Tag Archives: crushing and grinding

Metso Outotec aims for higher capacities as ore sorting offering develops

Base metals, Bulk handling, Environmental, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Precious metals, Steel and iron ore, Sustainable mining, Water management, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The entry of Metso Outotec into the bulk ore sorting space arguably heralds the beginning of a new stage of market adoption – one that is focused on significant throughputs across multiple commodities.

In May, the mining OEM announced a collaboration agreement with Malvern Panalytical, a company that has been using Pulsed Fast Thermal Neutron Activation (PFTNA) technology onboard its cross-belt analysers to analyse and help divert ore and waste streams with improved accuracy.

Up until that announcement, Metso Outotec had mooted the benefits of bulk ore sorting in several industry articles. On the smaller scale, it had also renewed its ongoing agreement with particle ore sorting major player, TOMRA.

The company said its agreement with Malvern Panalytical, which has previously worked on bulk sorting projects with Anglo American among others, brought together its expertise in crushing and bulk material handling solutions with Malvern Panalytical’s ore analysis nous to offer an industry-leading portfolio of solutions for bulk ore sorting.

Rashmi Kasat, Vice President, Digital technologies at Metso Outotec, said in the press release that the pact with Malvern Panalytical would allow the company to meet the industry’s increasing sustainability and resource efficiency needs in an enhanced way in the early comminution stage.

“Sensor-based bulk ore sorting and data-driven analysis upgrades low grade or waste stockpiles, making them economical and far less energy-intensive to treat,” she said.

There are obvious positive benefits up- and down-stream of sensor-based sorting too, with the ability to carry out a low-cost mining method (upstream), as well as reduced capital investments in downstream equipment already shown with early-adopter projects.

That is before considering the relative energy and water reduction requirements that come with applying the technology.

Kasat later told IM that the company’s existing portfolio of material handling modules, crushing stations or mobile crushing equipment, as well as bulk material handling solutions, already “complement” the concept of bulk sorting.

“The addition of the bulk sensor is easily achieved,” she clarified. “The diversion mechanism will be included as well to be able to offer the whole plant out of one hand.”

With crushing stations – at least in the in-pit crushing and conveying (IPCC) space – that can go up to 15,000 t/h (see the company’s Foresight™ semi-mobile primary gyratory station), the prospect of Metso Outotec making a concerted effort to get into the bulk ore sorting space bodes well for the rising throughputs of projects.

NextOre recently claimed it had commissioned the world’s largest bulk ore sorting system at First Quantum Minerals’ Kansanshi copper mine in Zambia. This installation, which uses the company’s magnetic resonance technology, comes in at a 2,800 t/h-rated capacity.

Scantech, meanwhile, recently confirmed it has a GEOSCAN GOLD installation using prompt gamma neutron activation analysis technology for bulk sensing/sorting up and running that uses a diversion system at conveyed flow rates of more than 6,000 t/h.

Kasat, without naming a range, confirmed Metso Outotec was targeting “higher capacities” in line with the sensors available on the market. She also clarified that the agreement with Malvern Panalytical was “non-exclusive”.

“We will choose all our sensor/analyser partners strategically,” she explained. “Malvern Panalytical has a leading position and history in this field with proven technology for ore sensing. We will leverage our and their Tier 1 position in the industry for our bulk ore sorting offering.”

Malvern Panalytical uses Pulsed Fast Thermal Neutron Activation technology onboard its cross-belt analysers to analyse and help divert ore and waste streams with improved accuracy

As the type of sensor to be employed varies based on several factors including mineralogy, plant capacity, application of bulk ore sorting, etc, Metso Outotec will identify the right partners for the right need, she explained.

The major constraints for these sensors are often measurement times and sensor penetration, according to Kasat.

“There are very few sensors out there that can do sensing of a 500-mm-deep bed of rock on a conveyor belt, moving at 5-6 m/s,” she said. “But our current and future prospective partners are working on developing the technologies to reduce measurement times without compromising the accuracy of measurement.”

The mining OEM is looking to, in most cases, provide ‘plug and play’ flowsheets for bulk ore sorting and then carry out the required customisation per sensor.

This plan reinforces Kasat’s assertion that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ concept in bulk ore sorting applications.

For new projects, the process could see the company start with metallurgical testing, progress to mobile/fixed pilot plants in the “backyard” to test the accuracy of the sensors for the given application, and then find the right solution for the customer’s use case.

Renato Verdejo, Business Development Lead for Bulk Ore Sorting at Metso Outotec, added: “For existing plants, we will install the sensor over the belt conveyor and analyse the results after selecting the right sensor for this sorting application.”

Metso Outotec intends to focus on major commodities like copper, iron, nickel and gold, among others, with applications such as waste/ore sorting, low grade re-crushing and beneficiation process optimisation.

Within this wide remit – and in line with its non-exclusive agreements with Malvern Panalytical and TOMRA – the company is also considering the combination of both bulk and particle sorting in flowsheet designs.

Metso Outotec, in 2021, renewed its ongoing agreement with particle ore sorting major player, TOMRA

“The combination of the superior throughput of a bulk application with the selectivity of particle sorting in a rougher-scavenger setup is something that can bring sorting to high volume mines in the future,” Kasat said.

“Plant concepts and flowsheets have already been conceptualised and we expect the first deliveries to be in pilot stations to test the sensors on site,” she added, saying that the tonnage requirements for bulk ore sorting sensor validation meant a bulk sensor would have to be piloted in the field to get statistically meaningful data about the properties of the deposit.

Metso Outotec’s crushing system offering will form the “base” for these solutions, with ore sorting optionality available to all customers, she said.

This sensor-based optionality also overlaps with another in-demand part of Metso Outotec’s business: IPCC.

The company’s dedicated team in Germany are responsible for this area, developing projects backed by comprehensive studies.

They – like most of the industry – are aware of the potential application for sensor-based ore sorting in IPCC projects.

Markus Dammers, Senior Engineer of Mine Planning for Metso Outotec and one of the team members in Germany, said there were applications for both bulk and particle sorting in IPCC applications, with the former likely integrated after primary crushing and the latter after secondary/tertiary crushing.

“Bulk ore sorting in an IPCC application should be integrated after primary crushing in order to recover marginal material determined as waste in the block model, or reject waste from the ore stream,” he said.

Bulk ore sorting in an IPCC application should be integrated after primary crushing in order to recover marginal material determined as waste in the block model, or reject waste from the ore stream, according to Markus Dammers

If integrated after secondary or tertiary crushing, it becomes less effective, with the ore’s heterogeneity decreasing every time the ore is rehandled, transferred, crushed, blended, etc.

“In this manner one can take advantage of the natural variability in the deposit, rather than blending it out, with bulk ore sorting,” he said.

After secondary and tertiary crushing, particle sorting may be applied as a “standalone or subsequent ‘cleaner’ process step”, he added.

With Metso Outotec open to the inclusion of ore sorting in fully-mobile, semi-mobile and stationary crushing stations within an IPCC context, the company has many potential customers – existing and new – out there.

And that is just in IPCC applications.

The company also has hundreds of crushing stations on fixed plant installations that could represent potential sorting opportunities.

Metso Outotec, on top of this massive install base, has a few advantages over traditional ore sorting vendors in that it understands the plant that goes around the analysis and diversion process associated with ore sorting; knows how important uptime is to its customers; and, through sophisticated modelling, realises what impact changes in the flowsheet will have up- and down-stream of such equipment.

“The key point here is to have all the equipment to handle and process the ore to feed the sorter and, later, having the technology to divert the material and retain the availability of the plant without changes,” Kasat said.

Energised by its Planet Positive aims of responding to the sustainability requirements of its customers in the fields of energy or water efficiency, emissions, circularity and safety, the company is now ready to flex its processing plant muscles to increase the industry’s adoption of bulk and particle sorting technology.

Amarillo Gold to receive first Metso Outotec modular FIT Crushing Station

Bulk handling, Comminution of minerals, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining services, Precious metals, , , , , , , , , ,

Amarillo Gold Corp is to become the first company to install Metso Outotec’s modular FIT™ Crushing Station at its Posse gold project in Goiás State, central Brazil.

The new crushing and screening solution was introduced by Metso to the markets in 2020, and Amarillo Gold will be the first site where it will be installed, the mining OEM said. The solution has been designed to bring significant savings of resources and time to mining operations.

“Amarillo Gold has a strong social licence to operate in the Mara Rosa property where the Posse gold project is located,” Arão Portugal, Country Manager at Amarillo Gold, said. “Our aim is to build a modern, sustainable mining operation, and Metso Outotec’s FIT Station fulfills our ambitious targets for the process.”

The FIT Station to be delivered to Posse has a design capacity of 540 t/h of run of mine with an average production of 102,000 oz/y of gold (years 1 to 4). The station consists of crushers, vibrating feeders and screens, as well as conveyors and related structures and other equipment.

Amarillo Gold is advancing two gold projects in Brazil. The Posse gold project, which has resources of around 1.2 Moz of contained gold, is in the company’s Mara Rosa property in Goiás state. The project will operate an open-pit mine and carbon-in-leach operation with dry stack tailings.

Guillaume Lambert, Vice President, Crushing at Metso Outotec, said: “We are very proud to have the honour to work with Amarillo Gold. They are a frontrunner aiming to select the best technology for their project. Metso Outotec’s sustainable FIT crushing stations are a good fit with this objective, as they are designed for capital expenditure reduction and shorter lead times, with ease of installation and maintenance.”

Uralmashplant dispatching crushing and grinding equipment to Tautajak gold project

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Uralmashplant JSC has started shipping crushing and grinding equipment to the Tautejak project in Magadan Oblast, Russia.

Towards the end of the September quarter, the complete set of crushing and grinding equipment to crush and grind the gold ore will be delivered to the project, Uralmashplant, part of the UZTM-KARTEX Group, said. The project has been under construction since 2019.

The equipment for Tautejak Mine LLC consists of 10 equipment units, namely a jaw crusher, two cone crushers, two mills and five screens.

Uralmashplant has already shipped cone crushers to be installed at the secondary and tertiary stages of the crushing plant (KSD-2200Gr-D1M and KMD-2200T1-D1M) to the customer and, towards July 15, it plans to complete the shipment of the jaw crusher SCHDP-900x1200U, rated at 250 t/h, which is intended for coarse crushing of ore.

The rest of equipment (ball mills MSHTS-4000×5500 and screens) will be delivered to the mine in accordance with the contract terms before the end of the September quarter.

“All crushing equipment uses hydraulic discharge opening adjustment mechanisms,” the company said.

According to Vitaly Furin, Uralmashplant Chief Designer of crushing and grinding equipment, the machine design for the mine takes into consideration the climatic factors of the region and the location of equipment on-site.

“When we designed the jaw crusher, we took into consideration that it would be installed outdoors and operate at very low temperatures – as low as -45°C,” Furin said. “Therefore, we selected new, stronger steel grades for the body and main frame of SCHDP-900x1200U. Also, the crusher is equipped with an automatic oil heating system and stronger friction bearings of the main shaft.”

Mills MSHTS-4000х5500, to be installed in the primary and secondary comminution stages, will be equipped with soft starters and up-to-date energy-efficient motors of 2,000 MW each, the company said. The full set of mills will include four high-frequency screens capable of sizing material over 1 mm in diameter.

“These crushing and grinding facilities were designed in strict compliance with the customer’s requirements and are able to achieve all declared parameters in terms of capacity and quality,” Furin said.

thyssenkrupp to deliver next gen gyratory crushers to Iron Bridge magnetite project

Bulk handling, Comminution of minerals, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , ,

thyssenkrupp is to make history in Australia, with plans to install KB 63-130 type gyratory crushers at the jointly owned Iron Bridge magnetite project, in Western Australia.

The company said its mining business unit had been awarded consecutive contracts to supply these two gyratory crushers and a radial stacker for Iron Bridge, which is a joint venture between Fortescue Metals Group subsidiary FMG Iron Bridge and Formosa Steel IB Pty Ltd.

Iron Bridge will be a new magnetite mine, around 145 km south of Port Hedland in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Delivery of first ore is scheduled for mid-2022.

Johann Rinnhofer, CEO of thyssenkrupp’s mining business in Australia, said: “We are proud to be part of this project and excited to install two of thyssenkrupp’s next generation gyratory crushers here in Western Australia. These high capacity crushers are considered to be the largest and most powerful in the world and are unrivalled when it comes to crushing blasted hard rock and ore.”

The KB 63-130 type gyratory crushers will be the largest ever installed in Australia, according to thyssenkrupp, with the crushers processing raw iron ore material from the pit and transfering it to a receiving conveyor.

The slewing and luffing radial stacker, meanwhile, will be used to stack secondary crushed magnetite iron ore onto a stockpile at the mine.

The Iron Bridge project will deliver 22 Mt/y (wet) of high grade 67% Fe magnetite concentrate product, according to FMG.

The first stage of the project was completed successfully by building and operating a full-scale pilot plant at the North Star mine site. This pilot project included the use of a dry crushing and grinding circuit, which FMG plans to leverage in stage two.

The second stage of the project comprises the construction of a large-scale process plant, and port
infrastructure to support the production of 22 Mt/y (wet).

New research collective to examine grinding mill process

Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mineral processing, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining techniques, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining, , , , , , ,

Bradken, as part of a research collective, is to work on a project aimed at delivering a digital step-change in grinding mill design and performance.

The company, which specialises in equipment wear parts and services, made the announcement following the award of an Australian Government grant of A$545,000 ($362,264) for the project, which will focus on comminution and developing super-accurate simulations of the grinding mill process, it said.

Bradken Global Research and Development Manager, Reece Attwood, said the potentially game-changing project would give global mining and resources operators the ability to precisely target grinding efficiency, mill liner service life, power consumption and carbon emissions, to optimise their operations.

“The constant evolution of the global raw material market and the changing needs of our customers’ demands that Bradken innovates so we can deliver solutions that offer improved productivity, but on a whole new level,” Attwood said.

“This exciting project aims to accelerate improvements in mill design through development of an enhanced digital twin while, combining a number of technologies such as IoT instrumentation, enhanced simulation techniques and deep learning.”

The project will be hosted by the University of Newcastle through its flagship research institute, the Newcastle Institute for Energy and resources (NIER) in collaboration with the University of New South Wales and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), as well as international involvement from Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands.

Attwood said Bradken and the University of Newcastle had a long history of partnerships.

“Working with organisations like the University of Newcastle brings a bigger mix of ideas from a wider range of backgrounds all focused on the same significant challenge,” he said. “This collaboration will help generate the innovation our industry and our customers need to take the next step forward.”

Chief Investigator on the project, Professor Craig Wheeler, from the University of Newcastle, said the cross-disciplinary team will merge expertise from solids processing and artificial intelligence to develop new computational algorithms.

“Our work will enhance the design and maintenance of key industrial equipment, predict wear and optimise the design of key components to improve the life of machinery to process minerals,” Professor Wheeler said.

Leading the project for Bradken is Senior Research Scientist – Process Control, Dr Wei Chen, who, according to Bradken, has extensive experience in both industry research and applied numerical modelling.

Dr Chen said: “Partnering with a group of leading research experts from Australia and abroad, gives us access to world class thinking in IoT, deep learning and numerical modelling.

“Together we’ll go through a rigorous experimental and numerical research program that we expect will deliver considerable benefits for our customers around the world.

“Involving our customers in the research process through site trials will keep us together at the forefront of mineral processing technology.”

Work on the project is planned to get underway in March.

Weir Minerals gives its skew view on HPGRs

Comminution of minerals, Environmental, Equipment maintenance, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Power supply for mines, , , , , ,

With industry demand for high pressure grinding rolls (HPGR) on the up, Weir Minerals is arguing that skewing is a vital feature for modern HPGRs to reduce wear, save downstream energy and ensure optimal grinding across the whole feed.

The company was sharing its findings following the publication of a new white paper.

Weir said: “With their excellent throughput capacity, low maintenance requirements and energy efficiency, HPGRs are fast becoming a go-to for greenfield projects looking to maintain their margins despite commodity price pressures and declining ore grades.”

The mineral processing company said, in the June quarter, that it had registered strong demand for its Enduron® HPGR technology during the three-month period, later on in the year confirming a major order, which included this comminution equipment, from Fortescue Metals Group for its Iron Bridge magnetite project in Western Australia.

Henning Knapp, HPGR Process Team Leader for Weir Minerals, said the applications from this equipment have evolved from the cement production days of the 1980s and are increasingly being deployed as tertiary and quaternary crushers in mineral comminution circuits, dealing with tougher ores including iron, gold, copper and diamonds.

“As any engineer will tell you, it’s almost impossible to eliminate feed variance and segregation completely. In the past, this has posed a critical challenge for HPGR operators – but dynamic skewing such as that featured in the Enduron HPGR, maintains optimal pressure across the entire feed.”

Traditionally, HPGR manufacturers have shied away from skewing designs, for fear of roller misalignment creating unfavourable load distributions, and preventing the use of flanged guards to reduce the edge effect, the company said. “However, Weir Minerals’ unique roller bearings design allows for skewing alongside effective edge guards, reducing wear and promoting better grinding.”

The downside of static rollers

A HPGR reduces particles by compressing and crushing the feed between two equally sized, parallel rollers rotating in opposite directions, with a small gap between them. This compresses the feed to 80% of its solid density, where the force of the rollers pushes the rocks against each other and exceeds their compressive strength.

“Inter-particle comminution avoids the direct component wear caused by conventional comminution techniques, and applies immense pressure, up to 27,000 kN, across the entire particle size distribution, which creates the higher proportion of fines HPGRs are renowned for,” says Knapp.

However, segregated feeds can result in markedly uneven particle sizes across the width of the feed, creating high, abrasive pressure on one side of the roll and insufficient pressure on the other. It will also produce a coarser product, requiring more work downstream, according to Weir.

“To compensate for the edge effect, a lateral wall or ‘cheek plate’ is deployed on either side to prevent material exiting the gap between the rollers sideways. The closer this is to the rollers, the better – but that has prevented engineers from introducing the flexibility needed to cope with feed segregation,” explains Knapp.

How Enduron HPGRs skew to maintain optimum pressure

To accommodate this uneven pressure Enduron HPGRs use a spring-loaded lateral wall which not only reduces the edge effect (maintaining a gap of as little as 1 mm) but is specifically designed to facilitate roll skew.

As shown above, an uneven feed will lead to high pressure on one side and not enough on the other. Having one roller skew will facilitate larger material at one end while ensuring the smaller particles on the other side receive enough pressure to be ground down: it maintains an even pressure distribution across the entire feed, saving energy and reducing wear, Weir says.

“The degree to which the Enduron HPGRs skew is largely dependent on the width of the roll, with longer rolls skewing about 5 mm for every metre the roll is wide. However, the effect of even small changes can be significant on local pressure peaks,” says Knapp.

“The skewing should be managed by an advanced control system, which steers the rolls to satisfy the desired output pressure. This system also ensures the skew isn’t too great or maintained for too long, which both disrupt the compressive bed.”

In the case of prolonged or excessive skewing, Enduron HPGRs send a signal notifying the supervising control system and operating staff. Prolonged skewing generally is indicative of a disturbance or fault in up-stream facilities, such as low bunker filling, upstream crusher wear, screen deck wear, or conveyor failure, Weir says.

“Where static rolls suffer from differential pressure, creating undesired product, consuming more energy and suffering additional wear, Enduron HPGRs maintain optimum pressure across the entire feed thanks to their skewing, spring-loaded lateral walls,” Weir said.

Knapp concluded: “When dealing with competent mineral feeds in real-world conditions, there’s simply no substitute for the Enduron HPGR’s ability to maximise performance with skewing.”

Sandvik bolts on three more “connected crushers” to 800i series

Automation, Comminution of minerals, IoT, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Mining software, , , , , , , , , ,

Sandvik says it is expanding its 800i series of cone crushers to include three new models that come equipped, as standard, with an Automation and Connectivity System (ACS).

The new Sandvik 800i series of cone crushers feature mechanical upgrades, connectivity, advanced automation and rebuild possibilities to predict performance, maximise uptime and offer the best in sustainability at the lowest possible cost, Sandvik says.

Sandvik launched the series of “connected crushers” in July 2018.

The three new models – CH830i, CH840i and CS840i – means the 800i crusher series has been improved and extended to offer reliable, intelligent crushing to any mining or aggregate application, according to the company. Connected to My Sandvik, the crushers enable managers and operators to “make decisions based on facts, and see areas for improvement directly, increasing uptime and availability”, Sandvik said.

The ACS continuously monitors and optimises crusher performance and controls the complete lubrication system, increasing uptime and reliability, according to the mining OEM. It replaces the ASRi™ system that was previously in use for the 800i series of cone crushers.

The 800i series has been “toughened and improved to offer greater reliability, higher availability and a low risk of critical failure”, Sandvik says. This sees the crushers have bolted rather than welded top and bottom shell liners making a changeout 90% faster, according to the company.

The over-pressure system keeps dust out, and the standard offline filter keeps oil cleaner, extending oil life by, the company says, up to five times.

“More power output from less energy and more uptime through intelligent crushing make the 800i series a safer, more sustainable choice,” Sandvik said.

The 800i crusher series can be purchased as a completely new crusher, or as a Sandvik REBORN solution, replacing an existing crusher and reusing existing auxiliaries and infrastructure, according to the company. “This plug and play installation minimises disruption and maximises productivity, while offering up to 40% cost savings compared to a complete crusher system,” Sandvik said.

Such a solution was recently installed at the Mantos Blancos copper mine in Chile.

These new crushers also come with Sandvik’s service agreement, which, it says, provides customers with safer operations, low operating costs and long service life. This can increase productivity by up to 10%, according to the company.

Mats Dahlberg, Vice President Lifecycle Service, Stationary Crushing and Screening, said new, digital technologies will transform the way mines and quarries work.

“My Sandvik is the first major step in gaining insights into productivity and predictive maintenance that will drive our industry forward,” he said. “It’s great to offer our customers a service that will truly make a difference to their profitability.”

W Resources reaches new processing milestone at La Parrilla tungsten-tin mine

Comminution of minerals, Industrial minerals, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Precious metals, , , , , , , , ,

W Resources has fed the first ore through its newly commissioned jig and mill plant at its La Parrilla tungsten-tin mine in Spain.

The move follows construction completion in April and commissioning of the conveyors, pumps, thickener, two mills and two jigs over the past month, the company said.

The plant takes ore crushed to less than 10 mm and increases the grade to be fed to the concentrator plant while rejecting waste mass, according to the company. This is achieved with high tungsten and tin metal recoveries, W said.

The jigged mine feed will now be fed through the existing concentrator plant, while the new large scale concentrator plant advances to construction completion in June and commissioning in July, according to the company.

Michael Masterman, Chairman of W Resources, said: “Great progress has been made by the team which keeps us on-track to ramp-up to design production capacity of 200 t/mth by the end of 2019.

“At this stage of construction, it is important to clarify that commissioning a metallurgical plant is not a turn of a key process. In the jig and mill plant alone there are two jigs, two roll mills, a thickener, reject disposal system, 10 screens and feeders, nine conveyors, five pumps, and over 50 motors which need to be started, aligned and tied into an integrated control system. The team has done an outstanding job commissioning the plant and achieving first jigged concentrate.”

The crushing circuit at La Parrilla, supplied by Metso Minerals’ Portugal division, is made up of a C130 jaw crusher and secondary cone crusher, both with vibrating grizzlies prior to size reduction, and two tertiary cone crushers in closed circuit with a double deck banana screen.

With a throughput of 350 t/h, the two alljig® jigs, provided by allmineral, provide grading, enrichment and cleaning of the pre-ground ore at La Parrilla.

Vertimills continue to save energy and cut emissions, Metso says

Comminution of minerals, Environmental, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Power supply for mines, , , , ,

Metso says its Vertimills® are globally recognised as some of the most energy efficient grinding machines, and the company has tried to make that clear in its 2018 annual report.

Vertimills have proven to grind more efficiently than horizontal ball mills, with typical energy savings of 25-35% and, in some cases, even 50%, according to Metso.

“In addition to grinding efficiency, reduced media consumption, lower installation cost, reduced maintenance, and reduced liner wear make the Metso Vertimill the lowest total cost of ownership option in many applications,” Metso said.

Based on a review of the Vertimills currently in operation and a comparison of their efficiency and media consumption relative to a ball mill, Metso estimates that approximately 1.48 million MWh of energy was saved and 652,000 t of CO2 emissions were abated in 2018, compared with 924,000 MWh of energy and 547,000 t CO2, respectively, in 2017.

Since its introduction in 1979, over 440 Vertimills have been delivered globally.

Paradigm Shifters qualify for round two of Canada’s Crush It! Challenge

Comminution of minerals, Environmental, IoT, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining industry recognition, Mining services, Mining software, Mining techniques, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

A group of companies called ‘The Paradigm Shifters’ has made it to the next round of a challenge aimed at reducing the amount of energy that crushers and grinders use in the mining process.

The Crush It! Challenge is spearheaded by the federal government (Impact Canada), in cooperation with Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation (CEMI), and Goldcorp.

Crushing and grinding account for upwards of 50% of mine site energy consumption and up to 3% of all the electric power generated in the world.

iRing Inc is the lead partner within The Paradigm Shifters and has coordinated the effort with proposal partners to respond to the challenge, it said.

The company explained: “Essentially the team proposes to bring together the processes and technology that could reduce or even eliminate the need for expensive primary crushers, and reduce the energy required by secondary crushing (potentially eliminating it as well) and grinders in both mines and quarries globally.”

The Crush It! Challenge has several qualifying rounds and, if successful in getting to Round 3, then the team will be eligible to receive C$800,000 ($605,397) in seed funding to further prove the concept over a one-and-a-half-year period. At the end of that period, if the team wins the chance to move forward, the project would be eligible to receive an additional C$5 million in funding to commercialise the products and concepts.

The Paradigm Shifters team consists of:

  • iRing Inc (North Bay) Challenge Project Lead – Drill and blasting software;
  • Nexco Inc (North Bay) – Producer of the energy-variable explosive product;
  • Boart Longyear (North Bay and global) – Global supplier of market leading drilling products and services;
  • Paige Engineering Ltd (PEL) (North Bay) – Design and fabrication of explosive manufacturing and loading equipment;
  • Seneca (Montreal) – Explosive plant engineering, design and build;
  • Maptek (Denver and Global) – 3D laser scanner/fragmentation measurement capabilities, and;
  • Bomon Capital (Toronto) – Long term financing should the team succeed.

The savings that could accrue to mines and quarries annually is C$12.8 billion (25% reduction) to C$25.6 billion (50% reduction), according to iRing.

“If all mines in the world adopted this solution, it would represent a reduction equivalent to 7-13% of all the carbon released in Canada, and 20-41% of Canada’s contribution to meeting the Paris Accord agreement.”

iRing will use its software, Aegis, to design the blasting patterns based on the fragmentation requirements. Boart Longyear will deploy recently developed high speed diamond drilling technologies and instrumentation solutions to quickly and accurately drill and validate high-quality blast holes, while using significantly less energy. iRing said: “Boart Longyear’s drills utilise drilling data logging to interpret rock density and strength etc, while drilling.”

The company continued: “With Seneca’s help, Nexco will build a demonstration plant that will produce an energy-variable explosive mixture that can be fuelled while being loaded into the blastholes, and the blast energy would be based on the ore strength information provided by Boart Longyear’s drills and iRing’s software.”

Troy Williams, Vice President of Development of iRing, said: “The challenge will provide a once-in-a-life-time opportunity to reach the mining industry and demonstrate that it is possible to produce consistent results from the blasting operations.”

PEL will design and fabricate the explosive manufacturing and loading equipment required to change the explosive’s energy during loading, according to iRing. Energy reduction is done by adding additional water content into the explosive formulation during loading. Maptek’s laser scanner, meanwhile, will be used to verify fragmentation results by scanning the muck pile and producing a 3D point cloud which can be analysed for a measured fragmentation distribution. Those results will be used by Aegis to further calibrate the fragmentation models.

Mark Sherry, President of iRing, said: “We are really excited by this opportunity as it is directly in iRing’s wheelhouse. The Paradigm Shifters bring together the best in the industry when it comes to drilling and blasting. By working together, we will create a paradigm that is more efficient, effective, cleaner, and safer”.