Tag Archives: feeders

Minera Arqueros to use Metso equipment for copper sulphide concentrator

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Minera Arqueros S.A. has awarded Metso an order to deliver the key equipment for its greenfield copper sulphide concentrator plant project in Coquimbo, Chile.

The value of the order exceeds €10 million ($6.6 million), with the scope of delivery covering the equipment from crushing to flotation, including, for example, feeders and vibrating screens, primary, secondary and tertiary crushers, a ball mill, as well as several TankCell® and ColumnCell™flotation cells.

The grinding mill and TankCell flotation cells are part of Metso’s Planet Positive offering, thanks to their energy and water efficiency, Metso says.

Antti Rinne, Vice President, Flotation at Metso, said: “Minera Arqueros partnered with Metso already in the early stages of the project. We conducted test work for the flotation technology in our R&D Center in Pori, Finland, and supported Arqueros in the flowsheet design for the plant. We have had continuous cooperation since the start of the project, and we look forward to continuing to work with Arqueros.”

Sandvik’s first South Africa-manufactured screen destined for gold mine in northeast Africa

Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, Mining equipment, Precious metals, , , , , , , ,

Sandvik Rock Processing says it has marked a significant step in its expansion across Africa with the successful completion of its first South African-manufactured screen package.

This milestone project was undertaken at the company’s Spartan facility in Johannesburg, which already produces the Kwatani and Schenck products as part of Sandvik’s screening solutions offering. The capability to also produce the Sandvik original screen range signals a new phase in Sandvik’s African presence and growth, the OEM says.

Riaan Steinmann, Europe, Middle East and Africa Operation Director Screening Solutions at Sandvik Rock Processing, says the achievement is a testament to the facility’s local design and engineering prowess. He emphasises the South African facility’s capability to build high-quality vibrating screens from raw materials, which also includes a range of exciter gearboxes using locally procured castings.

This innovative approach enables the company to maintain strict quality control and facilitates shorter delivery times for its customers, thereby improving the customer experience significantly, Sandvik said.

The screen package that marks this milestone was specifically ordered by a gold mining client located in northeast Africa. It includes a vibrating grizzly screen with a motor-driven exciter, five feeders and two custom-engineered feed-in chutes.

Steinmann praised the facility’s streamlined processes and the benefits of local procurement, which collectively allowed the project to be successfully completed within an impressive timeframe of three months.

“Manufacturing screens in South Africa represents the same standard as those produced in Europe or India,” Steinmann says, underscoring the global quality benchmark. He also notes the multiple benefits including reduced shipping times and costs due to Southern African Development Community trade agreements. Moreover, he highlights the positive impact on the local economy through exports and increased capacity, leading to job creation.

“Importantly, we aim to serve not only the African continent but also other regions within the Sandvik Rock Processing group,” Steinmann concludes. “The successful execution of this first Sandvik screen package has not only underscored our position as a world-class manufacturer but also underlines our ambition to become Africa’s preferred screening solution partner.”

Tungsten West makes EPCM progress at Hemerdon as TOMRA XRT ore sorters hit the road

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Tungsten West has named Fairport Engineering Limited as its engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) contractor at the Hemerdon tungsten-tin project, in the UK, as well as confirmed it was soon expecting to receive seven X-ray Transmission (XRT) sensor-based ore sorters from TOMRA.

Since successfully listing on the AIM Market of the London Stock Exchange, Tungsten West has been advancing the development of Hemerdon, which is one of the most advanced mining projects in England and is expected to be a key future global supplier of tungsten and tin.

Hemerdon is, Tungsten West says, the third largest tungsten resource globally, as well as being a previously producing mine that was operational from 2015-2018. Tungsten West purchased the Hemerdon Mine in 2019, and has since completed a bankable feasibility study that demonstrated an extensive reserve of approximately 63.3 Mt at 0.18% W and 0.03% Sn, as well as 37.4 Mt of saleable aggregate material. The company estimates that the life of mine is currently 18.5 years with the opportunity to extend this through future investment.

On top of the ore sorters, Tungsten West said the rest of the long-lead items had been ordered and were scheduled for delivery within the company’s timetable. It plans to recommence mining this year.

The upgrade and refurbishment of the existing processing plant at Hemerdon is centred around the optimisation of the existing concentrator circuit as well as the introduction of a new crushing and screening circuit that will then feed into a new XRT ore sorting stage. These upgrades will streamline processing, minimise plant downtime and improve recovery rates, according to the company.

After significant test work, Tungsten West engaged TOMRA to supply the seven units that are required to treat the run of mine throughput. This consists of six duty and one standby units. Orders and deposits for these units were placed in 2021 and the units have now been delivered to the UK and await final transfer to Hemerdon where they will be installed in the front end of the processing plant.

On top of this, six new screens and 11 vibrating pan feeders have been ordered from Vibramech of South Africa at fixed prices. These will replace the existing large screens, which caused the low frequency issues, and were a key contributor to plant downtime under Wolf Minerals – the previous owner of Hemerdon. Delivery is expected in the June quarter of 2022.

Max Denning, Tungsten West CEO, said: “We are extremely pleased with progress at site, particularly the onboarding of Fairport Engineering to undertake the detailed design and construction of the project. We are looking forward to working with Fairport as we move towards restarting full production at Hemerdon, with a substantially improved processing route, through the introduction of XRT ore sorting and upgraded processing equipment. The company has assembled a strong projects and operations team, and we remain confident in our progress.”

TerraSource to highlight high-performance crushing and feeding equipment at MINExpo

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TerraSource Global and its three flagship equipment brands – Gundlach, Jeffrey Rader and Pennsylvania Crusher – are gearing up to showcase new products at MINExpo International that, TerraSource says, are helping the company remain an innovation leader in durable, high-performance crushing and feeding equipment for the mining industry.

The company’s products are known to many in the sector, with a list of crushing and feeding solutions that include roll crushers, jaw crushers, hammer mills, impactors, cage mills, vibratory feeders and centroload feeders.

At MINExpo in Las Vegas – September 13-15, 2021 – TerraSource’s booth highlights will include the EnduraHog™ hammer mill, which takes the best of its Jeffrey Rader hammer mills and hogs for a new industry standard of flexible, durable, and low-maintenance crushing equipment; and its EnduraHog Flextooth® crushers, which couple unique hammer designs with patented Slant-Flow® screen grates – designed to facilitate more uniform sizing capabilities, faster material evacuation and longer wear than other types of grates.

“Not only are these machines designed for durability, high performance and energy efficiency, but our new EZ-Access™ housing design also makes these machines safer and easier to maintain than competitor models,” TerraSource said.

Also on show will be the company’s line of premium-performance Duralife® hammers and Brute Armor™ wear-resistant screen grates.

“Many of our mining customers have presented us with particularly challenging material sizing applications that require specialised hammers and striking surfaces with enhanced performance characteristics and wear resistance,” the company said. “TerraSource has met these challenges with our Duralife and Brute Armor premium OEM parts offerings, the result of years-long investment in patented chemistry and material compositions, advanced design features, and proprietary production processes to provide the highest-performing wear parts options – up to four times longer life than third-party offerings – for customers with the toughest material sizing requirements.”

And new Jeffrey Rader NFE vibratory feeders will also be displayed.

The Jeffrey Radar NFE provides additional size configurations along with the most-requested design upgrades to ensure even more precise feeding capabilities coupled with simpler and safer maintenance features, greater energy efficiency, and lower overall cost of ownership, the company claimed.

Finally, the redesigned Gundlach Cage-Paktor® maintenance cage mill (pictured) for finer grind, higher volume and fewer fines applications will be shown off to attendees. The redesigned Gundlach Cage-Paktor is equipped with, among other elements, thicker, more wear-resistant materials over the entire cage; improved resistance to breakage from tramp; and no-wear liners and bolted-on components for easier, faster and less-expensive maintenance.

FLSmidth improves water balance at Mozambique coal plant with thickener tech

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FLSmidth has been chosen as the preferred provider for four large bolted thickeners for a large mining customer in Mozambique.

Two of the thickeners are designed to reduce water load on the filters allowing for a drier filter product, while the other two thickeners recover water from the plant tailings.

The installation, which includes E-Volute™ feedwell technology for superior flow distribution, will contribute to achieving optimal water balance at the coal plant in Mozambique, FLSmidth says.

“The thickeners measure 45 m in diameter and will control the density of material to the belt filters, improving the plant’s output,” Howard Areington, FLSmidth’s General Manager for Projects and Account Sales in sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East, says. “The design was based on the test work we conducted on the customer’s material, allowing us to determine the best thickener solution.”

He emphasised that a bolted thickener is quicker and safer to construct on site, saving on costs and improving quality control; both of these factors suited the project’s remote location.

“The extent of welding in the construction of normal steel thickeners typically runs into kilometres,” Areington said. “By contrast, the amount of on-site welding required by a bolted thickener can be measured in metres.”

The E-Volute feedwell technology improves flow distribution, leading to lower flocculant consumption, better settling rates and improved overflow clarity for the optimal performance of the thickener, according to FLSmidth.

Despite the COVID-19 lockdown, good progress was made on the fabrication of the thickeners in South Africa, according to FLSmidth Project Manager, Kevin Kockott. This has been managed by leveraging FLSmidth’s global resources and the design teams’ ability to work remotely.

“Our local South African office collaborated closely with our engineering hub in Salt Lake City in the United States, ensuring that our engineering work on the project was able to continue without interruption,” Kockott said.

FLSmidth has been involved with this project for almost a decade and has provided a significant portion of the coal preparation equipment. To date, this has included reflux classifier technology, pumps, screens and feeders.

Weir Minerals wins large comminution order from Nigeria iron ore mine

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Two of the largest screens built by Weir Minerals Africa are being designed and manufactured in South Africa as part of a process solution for an iron ore mine in Nigeria.

According to Tiisetso Masekwameng, General Manager Comminution at Weir Minerals Africa, the flowsheet accepted by the customer includes equipment for screening, washing, and grinding supplied by Weir Minerals.

“Within our scope of work are the two largest Enduron® double-deck banana screens built by Weir Minerals,” Masekwameng says. “This is made possible by the depth of design expertise in our Separation Technology Group, an eight-strong team conducting research and development.”

Steven Hunter, Separation Technology Group Leader at Weir Minerals Africa, says the two 51 t Enduron double-deck banana (DBHG 43/97) screens (one pictured) for this project were built upon the designs of the existing Weir Minerals screens range. These large machines measure 4.3 m wide and 9.7 m long and can process 1,750 t/h.

“The customer’s production requirements demanded this considerable size, so we optimised the design by minimising mass without compromising structural integrity,” Hunter says. “We conducted extensive finite element analysis on the whole machine but focused on the main structural elements, ensuring that the units were fit-for-purpose while still being light enough to be driven by the exciters.”

The size of the units still demanded the design and manufacture of Weir Minerals Africa’s largest exciter yet – the Enduron LTX 10. With 120 t of excitation force (at maximum setting), these units will drive the screens at a stroke of 9.4 mm and a gravitational force of 4.6 G.

Hunter said the screens are ready to be fitted with Weir’s IIoT platform, Synertrex. “This allows the machines to be monitored remotely; the system can measure the machine’s performance and any deviations arising that may require proactive attention,” he explained.

The order for Nigeria also includes two Trio® jaw crushers, two Trio cone crushers, two large 2 m by 8 m Trio apron feeders, two Trio pan feeders, eight Enduron vibrating screens and an Enduron HPGR.

For the clay washing circuit, Weir Minerals Africa will supply the mine with a Trio twin-shaft blade mill and Trio twin-shaft coarse washers as well as Warman® slurry pumps.

Kwatani branching out from South Africa roots

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Vibrating screen and feeder specialist Kwatani says it is transitioning from equipment supplier to solutions provider, as it attracts customers from well beyond its South Africa headquarters.

According to Kwatani General Manager Sales and Service, Jan Schoepflin, the company’s strong in-house expertise and design capability – combined with the manufacturing quality it consistently achieves – ensures its customised solutions deliver optimal performance at the lowest possible lifecycle costs.

“Our recent orders show that our customer base in Southern Africa remains strong, while there is growing recognition of our cost-effective offerings in West Africa, East Africa and North Africa,” says Schoepflin. “At the same time, orders from countries like Canada and Russia indicate that our markets abroad continue to grow.”

Kwatani says it remains the market leader in the supply and servicing of vibrating screens and feeders on iron ore and manganese mines in South Africa’s Northern Cape province. It also counts platinum, coal, diamond and gold mines in its customer base. Its West Africa orders have been mainly to gold mines, and there is growing potential for gold mining in East Africa, Schoepflin says.

Over its four decades of operation, Kwatani has produced about 16,000 custom-designed screens, and is building, on average, 30 to 40 units a month in its ISO 9001:2015 certified facility close to OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg.

“Our reputation has been built on prioritising what our customers need, and doing business with integrity and trust,” Schoepflin says. “This means delivering on what we promise and making sure that customers achieve the expected value from our products.”

The company’s solution focus is underpinned by its significant and ongoing investment in local skills, ensuring that its designs leverage strong mechanical and metallurgical engineering expertise, according to Schoepflin.

“This confidence in our products allows us to offer a process guarantee to customers, to deliver the tonnage, throughput and fractions that they expect,” he says. “Depending on which country our customers operate in, they may also have different industry and quality standards/certification expectations and we work closely with them to understand these clearly and meet their requirements.”

Schoepflin also emphasises the company’s service capabilities, which include its local service centres closer to customers, and its support partners in other countries.

“The careful selection of these partners is vital to meet customers’ stringent technical expectations,” Schoepflin says. “In some countries, our partners can also manufacture components according to our drawings and specifications, should there be an urgent requirement from a customer.”

Weba Chute Systems and Kwatani save the day at South Africa gold mine

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Weba Chute Systems and Kwatani have come together to design and install ore silo chutes at a South Africa gold mine to reduce mill wear and other processing challenges caused by the uncontrolled flow of mined material into the mills.

The solution from Weba and Kwatani, a leading local manufacture of vibrating screens and feeders, must also deal with frequent large-size material as the mine has no crushing stage before the milling circuit, Weba said.

According to Weba Chute Systems Technical Advisor, Alec Bond, the over-feeding of material through the existing manually operated chutes is causing regular “mill vomit” in the mine’s four mills. The inconsistent feed exacerbates wear on mill bearings as the material’s weight shifts forwards and backwards inside the mill.

The waves of material causing the “vomit” carry insufficiently milled material out of the mill, including large chunks of rock. This leads to problems for the downstream mineral processing facilities, including inefficient recovery in flotation cells and even blockages in pumps, according to Bond.

“The challenge starts with the existing chutes needing constant supervision and control by operators, being opened and closed with a chain block device,” he says. “Our solution was to design a robust, self-controlling chute and feeder system that would ensure an even flow of material into the mills.”

He explained that the mine’s existing system has no means of closing the silo outlet; any maintenance at the chute area requires the emptying of the silo and the stoppage of the mill. Each of the four silos has three outlet chutes.

Weba Chute Systems Designer, Wesley Hunkin, says: “We therefore added a spile bar arrangement which seals off the silo. The Weba chute, which is choke fed, is placed under this installation. This allows the feed rate to be controlled by the Kwatani feeder, which has been integrated into the chute design.”

The vibrating action of the feeder controls the tonnage and feed rate to the mill, keeping the flow constant. New mounting structures have been designed to accommodate each chute and feeder. There will also be civils works below the silo to provide a solid foundation that absorbs vibrations from the feeder, according to the companies.

A serious challenge is over-sized rocks in the ore feed, which can be up to 800 mm in size. This makes it important for chute designs to accommodate the worst-case scenario of chutes choking, says Hunkin.

He highlighted that the flow of material is also controlled to prevent direct impact onto the conveyor belt feeding the mills, and to ensure central loading onto the centre of the belt.

“If the material from the feeder is biased to the one side, our chute brings everything to the centre of the conveyor,” he says. “This enhances the consistency of material flow into the mill.”

Bond emphasised that the customer motivated for a concept change to address the challenges being experienced with the silo feed.

“Given our materials handling experience, design expertise and high-quality local manufacturing facility, we were able to work closely with the customer and with Kwatani to turn this new concept into reality,” he said.

“Our solution promises direct savings in terms of mill bearings, as well as less mill downtime. There will also be significant gains in terms of recovery rates in the plant if the flow and size of milled material can be improved.”

Schenck displays continental comminution offering with Peru copper contract

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Schenck Process has won a contract to design manufacture, supply and commission vibrating screens and feeders for the greenfield Mina Justa copper project, in Peru.

The order will see Schenck business units on four continents combine to deliver seven banana screens (across three models), five diverging pan feeders and one grizzly feeder.

Mina Justa, owned by Minsur and Empresas Copec through holding company Cumbres Andinas, is slated to produce around 100,000 t/y of copper when fully ramped up.

The screens and feeder contract will see all design completed at Schenck’s vibrating equipment design centre in Sydney, Australia, manufacture and testing in the company’s Chinese plant, custom-made screen panels from the South Africa production facility and commissioning by the aftermarket services team in Chile. The project is being managed and coordinated by the Australia-based Project Management team, Schenck said.

The screens include several mechanical and operational improvements developed on a prototype vibrating screen now undergoing site testing at an iron ore mine in Western Australia, according to the company.

“The five larger screens feature laminated side plates to maintain structural integrity and reduce stress concentrations associated with the projected process tonnages,” Schenck explained. “Additionally, machined transition flanges are welded in a low stress area to the cross beams to actively reduce fatigue, and a unique spring removal system has been fitted to facilitate and reduce downtime during spring change-outs.”

The six feeders have been designed to account for site conditions and feature a more robust design. They are also equipped with exchangeable liners and an upgraded transition hopper to improve operational availability and performance, the company said.

Each of the vibrating feeders and screens for Mina Justa is equipped with CONiQ, the company’s proprietary continuous six-dimension condition monitoring system, to track and alert operators to abnormal operating conditions. Feeder control systems have been electronically aligned with the screen’s installation, Schenck added.

Project manager, Lauren Williams, said: “This is a truly international project and, from our point of view, it is the best way to give our customer the equipment that will deliver higher process efficiency and longer service life.

“Although based on standardised platform designs for screens and feeders, each unit has been subject to a customising process to meet site and processing capacity requirements. We are delivering an integrated package of screens and feeders to optimise availability and productivity and represent the best value for money.”

Kwatani makes manufacturing commitment on comminution equipment

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Vibrating screen and feeder original equipment manufacturer (OEM), Kwatani, is promoting the need for high-quality engineering and the strictest tolerances for unbalanced motors and gearboxes to ensure components can run over the long term.

The harsh operating conditions that screens face in mining operations makes having these safeguards in place all the more important, it says.

According to Kenny Mayhew-Ridgers, Chief Operating Officer at Kwatani, local design and manufacture to the highest standard is a “non-negotiable”, with the OEM designing its own range of motors, as well as locally manufacturing the gearboxes for its vibrating screens.

“We design our own motors with local conditions in mind, giving the customer a high performance and long lasting product,” Mayhew-Ridgers says.

This includes optimal sealing arrangements for keeping electrical components dry and clean, Kwatani says. Power cables, for instance, must always enter from the underside to prevent water ingress, while the design must consider various orientations of the motor, depending on the angle of installation. Dusty conditions on mines also present a challenge that need to be addressed.

“Dust ingress can compromise the sealing configuration of the lid,” he says. “Our design is therefore like a top-hat, so the O-ring is not on a flat surface but rather on a cylindrical, vertical surface. There is even a double-sealing arrangement for the lid, which includes a gasket.”

Kwatani’s gearboxes are locally manufactured, with only the high quality bearings imported direct from leading global producers, it says. Gearboxes comprise two shafts, each with its own set of unbalanced weights linked to each other by a gear to achieve synchronised motion. Gears and shafts, meanwhile, are locally fabricated by selected suppliers, while the housing is cast by a local foundry and machined to exacting specifications.

“We have spent a great deal of effort on the sealing configuration, to ensure no oil leaks,” he says.

Mayhew-Ridgers says Kwatani is probably the only OEM that services its own gearboxes. This, he says, ensures adherence to strict tolerances, so that units have sustained performance and longevity.

He also highlights the massive centripetal forces exerted on the screening machine by the unbalanced motor and gearbox, which makes it vital to secure them well to the screen.

“To achieve this, we specify our own fabricated bolts, nuts and washers,” he says. “If sub-standard fasteners are used, components can come loose and cause extensive damage.”

Unbalanced motors usually have to be installed at an angle. Taking account of the weight of these components, there are rigging points all around the housing to manipulate the angle of installation. The feet of are normally larger in Kwatani installations than those of competitors, for a better contact surface, the company says.

“If there is the slightest imperfection in the flat surface of the join, this can cause costly damage to the drive and the screen,” Mayhew-Ridgers says. “This is why OEMs like Kwatani have such detailed installation procedures on issues like torqueing of bolts. Installers and maintenance teams need to stick closely to these specifications.”