is the OEM offering the largest range of electric driven excavators on the market. Ranging from 130 t to 800 t, the R 9150, R 9200, R 9250, R 9350, R 9400, and R 9800 are all available as electric drive versions. The electric drive R 9600 will soon be available.

Liebherr electric excavators are existing and already proven solutions helping customers to build future sustainable mine sites, it says. Focusing on reliability, maintainability and maximum safety, Liebherr’s engineering teams strive for solutions requiring minimum change to existing energy infrastructure and operational behaviour on customer sites. Thanks to 70% of parts commonality with diesel versions, Liebherr also offers complete retrofit options for existing machines.

To offer better machine mobility and safety for the workforce on site, Liebherr has developed a cable reel option for all electric drive excavators either in backhoe or face shovel. The cable reel is completely autonomous and has a capacity of up to 300 m depending on the excavator type. Furthermore, Liebherr proposes an operational concept for excavators with cable reel in backhoe application, particularly in double benching operations.

Liebherr Power Efficiency

Liebherr says it is continuously improving and upgrading its standard machines to enable the transition to emission reductions. Liebherr Power Efficiency (LPE) is the most recent built-in technology upgrade making this productivity and sustainability contribution.

Starting with Generation 7, all Liebherr mining excavators will be equipped with LPE as standard. This specific engine and hydraulic management system drastically reduces fuel consumption by up to 20%.

The system:

  • Adapts piloting processes according to operator requirements;
  • Electronically controls pressure and oil flow;
  • Has increased efficiency of the control valves and the new Liebherr pumps;
  • Has a fully integrated engine control system;
  • Reduces hydraulic losses and load profile of the engine for increased component lifetime; and
  • Reduces energy consumption without impact on the machine performance.

Based on research and development, Liebherr is able to provide size-equivalent machinery with higher production rates and less fuel consumption.

“In fact, the combination of LPE together with the improved productivity of the R 9600, has shown 29% less fuel consumption per tonne of produced material over a one-year production study, compared to its predecessor, the R 996B,” Liebherr says. “Expressed in fuel efficiency, tonnes per litre, this corresponds to a 40% better utilisation of the fuel.”

These efficiencies allow Liebherr excavators to set new benchmarks in its respective classes and are a very important enablers for any kind of future drive train, as they significantly reduce the effort for cable handling or refuelling and storage of alternative fuels, the company says.

Pathway to zero emission solutions

As second step, Liebherr is now targeting to offer completely fossil fuel free mining equipment for hauling, digging and dozing by 2030. This development will take into consideration the GHG emissions over equipment’s full lifecycle, as well as the overall well-to-wheel energy ecosystem. The company is also taking into account the operational mining process conditions that influence the right energy type choice.

Liebherr will develop three drivetrain options to achieve near zero emissions for its off-highway trucks: battery power module, internal combustion engines powered by renewable fuels, and H2 fuel cell-battery power module.

Drivetrain electrification through battery combined with trolley assist is already underway, according to the company.

Despite some challenges, Liebherr sees also an opportunity that the propulsion energy can be provided by using hydrogen fuel cell-battery hybrids.

Research and development for internal combustion engines operating with renewable-based alternative fuels is progressing very well within the Liebherr Group, with Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (HVO) as an approved fuel for machines powered by Liebherr engines as a first step.

Hydrogen combustion engines are also currently being tested in Liebherr’s factory in Switzerland. The methanol combustion process has been developed for large displacement engines and is ready to move towards serial engine industrialisation based on market demand, according to the company. Additionally, the ammonia combustion process is under investigation, with Liebherr seeing high potential in the usage of ammonia for heavy mobile, high energy demanding machines and gensets.

Liebherr mining excavators and dozers will also both have the option to be powered by internal combustion engines running on alternative fuels, along with the already existing electric drive version for excavators.

To achieve near zero emissions for the mining dozer and excavator, it is also crucial to use the most efficient drive system to reduce fuel consumption. The Liebherr hydrostatic drive system already achieves up to 20% improved fuel efficiency compared with mechanical competitor products, it says.

Despite this, Liebherr is currently in the process of comparing efficiency of an electric drive on a dozer prototype with hydrostatic drive efficiency. Given Liebherr’s expertise in both hydrostatic and electric AC drive systems, the company says it is in the best position to choose the most appropriate option for the best drive system for the near zero emission solution.

To accelerate the process and ensure the best solutions will be offered, Liebherr is partnering with industry experts for its Zero Emission Program.

ABB, a leader in power and automation technologies, develops state-of-the-art technology and equipment for overall electrification of mine sites and supports Liebherr’s customers and the company with a particular focus on trolley assist infrastructure deployment.

ENGIE, a renewable hydrogen, low-carbon energy and services company, will jointly with Liebherr evaluate the different renewable energy solutions, in particular renewable hydrogen and hydrogen-derived fuels, for loading, hauling and dozing processes. This cooperation ensures that an integrated well-to-wheel approach is basis to define the best solutions for the mining industry, Liebherr says.

With concept studies nearly finalised for trolley-battery hybrid, and ammonia and methanol for internal combustion engines, Liebherr expects to undertake field validation from 2024-2026, followed by the integration of proven fossil fuel free solutions from 2026-2030 into the entire range of mining machines.