Tag Archives: Eriez

Eriez-India

Eriez strengthens India mining presence with Somnium Management Consulting pact

Comminution of minerals, Mineral processing, Mining people, Mining services, , , , ,

Eriez® has announce a new representative agreement with Somnium Management Consulting Pvt Ltd based in Delhi, India, that is aimed at furthering the company’s business in this key mining market.

According to Subhasis Das, Eriez Regional Sales Director-North Africa, Middle East, and South Asia, this partnership is poised to enhance Eriez-India’s ability to meet the distinct needs of the Indian mining and minerals market while simultaneously opening doors to new opportunities and market segments.

Abhishek Shukla, an industry professional with nearly two decades of experience in the Indian mining sector, spearheads Somnium Management Consulting Pvt Ltd. Shukla, a alumnus in mineral processing from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT/ISM), has amassed extensive professional experience, including pivotal roles at organisations such as Tata Steel, Metso Minerals, Ludowici/FLSmidth, and Derrick, Eriez says.

Following his tenure at Derrick, Shukla assumed the position of Director at Somnium Management Consulting, with a dedicated focus on delivering comprehensive mineral processing solutions to an underserved market.

Das says: “Abhishek’s extraordinary technical expertise, mining industry network and strong reputation position him as a driving force for transformation in the Indian mining market. We firmly believe that his partnership will enable Eriez to enhance our customer focus on this crucial market sector.”

Weir Group marks Minerals and ESCO progress in H1 results

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mining equipment, Mining finance, Mining services, Mining software, Steel and iron ore, Sustainable mining, Water management, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Weir Group has issued its half-year results to June 30, 2023, noting some significant achievements across its Minerals and ESCO divisions.

Headline numbers for the six-month period included a 19% year-on-year jump in revenues to £1.3 billion ($1.67 billion) and a 26% rise in operating profit to £212 million.

Weir Minerals continued to execute on key strategic growth initiatives, and during the first half gained market share in its core mill circuit product categories, it said.

The company said: “We converted 100% of our competitive field trials for large mill circuit pumps, and also rolled-out our latest cyclone technology.”

One highlight in the period came at a large Brazilian iron ore mine, where Weir Minerals upgraded the cyclones to its latest Cavex® 2.0 solution. The new cyclones, which are Synertrex®-enabled, have improved separation and increased mineral recovery by more than 400,000 t/y, according to the company.

Cavex 2 cyclones were launched in 2020, introducing new geometric features to offer performance unmatched by any cyclone in operation at that point, the company claimed. The advanced LIG+ design (patent pending) enables the Cavex 2 hydrocyclones to classify up to 30% more feed slurry, while occupying the same footprint as competitor hydrocyclones, according to Weir.

Weir Minerals says it also made good strategic progress in sustainable solutions during the six-month period and delivered year-on-year growth in comminution. New orders included a pebble crushing plant for a large copper mine in South America and a crushing solution for a potash mine in Canada.

The company also said it saw “very encouraging interest” from customers for its Redefined Mill Circuit, securing orders from large copper mines in South America for coarse particle flotation (CPF) pilot circuits, in partnership with Eriez.

“Through this strategic alliance, we have integrated CPF technology with our latest generation Warman® mill circuit pumps and Cavex cyclones to provide significantly improved recoveries and process efficiencies for our customers,” it said. “Once operational in the September quarter, these plants will be important reference sites for the industry.”

Around a year ago, Weir Minerals and Eriez Flotation announced a cooperative agreement to design and develop CPF systems. This allows both companies to better connect the Eriez equipment with the slurry classification and conveying expertise of Weir Minerals, according to Ricardo Garib, Division President of Weir Minerals.

Weir Minerals also launched its new, proprietary digital intelli-solutions for pumps, cyclones and high pressure grinding rolls which, coupled with its Synertrex 2.0 platform, captures critical machine health data and enables remote condition monitoring.

It concluded: “We continued to invest in research and development of our core technologies including new materials and polymers, and upgrades and range expansions for our industry leading Warman slurry pumps.”

Weir ESCO, meanwhile, reported that the number of mines using Motion Metrics™ AI-enabled vision technology increased during the first six months of the year, with new orders including a package of five ShovelMetrics™ and five LoaderMetrics™ systems to be deployed across all large mining machines at an iron ore mine in Western Australia.

“The division made excellent progress in growing market share in mining attachments, with a 37% year-on-year increase in orders,” it said. “A particular highlight included converting four cable shovel buckets from competitor products to ESCO technology for a large North American copper miner.”

The division also provided an update on trials of its proprietary ore characterisation technology, which has been leveraging the BeltMetrics™ solution from Motion Metrics positioned above a conveyor directly after the crusher in the flowsheet at an unnamed mine. As well as using the rugged vision technology Motion Metrics has previously used, the company is also incorporating hyperspectral imaging into the mix for this trial.

It reported: “Field trials of our proprietary ore characterisation technology were successfully completed during the first half. Tests enabled critical data to be collected and validated the performance of the technology in a real-world environment.”

Development has now progressed to the next phase focused on exploring “novel illumination” technologies to enhance minerals characterisation, it added.

New Motion Metrics capabilities and functions were launched during the six-month period, including an upgraded lens cleaning solution that enhances machine vision capability and improves response times.

“Other technology investments included development of a new series of mining attachments that, once launched, will expand our addressable market,” it said.

Eriez Magnetic Mill Liners boost safety, energy efficiency and durability at Nexa Resources mine

Comminution of minerals, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Sustainable mining, , , , , , ,

A new report from Eriez® reveals how a set of Magnetic Mill Liners (MML) are significantly improving safety standards, energy efficiency and operational longevity at a Nexa Resources operation in Peru.

The MML is a wear-resistant steel-encased magnet that combines the best qualities of steel and magnetic liners, according to Eriez.

The report highlights the superiority of MMLs over conventional liners by describing the numerous benefits these advanced liners offer. Each MML is composed of individual sections that are much lighter than traditional liners, facilitating safer and easier installation procedures, Eriez says. Weighing only 20-40 kg per section, the MML eliminates the requirement for specialised cranes within the mill, streamlining operations and enhancing safety protocols. Nexa even credits the MML installation with contributing to the company’s achievement of a major Peruvian safety award.

There are considerable environmental advantages associated with the implementation of MMLs, according to Eriez. Heavier steel liners require significant fuel consumption for transportation and material handling while lightweight MMLs can be installed by hand. Additionally, Nexa reports a significant reduction in noise levels with the MML, creating a more favorable work environment overall.

The case study also highlights the energy-efficient aspects of MMLs. In traditional ball mills, small ball chips do not contribute to the grinding process, leading to wasted energy. However, MMLs effectively eliminate the presence of small ball chips, resulting in energy savings of up to 11% during the grinding process, according to Eriez.

The exceptional durability of MMLs is another standout feature discussed in the report. Unlike conventional liners that necessitate frequent replacement, the Eriez MML has garnered a track record of success through many installations in diverse mining operations worldwide, including iron ore, copper, nickel and gold mines, as well as other non-ferrous mines. These installations provide evidence that MMLs outlast rubber or metallic liners by two to three times, Eriez states.

Eriez to supply HydroFloat CPF technology to OZ Minerals Carrapateena operation

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mining services, Precious metals, Sustainable mining, , , , ,

Eriez says it has won a contract to supply its HydroFloat technology to OZ Minerals’ Carrapateena copper-gold project in South Australia. The project’s goal is to increase the recovery of copper and gold from the ore through a more efficient and sustainable extraction process, Eriez says.

James Cooke, Eriez Australia Managing Director, said: “This is a significant milestone for our company, and we are proud to have been chosen as the preferred supplier for this innovative mining project.

“Our expertise in mineral processing, combined with our commitment to providing tailored solutions to our clients, made us the preferred choice for OZ Minerals. We look forward to working closely with their team to achieve the project’s objectives and deliver value to all stakeholders involved.”

HydroFloat coarse particle flotation technology has been used successfully at the likes of Newcrest Mining’s Cadia copper-gold project, in Australia, and at Anglo American’s El Soldado mine in Chile. It will also soon be commissioned at Anglo’s Quellaveco copper operations in Peru.

Eriez reinforces flotation testing capabilities with new fire assay lab

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Eriez® says it has recently completed the construction and commissioning of a new state-of-the-art fire assay laboratory to support flotation testing at its world headquarters in Erie, Pennsylvania, USA.

This new facility includes all required equipment for fusion, cupellation, parting, weighing and assaying, as well as innovative systems to enhance worker safety and environmental compliance, it said.

Erich Dohm, Eriez Flotation Senior Manager-USA Operations, said the addition of fire assay capabilities further establishes the comapny’s  position as an innovative global partner in minerals processing and flotation.

“This investment was made as part of our commitment to enhancing support for our precious metals flotation customers in addition to existing capabilities for base metals and industrial minerals projects,” he said. “Our customers will see a tremendous benefit in the development of new precious metal projects incorporating our advanced flotation technologies, such as the HydroFloat® and StackCell®.”

According to Eriez, the new fire assay laboratory will enable full execution of all aspects of precious metals flotation projects, with next-day assays available to guide flotation investigations.

Dohm says: “This will allow our team of flotation experts to complete projects under a tight deadline without risking delays from external commercial laboratories.”

Eriez’s in-house analytical capabilities also include X-ray Fluorescence, inductively coupled plasma, atomic absorption, combustion furnace (sulphur), and particle size by laser diffraction.

Dohm concluded: “Our full-service metallurgical and analytical laboratory facilitates strong customer partnerships, from initial flowsheet development at prefeasibility stages through troubleshooting and optimisation of existing mill circuits.”

Eriez promotes Jaisen Kohmuench to COO position

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The Eriez® Board of Directors has appointed Jaisen Kohmuench to the newly created position of Chief Operating Officer (COO), a role that will see Kohmuench manage all of the company’s major operations, including Eriez-USA, Eriez Global Flotation and Eriez international businesses.

Kohmuench, already within the Eriez corporate leadership team, will continue to work closely with corporate executives and functional leaders to ensure Eriez’s sustained strategic growth, the company said.

Over the past two decades, Kohmuench has made significant contributions to Eriez, steadily ascending in the organisation across multiple business areas and geographies. He served most recently as Vice President-International, a position he held for three years before accepting this latest promotion to COO.

Kohmuench earned bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees in mining and minerals engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. He has spent the entirety of his career with Eriez, joining the company in 2000 as a Process Engineer.

Eriez President and CEO, Lukas Guenthardt, said: “From his earliest days in research and development, through his role managing the US Flotation group and later in an overseas assignment as Managing Director for Eriez-Australia, Jaisen has distinguished himself as a talented leader with tremendous financial and operational acumen. He has developed and directed immediate and long-term business plans and profitable growth initiatives across Eriez’ global magnetic, flotation and service operations sectors.”

Among his many notable career achievements, Kohmuench is credited as an inventor on more than a dozen patents and has authored numerous technical papers for prominent scientific and technical journals.

“With Jaisen’s guidance and the support of his highly skilled worldwide team, Eriez is well-poised to successfully propel our business into the future,” Guenthardt said.

Weir Minerals and Eriez Flotation team up to expand coarse particle flotation market reach

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Environmental, Metallurgy, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Sustainable mining, , , , , ,

Weir Minerals and Eriez Flotation have announced a cooperative agreement to design and develop coarse particle flotation (CPF) systems.

Coarse particle flotation facilitates more efficient separation, while also reducing water and energy consumption and producing safer tailings. It has been proven at the likes of Anglo American’s El Soldado mine, Newcrest’s Cadia operation and Capstone Mining’s Pinto Valley operation, among others.

“This cutting-edge technology is a step-change improvement over conventional flotation systems,” Eric Bain Wasmund, Ph.D., Professional Engineer, Vice President of Eriez Global Flotation Business, said.

The cooperation allows both companies to better connect the Eriez equipment with the slurry classification and conveying expertise of Weir Minerals, according to Ricardo Garib, Division President of Weir Minerals.

“As mining companies look to optimise their plant and processes while also reducing their carbon footprint, we’ll see CPF being more widely adopted,” he said.

“We have an Integrated Solutions team – made up of a diverse range of product experts, process engineers, design engineers and materials scientists, among others – that works closely with miners to deliver reliable solutions that help solve their specific problems. In the current regulatory environment and with an increased focus on ESG issues, miners are being asked to produce more with less and CPF systems are a vital technology that allows them to do that.”

Eriez’s leading products include the HydroFloat® Separator for coarse particle mineral concentration, which delivers the capacity of a density separator while maintaining the selectivity of a flotation device. Using a novel aeration system to disperse fine bubbles into a fluidised-bed environment, the HydroFloat Separator significantly increases the selective recovery of coarse particles by applying flotation fundamentals to gravity separation.

Garib added: “Weir Minerals has a long history of innovative engineering and we’re excited to partner with a company like Eriez because its technology perfectly complements the solutions Weir Minerals currently provides. Ultimately, it’s about delivering the best outcomes for our customers.

“We’re proud of the work we do to harness the latest technologies to efficiently process the minerals that will be essential for a future in which mass electrification will play a vital role in the transition to a low carbon economy.”

Anglo’s Quellaveco to receive the coarse particle recovery treatment

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Anglo American has approved the construction of a coarse particle recovery (CPR) plant at its in-development Quellaveco copper project in Peru.

The announcement came within the company’s 2020 financial results, which showed Anglo generated underlying EBITDA of $9.8 billion and a profit attributable to equity shareholders of $2.1 billion for the year.

CPR, Anglo says, is one of many significant breakthrough technology initiatives that has the potential to increase throughput and productivity, while simultaneously reducing environmental footprint, through rejection of coarse gangue (near-worthless waste material), dry stacking of sand waste, minimising the production of traditional tailings and reducing overall water consumption.

The CPR plant signoff at Quellaveco follows a full-scale demo plant installation at the company’s El Soldado mine in Chile – which is ramping up to full capacity by mid-2021 – and the decision to construct a full-scale system at the Mogalakwena North PGM concentrator in South Africa.

The El Soldado plant used the HydroFloat™ CPR technology from Eriez’s Flotation Division. Here, a single 5 m diameter HydroFloat cell, the largest in the world, treats 100% of mill throughput, with the objective of proving the waste rejection process at full scale.

Anglo said of the Quellaveco CPR plant: “This breakthrough technology will initially allow retreatment of coarse particles from flotation tailings to improve recoveries by circa-3% on average over the life of the mine. This investment will also enable future throughput expansion which will bring a reduction in energy and water consumption per unit of production.”

The capital expenditure of the CPR project is around $130 million, with commissioning of the new plant expected in 2022. DRA Global previously carried out a feasibility study for the CPR plant at Quellaveco.

In terms of Quellaveco project progress, Anglo said today that, despite the COVID-19-related slowdown, first production was still expected in 2022. This was, in part, due to the excellent progress achieved prior to the national lockdown, and based on optimised construction and commissioning plans, Anglo said.

Key activities in 2021 include the start of pre-stripping, which will see the first greenfield use of automated hauling technology in Peru; progressing construction of the primary crusher and ore transport conveyor tunnel to the plant; completion of the 95 km freshwater pipeline that will deliver water from the water source area to the Quellaveco site; completing installation of the shells and motors for both milling lines; and completion of the tailings starter dam.

The mine, owned 60% by Anglo and 40% by Mitsubishi Corp, comes with a production blueprint of 300,000 t/y over the first 10 years of the mine.

Eriez HydroFloat technology to help improve recoveries at Newcrest’s Cadia operation

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Eriez Flotation is to supply four HydroFloat® Separators to Newcrest Mining for use in Stage 2 of the miner’s Cadia Valley Operations (Cadia) expansion project in New South Wales, Australia.

This announcement follows the successful delivery, commissioning and ramp up of four Eriez CrossFlow Separators and two HydroFloats as part of the Cadia Coarse Particle Flotation demonstration plant in 2018.

Eriez Flotation Global Managing Director, Eric Wasmund, says: “When Stage 2 of the Cadia Expansion Project is complete, 100% of the Concentrator 1 tailings will be re-treated, significantly improving overall plant recovery for a coarser primary grind.”

The Stage 2 Cadia Expansion project primarily comprises the addition of a second coarse ore flotation circuit in Concentrator 1, using Eriez’s HydroFloat technology, and equipment upgrades in Concentrator 2, Newcrest said back in October. These changes are expected to see plant capacity go from 33 Mt/y to 35 Mt/y, while life of mine gold and copper recoveries could increase by 3.5% and 2.7%, respectively. Alongside this, the company was expecting a A$22/oz ($16/oz) drop in its all-in sustaining costs.

Newcrest is the first mining company to commercialise HydroFloat coarse particle flotation in sulphides and the first
in a tail scavenging application.

Wasmund added: “Eriez has been very fortunate to partner with Newcrest on coarse particle flotation. As partners we have learned many lessons together.”

Eriez-Australia Managing Director, James Cooke, noted: “During the commissioning of the demonstration plant, Eriez and Newcrest Mining worked closely together to perfect the technology. The decision was subsequently made to expand the application.”

Capstone considering Eriez HydroFloat tech to boost Pinto Valley performance

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Capstone Mining is continuing to leverage innovative, low-cost technology at its Pinto Valley mine in an attempt to further utilise its existing solvent-extraction and electowinning (SX-EW) plant at the Arizona, USA, operation.

In the December quarter of 2019, Pinto Valley commenced a PV3 Optimization project designed to achieve safer, more reliable and higher capacity operations without major investments in new comminution equipment. A goal was set to achieve increased reliability, and higher throughput at maximised copper recovery with lower costs by leveraging new inexpensive technologies.

In its September quarter results, the company provided an update on this project, saying, to October 27, it had spent $17 million as part of its Phase 1 developments. This included crushing and mill equipment replacements, which are 60% complete with full completion expected by July 2021.

As part of its Phase 2 developments, Capstone spent $10 million in conveyor, mill auto controls, cyclone packs and tailings thickener upgrades. These upgrades are planned to be completed by the end of the September quarter of 2021.

On top of this, the miner completed a blast fragmentation optimisation project to target 30% fines (minus-0.5 in) in run of mine feed in the June quarter. In the same quarter, it completed a $300,000 tele-remote Cat D10 Dozer project to increase worker safety for high-risk applications. Another $6 million was spent on new mine equipment to increase efficiency while lowering diesel consumption, greenhouse gas emissions and other operating costs by $800,000/y. This project was completed in the September quarter.

In terms of its metallurgical innovation, the company continued to use novel catalytic technology developed by Jetti Resources at Pinto Valley, expected to deliver 300-350 MIb of copper cathode over the next 20 years from high-grade mine waste and historic stockpiles at all-in costs under $2/Ib. This technology uses a catalyst on primary sulphide minerals to disrupt the sulphur metal bond of the mineral and allow for a leaching solution to contact the copper. This enables the extraction of the metal to take place unimpeded.

Capstone also made plans to use new reagents to improve worker safety and improve overall metallurgical performance at its molybdenum plant re-start project. This would involve “minimal capital” and completion was targeted by the March quarter of 2021, it said.

Capstone says it is targeting to reach 60,000-63,000 t average daily throughput at Pinto Valley at an 85-90% recovery by 2022-2023. This is 17-30% higher than 2019 performance and is subject to further test work and studies to be completed in the first half of 2021, including tailings management, the company explained.

Added to this, following positive laboratory results on Pinto Valley flotation circuit samples, Capstone and Eriez are planning to commence pilot plant testing of the HydroFloat technology.

The HydroFloat fluidised bed assisted flotation cell has previously proven effective at floating coarse ore particles, up to two to three times the size limit of conventional flotation cells in commercial applications such as at Newcrest Mining’s Cadia Valley operation in Australia. Newcrest has recently decided to expand the use of this technology at the operation.

Capstone says the lab results at Pinto Valley had led Eriez to report an opportunity to reduce copper losses by up to 50%, thereby boosting overall recovery by up to 6% at Pinto Valley.

“Furthermore, the ability to recover coarse particles could allow for higher mill throughput while achieving high copper recovery,” Capstone said.

Other benefits could be lower grinding costs, lower water and energy consumption and increased tailings stability via coarser tailings.

Pilot testing is due to commence in November with results expected back in the March quarter of 2021.

Lastly, work on PV4 expansion scenarios to take advantage of around one billion tonnes of measured and indicated resources at 0.30% Cu continued during the September quarter.

“Given management’s confidence in PV3 Optimization progress to date, including the successful implementation of the novel catalytic technology from Jetti Resources to enhance leaching performance, Capstone has decided to evaluate expansion scenarios using existing assets rather than building new mill infrastructure,” the company said.

The study is assessing higher mining rates, higher cutoff grades to the mill, and an increased tonnage available for leaching.

While a significant mill expansion is not currently being contemplated, an expansion of Pinto Valley’s SX-EW capacity of 25 MIb/y may be necessary, it said. Extensive column leach test work will be conducted over 2021, with the overall PV4 expansion study expected to be released in 2022, Capstone added.