Tag Archives: ore sorting

HPY ore sorting tech helps Xintianling Wolfram Mine achieve sustainability goals

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Xintianling Wolfram Mine in China has partnered with HPY Technology to upgrade the ore content and reduce the amount of tailings being processed at its operation in China.

Established in 2008, Hunan Nonferrous Metals Xintianling Wolfram Mine Co., Ltd. (Xintianling Wolfram Mine) represents the largest individual producer of tungsten concentrate in China. With a processing capacity of 1.5 Mt of ore, the mine produces 5,000 t of tungsten concentrate annually. The company is engaged in mining, beneficiating and tungsten ore sales, along with molybdenum and bismuth recovery.

Xintianling Wolfram Mine is a subsidiary of China Tungsten and Hightech Materials Co. Ltd., which is the management and operation platform for the tungsten industry owned by China Minmetals Corporation. A Fortune 500 company, China Minmetals manages and operates a complete tungsten industry chain that integrates mining, smelting, processing and trading. Its management area contains 1.23 Mt of tungsten resources, representing approximately 11% of China’s identified tungsten resources, according to the company. Its annual production capacity for tungsten smelting reaches 20,000 t, constituting 10% of the total capacity for ammonium paratungstate in China.

In its early years, Xintianling Wolfram Mine used shorthole blasting as the primary mining method. While this method leads to low ore depletion rates, it comes with drawbacks such as low mining efficiency, high costs, low mechanisation and high safety risks. In response to these challenges and production requirements of a 4,500 t/d reform and expansion project, the mine transitioned to medium-deep hole blasting methods for mining. This change, however, introduced issues of higher depletion rates, decreased ore grade and increased beneficiation production costs.

A significant challenge faced by the Xintianling Wolfram Mine is the production of over 1.3 Mt/y of tailings, consuming over 1 million sq.m of tailings reservoir capacity. With the existing tailings pond projected to meet production needs for only five more years, the mine needed to enrich the raw ore grade, reduce the amount of tailings entering the tailings pond, and lower the amount of material entering its grinding and flotation processes to adhere to its commitment to sustainable mining.

To tackle these problems, Xintianling Wolfram Mine partnered with HPY Technology in early 2021, seeking a method to solve its technical challenges and for a more sustainable process. HPY’s sensor-based ore sorting technology could help with these aspects, the technology company says. X-ray Transmission (XRT) detection is commonly used in the mining industry to analyse the atomic density differences in ores. XRT relies on the principles of X-ray absorption and attenuation to differentiate between various materials based on their atomic densities. The tungsten ore is first crushed into a smaller particle size, with the material then fed into the sorting machine, which uses X rays to detect differences in the ore. By measuring the degree to which the X rays are absorbed by the ore, the machine can distinguish between different types of material. As tungsten absorbs X rays very strongly due to its high atomic number and density, it is relatively easy to be identified through this method, according to HPY.

Even so, the raw ore of the Xintianling Wolfram has its own special characteristics. The mineral composition of the raw ore at the Xintianling Wolfram Mine is quite complex. Various minerals in the raw ore can be imaged under radiation, including tungsten minerals, metallic sulphides, iron minerals and denser gangue minerals. However, the most finely embedded tungsten cannot be captured and effectively identified in the image due to the varying particle sizes in the raw ore. Solving this problem requires high-precision imaging capture and ore identification by a sensor-based ore sorting machine. At the same time, the raw ore itself has a small particle size. Therefore, the image of the ore is relatively small, resulting in an increase in the amount of ore to be processed for the same processing capacity. It was a technical challenge for HPY to improve the processing capacity while maintaining a low waste rock grade and rejection rate.

HPY conducted on-site research, sampling, testing, simulation and analysis at the Xintianling Wolfram Mine. The Classic Series was used during the early stages of the experiment. The middle and later stages saw the introduction of the Circle Series – HPY Technology’s ring-shaped structure design that, the company says, allows for exceptional processing capacity within a compact frame. Through continuous optimisation of the software, modification of equipment adaptability, and fine-tuning of the artificial intelligence-based algorithm, the engineers succeeded in reducing the rejection rate and stabilising the waste rock grade, the company said. As a result, the experiment reached its desired goals and Xintianling Wolfram Mine was satisfied with the sorting results.

Ganzhou HPY Technology Co., Ltd., is a high-tech enterprise specialising in the development and manufacture of ore sorting machines. The company’s AI technology includes perception technology, human-computer interaction and deep learning. The performance of HPY’s technology in the Xintianling Wolfram Mine project demonstrates its effectiveness in addressing the challenges of sustainable mining, the company says.

Xintianling Wolfram | HPY Technology

Particle size +10-35 mm Raw ore grade  0.15%-0-40% WO3
Rejection rate 25% Waste rock grade 0.04% WO3
Recovery rate >94% Processing capacity 80-90 t/h
Enrichment ratio >1.4    

Orexplore Technologies enters South America core scanning market with Gold Fields deployment

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Orexplore Technologies Limited, a mineral scanning technology company focused on the global mining and metals sector, says it has entered the South American market with a commercial field deployment for Gold Fields at its’ Salares Norte project in Chile.

Salares Norte is a high-grade, epithermal gold-silver, open-pit deposit in the High Andes, Atacama Region, of northern Chile , and will be Gold Field’s second mine in South America, joining Cerro Corona in Peru.

Under this agreement, valued at approximately A$430,000 ($285,369), Orexplore will deliver site-based scanning and analysis of around 3,000 m of drilled core for the exploration team.

Orexplore says it will roll-out its new “Smart Sampler” software solution to enable the exploration team to reduce the quantity of drill core that is sent for analysis through assay laboratories. The company will also work collaboratively with the Gold Fields’ site and corporate teams to integrate the broader suite of new Orexplore solutions offered through the technology platform to advance Gold Fields’ orebody knowledge.

Orexplore has designed and is manufacturing a containerised deployment solution tailored to site conditions through local suppliers in Santiago, suitable as a solution across similar South American sites.

Two GeoCore X10® units will be deployed in the container, and Orexplore’s engineering team will attend site to undertake the commissioning and initial start-up of the units. Geoscience and technical personnel will deliver training to Gold Field’s geologists and technicians enabling them to self-operate the GeoCore X10 units in a dry hire style arrangement. Orexplore will provide systems technicians, scanning trainers and a project geologist to ensure ongoing operational and value delivery assurance.

Orexplore’s new Santiago office is being established to meet the expected demand as a result of the sales and business development efforts in the region that continue to identify ongoing annual drill campaigns and large-scale core farms across multiple countries, that are suitable to the technology, it said. As demonstrated through the Perth and Stockholm laboratories, this enables an effective and efficient onboarding process as customers send initial quantities of core to establish trust in the technology and delivery team.

Orexplore’s technology platform comprises its field sensing GeoCore X10® hardware unit that rapidly scans drilled core in less than 15 minutes per metre, and presents the information as a 3D digital model through the company’s Orexplore Insight® software. This platform, the company says, enables remote mining and geology personnel located anywhere in the world to analyse and interpret these 3D core scans, and connect the information into their standard geological software packages to assess orebodies and rapidly study the optimal methods of extraction.

Orexplore says: “This technology is unique through its ability to see through the entire inside of the core using medical grade CT scanners, and to combine this with dual XRF sensors to build three-dimensional elemental and geochemical models that drive powerful automated data-science solutions.

“As one of the few true “deep tech” companies with capabilities spanning from sensor manufacture to data-science and geo-science, Orexplore can provide rapid “sense to decide” solutions that the myriad of geoscience-only companies utilising common third-party sensed data can’t.”

Orexplore’s Managing Director, Brett Giroud, commented: “We are very pleased to be working with Gold Field’s as our first step into the South American region, and to further demonstrate the broad application of our technology platform through our first deployment that targets full integration into an operating mine’s processes and workflows.

“South America is a very large base metals and gold market, with a proven appetite for technology adoption that we believe is well suited to our transformational technology platform. We are excited about the engagement we are seeing in the region and the excellent opportunity this represents for Orexplore going forward.”

He added: “As a business, we remain laser focused on the commercialisation of our technology platform by driving market adoption of our suite of solutions across the mining value chain. Coupled with the Exploration and Resource to Reserve (R2R) solution deployments over the last 12 months, this agreement further demonstrates the breadth and depth of the technology’s market potential and its accelerating global traction.

“In addition to this, and other recent commercial field deployments, Orexplore is rapidly developing additional solutions including ore sorting, and ESG products such as acid-rock drainage and site based environmental monitoring. Working with Tier 1 and other customers through our laboratories, these solutions are advancing rapidly to target customer demands and drive future potential global site deployments.” x

Gold Field’s Vice President of Exploration for the Americas region, Diego Huete, said: “We are very pleased to be commencing this journey with a company as committed to transforming the industry as Orexplore. Working closely with their team, we can see the value creation on offer through this technology from sample optimisation through to Orebody knowledge and ESG solutions, and we are excited by the opportunity that being a first-mover in the digital transformation of mining provides to our business.”

Maximising the benefits of sensor-based ore sorting machines

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Ore sorting has been shown to provide both economic and environmental benefits, but many mines are not yet fully utilising this technology, according to HPY Technology.

Yet, the company’s ore sorting machines are providing a breakthrough solution for Fankou, one of Asia’s largest lead and zinc mines, resulting in an annual revenue increase of around $9.22 million.

Located in Renhua County, Shaoguan City, Guangdong Province, Fankou is owned by Shenzhen Zhongjin Lingnan Nonfemet Co Ltd. The mine has been producing lead and zinc for over 60 years. However, with new underground mining processes, such as vertical crater retreat and large blasting, more waste rock is being introduced into the crushing, grinding and flotation processes, resulting in higher production costs and energy consumption.

Furthermore, under the “zero waste” target set by the Environmental Protection Law of China, Fankou’s tailings pond needs to be closed by 2025. As of 2018, the mine’s annual processing capacity was 1.5 Mt, with 600,000 t ending up in the tailings pond. In addition, Fankou’s waste rock piles had reached approximately 2 Mt. With the continuous addition of around 200,000 t/y of waste rock, these piles grew larger. With the pressure to meet the zero waste target, Fankou was under pressure to make a change.

In 2017, Fankou conducted exploratory tests of sensor-based ore sorting machines with Ganzhou HPY Technology Co Ltd. The result of the initial tests showed promise and addressed the problems the mine was beginning to face, according to HPY Technology. As a result, Fankou decided to add HPY Technology’s ore sorting machines to the industrial design plan of their mineral processing plant in 2018, and HPY Technology’s machines were officially added to the plant in 2019.

The Fankou lead-zinc mine currently produces about 1.4 Mt/y of ore, and it is expected that more than 105,000 t of waste rock will be pre-rejected from the raw ore throughout the year. Ore sorting technology can discard a large amount of waste rock from the raw ore before it is fed into the flotation system, reducing the amount of waste rock entering the mill and saving on electricity costs.

Fankou’s mineral processing plant uses four Classic Series P60-X1400 ore sorting machines. The machine processes the particle size range of +12-90 mm, which accounts for about 50% of the raw ore. This accounts for 2,600 t of ore, rejecting 400-500 t/d of waste rock. After pre-concentration, the lead and zinc content in the waste rock are below 0.3%, and the sulphur and iron content is below 3.8%. Therefore, the ore sorting process enriches the ore grade by 1.08% for lead and zinc and 2% for sulphur and iron.

Four Classic Series P60-X1400 ore sorters in Fankou’s mineral processing plant

After sorting the waste rock from the raw ore, this waste rock can be sold as construction aggregate to bring further economic benefits to the Fankou mine. This has also seen the amount of tailings decrease and the service life of the tailings pond extend significantly, resulting in remarkable energy savings and consumption performance, while also enhancing the mine’s societal value, HPY Technology says.

Mr Wang, Project Manager of Fankou Mineral Processing Plant, said: “We are proud to be one of the world’s first lead and zinc mines to utilise ore sorting fully. We see significant economic benefits for using HPY Technology’s ore sorting machine, especially for low-grade mines. China has huge lead and zinc ore reserves, the second largest in the world. But the grade of the deposits is generally low, with many poor and few rich ores. The average grade is about 1.5% for lead and 2.5% for zinc. Reserves with a grade below 5% account for more than 90% of lead ore, and reserves below 8% account for more than 85% of zinc ore. We hope to continue contributing to the mining industry’s progress and are willing to recommend HPY Technology’s ore sorting machine to our peers.”

The Classic Series used in Fankou’s mineral processing plant is a benchmark in the ore sorting industry, according to HPY Technology. This machine uses dual-energy X-ray technology, combined with high-speed air jets to sort ore from waste rock. The X-ray technology penetrates the ore and creates a grayscale image that distinguishes between target and vein minerals. This image is then processed by an artificial intelligence algorithm, which uses the information to accurately sort the ore and waste rock. The Classic Series has undergone numerous iterations, ensuring stable and efficient operation, HPY Technology says. It is currently the most widely used ore sorting machine in China’s mining industry, according to the company.

Fankou Lead-Zinc mine, mineral processing plant

HPY Technology | Fankou lead-zinc mine, mineral processing plant
Machine used Four Classic Series P60-X1400
Processing capacity 2,600 t/d
Particle size +12-90 mm
Concentrated ore grade (Pb+Zn) 12%
Waste rock grade (Pb+Zn) <0.3%
Grinding grade (Pb+Zn) increased by 1.08%
Rejection rate 16-17%

Fankou’s mineral processing plant can save more than $2.9 million/y by using HPY Technology’s ore sorting machines, resulting in an annual profit margin of more than $7.8 million, considering the comprehensive benefits of increased plant capacity, tailings reduction and construction aggregate sales.

In addition to the four Classic Series P60-X1400 in the mineral processing plant, the Construction Materials Plant has three HPY Technology ore sorting machines to process the waste rock from the mineral processing plant and its existing waste rock piles. The waste rock is taken to the construction material plant for another round of sorting, with the remaining waste rock being used for construction aggregates. The three machines at the construction materials plant also process the 2 million cu.m of waste rock initially stockpiled in the tailings pond.

Mr Luo, Project Manager of Solid Waste Treatment, said: “In the past, we could only transport solid waste back to the shaft for filling. After using HPY’s ore sorting machines, we can now sort out all the ore from solid waste and recover the value of the resources. The remaining waste rock can be sold as construction aggregates, which is a win-win solution. Currently, we are also sorting waste rock that was stored before using HPY’s ore sorting machines. The ore grade is about 3%. Sensor-based sorting technology enriches the ore grade to 12-14%. Sorting results show that the rejection rate exceeds 95%. In the global mining industry, Fankou is one the first to successfully apply intelligent ore sorting technology in lead and zinc mines, achieving maximum resource value recovery and is great for the environment.”

According to Mr Luo, waste rock that was initially made into construction aggregates now yields more than 1,500 t/y of lead and zinc metal, which has been able to be recovered through the Construction Materials Plant. In addition, the ore sorting process reduces the waste rock’s sulphur content. This substantially improves the grade of the construction aggregates, increasing its sales price. As a result, the waste rock made into construction aggregates generates about $977,000/y in economic benefits. In addition, the recovered ore generates over $2.8 million/y in benefits.

Fankou has utilised sensor-based ore sorting to its full extent, HPY Technology says, using it during the comminution process to pre-reject waste rock to increase its lead-zinc ore grade. The company also sees benefits from pre-rejected waste rock in reduced costs in its grinding process. With pressure to control the amount of tailings, the pre-rejected waste rock lowers the amount of tailings entering the tailings pond to help the company in its aim of closing the tailings pond in 2025. In addition, sensor-based ore sorting has allowed the company to gain additional revenue through the recovery of lead-zinc from their waste rock piles, while also utilising these piles for construction aggregates. Overall, the introduction of ore sorting has allowed the company to expand its resource recovery. By pre-rejecting and enriching low ore grades, Fankou can now mine areas previously deemed un-mineable due to having low grade ore, allowing them to increase the processing capacity each year.

Fankou lead-zinc mine, Construction Materials Plant

HPY Technology | Fankou lead-zinc mine, Construction Materials Plant
Machine used One Insight Series | Two Classic Series
Concentrated ore grade 12-14%
Waste rock grade Pb 0.04%, Zn 0.10%
Concentrate recovery rate Pb 96.76%, Zn 92.8%
Rejection rate 95%
Enrichment ratio Pb 9.68, Zn 9.28
Particle size +10-50 mm

The Insight Series used in Fankou’s Construction Materials Plant adopts a combined detection method comprised of a VIS HD dual-sided imaging system and X-ray technology, which can be customised according to the physical characteristics of different ores. The machine can collect the ore’s internal and external information simultaneously and with an AI algorithm, which can significantly improve the accuracy of ore sorting and better for sorting complex ores.

Compared with traditional ore sorting machines, which use a belt, the upgraded Insight Series utilises a vibrating feeder and short belt that leads to ore free fall, HPY Technology says. With the optimised mechanical design, the ore falls more evenly, avoiding ore overlap that affects recognition accuracy. In addition, the machine has various feeding widths (1,600 mm, 3,200 mm), which leads to processing capacities of 40-150 t/h (+10 mm-80 mm) to meet the needs of different mines needs during the beneficiation process.

As one of Asia’s largest lead and zinc mines, Fankou has taken steps to maximise the economic value of its process. Through the utilisation of sensor-based ore sorting, the company has seen significant increases in revenue and savings. Having worked with HPY Technology for over five years, Fankou looks to continue this partnership to further the research on the benefits of ore sorting machines. As HPY Technology continues innovating and revolutionising mineral processing, the benefits will only continue to grow, it says.

HPY Technology Co Ltd says it is a leader in the development and manufacture of ore sorting machinery, achieving excellent results in the ore sorting of tungsten, tin, antimony, lead, zinc, copper, molybdenum, gold, phosphate and over 30 other ore types, revolutionising the traditional mineral processing process and significantly promoting the technological progress of the global mining industry. With over 400 machines in use in over 100 mines, the company says it looks to continue revolutionising mineral processing.

TOMRA’s latest XRT advances open up processing options for miners

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When it comes to particle sorting, size is everything. Whether used as a primary sorting method in smaller operations where product purity is paramount to profits, or in a scavenger setup downstream to capture value once lost to tailings, particle sorters are becoming more and more commonplace across the mining world.

They have featured in flowsheets in the industrial minerals space for decades, but they are now finding their way into metal operations all over the world as miners look to boost recoveries, reduce their energy consumption and, in many instances, rationalise their water use.

This makes TOMRA Mining’s latest advances in sensor-based ore sorting all the more significant.

The company is now breaking ground with a new ejection module for its COM Tertiary XRT (X-ray Transmission) sensor-based sorter specifically developed for sorting small particle sizes.

The COM Tertiary XRT Fines sorter, featuring the new TS100C module and the recently introduced image processing unit, is capable of sorting particle sizes down to 4 mm in high-capacity applications with much higher energy efficiency, delivering a high-quality product at low operating costs, according to the company.

The COM Tertiary XRT Fines sorter featuring the new TS100C ejection module has been installed at the TOMRA Test Center in Wedel, Germany

The high resolution TS100C ejection module features a new type of ejector that is four times faster than previous iterations, according to the company. Together with the new image processing unit, it delivers higher precision in sorting small particle sizes at high throughputs.

The mechanical design of the sorter has also been improved by the introduction of a new splitter plate and more precise calibration equipment to ensure the greater precision in the alignment between detection and ejection systems required for fine particles, according to TOMRA.

This has been captured in field tests that started back in May 2022, showing an up to 30 t/h boost in capacity, an increase in product recovery and a reduction in energy consumption.

Ines Hartwig, Director Product Management at TOMRA Mining, told IM on the side lines of the recent SME MINEXCHANGE 2023 Annual Conference & Expo in Denver, that the company had been able to visualise such small size particles previously, but the mechanical ejection function had not been able to keep up.

“This new ejection module is a significant leap forward for TOMRA, and we believe the whole particle sorting setup within the industry,” she said.

And, while the industrial minerals sector was the first one pushing for these developments, Hartwig said she expected the metal miners to also benefit from this.

“We have visited operations all over the world that have stockpiled fine material as they simply couldn’t process it with the technology on the market,” she said. “We’re now opening up many new opportunities for these companies.”

To gain field experience on the new ejection module, TOMRA partnered with a customer who has been running a COM Tertiary XRT to produce high-grade magnesite for more than two years. The sorter removes up to 50% low-grade and waste material from the raw magnesite feed, with particle sizes ranging from 10 to 35 mm at about 20 t/h.

Ines Hartwig, Director Product Management at TOMRA Mining

“After conducting the test work with the TS100C ejection module at the TOMRA Test Center, we were confident that it would be very beneficial for this customer,” Hartwig says. “We showed them the test results and outlined the benefits we expected the module to deliver. As soon as they saw the possible reduction in compressed air use and the consequent cost savings, they were very interested in doing the field trial!”

The customer, the magnesite operation in Turkey, completed several trials, documenting the energy savings and sorting efficiencies. The results showed a 70% reduction in air consumption with an increase in product recovery with a lower mass pull to waste by producing the same product quality, and a capacity increase ranging from 20 t/h to 30 t/h with comparable results, according to TOMRA.

The COM Tertiary XRT Fines sorter featuring the new TS100C ejection module has been installed at the TOMRA Test Center in Wedel, Germany, and is ready to run tests for customers on material samples from their mines, TOMRA says.

Hartwig said she expected existing COM Tertiary XRT customers to upgrade to the new module with the company’s retrofit solution, but there were also many new customers expected to acquire brand-new units.

“There is a significant ‘new’ market out there that we expect to take advantage of this technology,” she said. “The economic and environmental value case at many of these operations can be vastly improved by using the COM Tertiary XRT Fines sorter.”

NextOre’s in-pit sorting advances continue with development of mining truck sensor

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NextOre and its magnetic resonance (MR) technology have made another advance in the ore sorting and material classification game with the development of a new “open geometry” sensor that could enable mines to scan mining truck loads.

The company, in the last year, has surpassed previous throughput highs using its on-conveyor belt solutions, accelerated the decision-making process associated with material sorting viability with its mobile bulk sorter and made strides to branch out into the in-pit sorting space via the development of these open geometry sensors.

NextOre’s MR technology is the culmination of decades of research and development by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), with the division spun out from the organisation in 2017. Since then, NextOre has gone on to demonstrate the technology’s viability across the globe.

NextOre’s MR analysers were first fitted on conveyor belts, yet interest in solutions for in-pit equipment predates the company’s inception.

“A significant portion of the time when CSIRO would show people the technology, they were working on for fitting on a conveyor belt, many would ask: ‘could you possibly put it around a truck somehow?’,” Chris Beal, CEO of NextOre, told IM.

After workshopping many ideas and developing increasingly large prototypes – commencing at the start with an antenna made up from a copper loop and a couple of capacitors – two in-pit solutions leveraging CSIRO’s open-geometry sensor have come to the fore.

The first – a 3-m-wide sensor – underwent static and dynamic tests using chalcopyrite copper ore grade samples in a material feeder setup in 2022, in Australia.

This test work, observed by several major mining companies, laid the groundwork for a bigger installation – a 7-m-wide ruggedised antenna that weighs about 5 t. This can be positioned over a haul truck and manoeuvred using a crane supplied by Eilbeck and guidance systems developed for NextOre by CSIRO and the University of Technology Sydney.

The advantage of MR in a truck load scanning scenario, just as with a conveyor, is the ability to make accurate, whole-of-sample grade measurements at high speeds. Yet, to operate effectively, this system requires significant amounts of power.

“The truck system we are building is between 120 kW and 200 kW,” Beal said. “For people in the radio frequency space, power of that magnitude is hard to comprehend; they’re used to dealing with solutions to power mobile phones.”

For reference, a NextOre on-conveyor system rated up to 5,000 t/h has around 30 kW of installed power. And conveyor systems above 5,000 t/h have 60 kW of installed power.

The idea is that this new MR truck sensor station would be positioned at an ex-pit scanning station to the side of the main haul road at a site and trucks will be directed to ore or waste as a result. The test rig constructed in NextOre’s facility has been built to suit the truck class of the initial customer, which is a major copper mine using 180-t-class and 140-t-class haul trucks.

The first prototype has now been built (as can be seen by the photo) and is awaiting of shipment to the mine where a one-year trial is set to commence.

While pursuing this development, NextOre has also been increasing the scale of its conveyor-based installations.

Around nine months ago, IM reported on a 2,800 t/h MR ore sorting installation at First Quantum Minerals’ Kansanshi copper mine in Zambia, which had just shifted from sensing to sorting with the commissioning of diversion hardware.

Now the company has an ore sensing installation up and running in Chile that has a capacity of 6,500 t/h – a little over 50% higher than the highest sensing rate (4,300 t/h) previously demonstrated by the company at Newcrest’s Cadia East mine in New South Wales, Australia.

Beal said the unit has been up and running since December, with the copper-focused client very happy with the results.

For those companies looking to test the waters of ore sorting and sensing, another big development coming out of NextOre in recent years has been the construction of a mobile bulk sorter.

Able to sort 100-400 t/h of material on a 900-mm-width conveyor belt while running at 0.3-1 m/s, these units – one of which has been operated in Australia – is able to compress the timeline normally associated with making a business case for ore sorting.

“As people can now hire such a machine, they are finding it either resolves a gap in proving out the technology or it can be used to solve urgent issues by providing an alternative source of process feed from historical dumps,” Beal said. “They want to bring a unit to site and, after an initial configuration period, get immediate results at what is a significant scale.”

Such testing has already taken place at Aeris Resources’ Tritton copper operations in New South Wales, where the unit took material on the first surface stockpile taken from an underground mine.

While this initial trial did not deliver the rejection rate anticipated by Aeris – due largely to rehandling of the material and, therefore, a reduction in ore heterogeneity ahead of feeding the conveyor – Aeris remains enthusiastic about the technology and Beal is expecting this unit to be redeployed shortly.

“We now know thanks to results from Kansanshi, Carmen Copper Corp/CD Processing, this new Chilean site and Cozamin (owned by Capstone Copper) that this in-situ grade variability can be preserved, and that mixing impacts directly on sorting performance,” Beal said. “Even so, we have seen really good heterogeneity persist in spite of the unavoidable levels of mixing inherent in mining.”

He concluded: “People want this type of equipment not in a year’s time, but next month. Capitalising the business to put more mobile units out in the world is a priority.”

TOMRA Mining looks at the ore sorting fine print with latest innovation

Comminution of minerals, Environmental, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Sustainable mining, Water management, , , , , , , ,

TOMRA Mining says it is breaking new ground with a new ejection module for its COM Tertiary X-ray Transmission (XRT) sensor-based sorter specifically developed for sorting small particle sizes.

The COM Tertiary XRT Fines sorter, featuring the new TS100C module and the recently introduced image processing unit, is capable of sorting particle sizes down to 4 mm in high-capacity applications with much higher energy efficiency, delivering a high-quality product at low operating costs, according to the company. Field tests have shown that it can deliver a 70% reduction in energy use on a production scale.

The new high resolution TS100C ejection module features a new type of ejector that is four times faster than previous iterations. Together with the new image processing unit, it delivers higher precision in sorting small particle sizes at high throughputs. The mechanical design of the sorter has also been improved by the introduction of a new splitter plate and more precise calibration equipment to ensure the greater precision in the alignment between detection and ejection systems required for fine particles, according to TOMRA.

The fast and highly precise ejection module uses significantly less compressed air to eject the particles, therefore, reducing the energy consumption. Extensive test work was conducted at the TOMRA Test Center, both with artificial material mixtures and real-world sample material. The tests showed a reduction in air consumption compared with industry standards, as well as an improvement in product purity of around 15%, the company reports.

“With the consequent cut in operating costs, sorting small particle sizes down to 4 mm with the COM Tertiary XRT Fines sorter is not only viable, but adds value to the process,” it said.

Ines Hartwig, Director Product Management at TOMRA Mining, said: “We are receiving a rapidly growing number of requests from customers to sort smaller particles. One of the biggest drivers of cost in sensor-based sorting is the energy used for the compressed air for the ejectors. The new TS100C ejection module successfully addresses this issue and provides an effective solution to this increasing demand. It is a groundbreaking invention to create more higher-value product and reduce product loss.”

Ines Hartwig, Director Product Management, TOMRA Mining

To gain field experience on the new ejection module, TOMRA partnered with a customer who has been running a COM Tertiary XRT to produce high-grade magnesite for more than two years. The sorter removes up to 50% low-grade and waste material from the raw magnesite feed, with particle sizes ranging from 10 to 35 mm at about 20 t/h.

“After conducting the test work with the TS100C ejection module at the TOMRA Test Center, we were confident that it would be very beneficial for this customer,” Hartwig says. “We showed them the test results and outlined the benefits we expected the module to deliver. As soon as they saw the possible reduction in compressed air use and the consequent cost savings, they were very interested in doing the field trial!”

The customer completed several trials, documenting the energy savings and sorting efficiencies. The results showed a 70% reduction in air consumption with an increase in product recovery with a lower mass pull to waste by producing the same product quality, and a capacity increase ranging from 20 t/h to 30 t/h with comparable results, according to TOMRA.

The COM Tertiary XRT Fines sorter featuring the new TS100C ejection module has been installed at the TOMRA Test Center in Wedel, Germany, and is ready to run tests for customers on material samples from their mines, TOMRA says.

MotionMetrics-BeltMetrics

Weir eyes game-changing energy intensity reductions with ore characterisation project

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Environmental, IoT, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining software, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

With an extensive footprint from the rock face all the way through to tailings, it was only a matter of time before the Weir Group decided to enter the ore sorting game.

In recent years, the company has re-focused as a pureplay mining and aggregates company that can provide value throughout the flowsheet.

The company ditched its oil & gas exposure and added to its process plant and tailings remit with the acquisition of ESCO, a front-end-focused mining technology company with leading market share in the ground engaging tool (GET) segment.

Having more recently incorporated Motion Metrics into the mix – now within the ESCO division – it is embarking on a project that could have positive ramifications throughout the wider Weir Group offering.

Motion Metrics is a developer of artificial intelligence (AI) and 3D rugged machine vision technology. Its smart, rugged cameras monitor and provide data on equipment performance, faults, payloads and rock fragmentation (read: particle size distribution (PSD)). This data is then analysed using embedded and cloud-based AI to provide real-time feedback to the mining operation.

Initially developed for GET applications, these technologies have recently been extended into a suite of products and solutions that can be applied from drill and blast through to primary processing. Motion Metrics has, in the process, built up an impressive customer base and income stream, performing well since the acquisition.

Weir has outlined a £500 million-plus ($604 million-plus) emerging digital market opportunity for the entity, with much of this hinged on rugged machine vision technology, its sophisticated digital platform and the ability to add ore sensing to its offering.

This became clear at the company’s recent Capital Markets Day during a presentation from Chris Carpenter, VP of Technology for Weir ESCO.

Sensing, not sorting

At this event, Carpenter said the company was combining Motion Metrics’ PSD capability with ore characterisation technology to explore high-value opportunities for its clients.

“Looking further out, we believe ore characterisation…has the potential to transform mining by moving less rock, using less energy and creating less waste,” he said during his presentation. “Ore characterisation technology, which is underpinned by sophisticated sensing systems, captures critical data on properties and composition of rock, including rock hardness and mineral and moisture content.”

“When coupled with Motion Metrics fragmentation analysis technology, it has the potential to be a game changer, giving miners a full picture of the size and characteristics of rocks.”

Weir has outlined a £500 million-plus emerging digital market opportunity for Motion Metrics, with much of this hinged on rugged machine vision technology, its sophisticated digital platform and the ability to add ore sensing to its offering

This concept is not new. Measuring the quality of ore has been spoken of for decades and, more recently, has become a reality with the likes of MineSense, NextOre, IMA Engineering, Scantech, Malvern Panalytical and Rados International, among others, all having trialled technology or deployed commercial solutions across multiple commodities and sites.

Metso Outotec, one of Weir Minerals’ big competitors in the plant and tailings arena, has also spoken of the potential for bulk ore sorting by using its existing portfolio of material handling modules, crushing stations, mobile crushing equipment and bulk material handling solutions as the basis, while incorporating sensors from other vendors.

Weir believes it is one step ahead of its OEM counterpart in its pursuit of ore sorting, even if Carpenter is only referring to the trials currently being conducted at an unnamed copper mine as “ore characterisation” studies.

“With the acquisition of Motion Metrics, what we essentially bought was the ruggedised vision systems used in both mobile and fixed applications,” he told IM in January. “While the ore sensing piece is by no means trivial, the integrated AI capabilities and digital infrastructure that allows the data to be transported via a variety of avenues is incredibly important.

“Being able to pick up the data is one thing but being able to transport that data to the right people in a secure, accurate and timely manner is something different altogether.”

With a portfolio that includes LoaderMetrics™, BeltMetrics™, TruckMetrics™ and CrusherMetrics™, Motion Metrics and the Weir ESCO R&D team had several potential applications to start its ore characterisation journey with.

The company has settled on a BeltMetrics installation for its first trial, with Carpenter confirming the sensing solution under the microscope is currently positioned above a conveyor that is directly after the crusher in the flowsheet.

“We feel we will learn quickest over a conveyor belt, so it is really an expansion of the existing BeltMetrics solution that we will start with,” he said.

The sensing options open to Motion Metrics for this trial were also vast, with the aforementioned ore sorting vendors using the likes of X-ray Fluorescence, magnetic resonance, prompt gamma neutron activation analysis, pulsed fast thermal neutron activation, and others within their solutions.

Motion Metrics has chosen to incorporate hyperspectral imaging into its PSD mix.

Carpenter explained: “When you think about ore characterisation, we are just moving from a visual spectrum base with Motion Metrics vision-based systems to the expanded light spectrum for gathering data and making decisions. This is all being built on the established digital platform the company has.”

The company is not alone in using this type of technology. MineSense has spoken of trials using multispectral sensing technologies, while Australia-based Plotlogic has been tapping hyperspectral imaging to provide precision orebody knowledge prior to mining.

Collaborating on energy intensity reductions

Safety, scalability and flexibility were three factors taken into account with the hyperspectral imaging decision, but Carpenter was also aware of the potential limitations in using such technology.

Mines will need to be willing to make some changes and invest in alternative infrastructure to leverage the most value out of the solution the company is putting forward.

“That is where productivity partnerships that we spoke about on the Capital Markets Day are going to be really important,” he said. “It is going to be essential to collaborate with customers.”

The initial collaboration with the trial mine site looks to be extensive, stretching from the back end of December throughout 2023.

The site is already equipped with a significant amount of Weir Minerals and ESCO equipment, so the collaboration appears to have started well before this trial.

“Throughout the year, we will have the opportunity to make enhancements; starting out with an initial system that is upgraded,” Carpenter said. “By the end of the year, we should have high confidence of having something ready to commercialise. It could also be that we have other trials running concurrently with this one to extend the learnings.”

The two primary key performance indicators for the trial surround accuracy and speed, with Carpenter saying the company is targeting to at least meet the metrics competing technologies have been promoting over recent years.

“In both cases, we are well equipped to measure both and – in the initial phase – we are performing well,” Carpenter said.

“Right now, when they (the mine site) carry out an assay, they have to stop the conveyor belt, take a sample off and send it to a lab. At best, the feedback takes hours, if not days. Motion Metrics has done a really good job of building the sensors, algorithms and platforms to process the data coming from above that belt very quickly.”

There are a team of very experienced, PhD-equipped personnel currently working on this trial, monitoring the real-time results from Motion Metrics’ base in Vancouver, however there is a Weir network across the globe watching and waiting for news.

A sensor above a conveyor belt able to provide ore characterisation data is step one. Step two will most likely involve leveraging this data to provide insights as well as initiate downstream actions.

Then, there is the potential to equip these sensors for the pit on an excavator or wheel loader – which introduces many additional challenges both Motion Metrics and ESCO are aware of. Understanding exactly what is in the bank or going in the bucket will be critical to improving operational efficiencies.

These are longer-term goals that Motion Metrics, ESCO, Weir Minerals and Carpenter are cognisant of – and excited about – that may provide the true value to customers throughout the flowsheet.

“What is exciting for us is that – as may be obvious – the further upstream you can make some good decisions, the more energy you can save downstream,” he said. “As you get into some of the other processing elements in the plant, there are sustainability benefits to be had – a more efficient use of reagents to liberate the elements, a more efficient grinding setup based on ore characteristics, a reduction in water use, etc.

“The driver for this has really been sustainability and energy reduction. It is all about reducing the energy intensity associated with ore.

“We feel we are well equipped and in a good position to deliver on this and provide the industry with the step change in sustainability that it requires.”

Tungsten West cuts CAPEX with new Hemerdon feasibility study plan

Energy minerals, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining services, , , , , , ,

An updated feasibility study on Tungsten West’s Hemerdon project in Devon, England, has brought with it a processing re-optimisation program that includes a complete redesign of the front-end crushing circuit at the mine, a process that, it says, will considerably reduce the capital expenditure associated with this development.

The new study outlined average annual production of 2,900 t of WO3 in concentrate and 310 t of tin in concentrate over a life of mine of 27 years, along with an average steady-state mining rate of 3.5 Mt/y.

The changes to the existing process flowsheet to be implemented at Hemerdon can be categorised into three areas, namely:

  • Front end upgrades – new crushing, screening and ore sorting circuit required for Phase 1 (average of 2.4 Mt/y of granite ore, years 1-2);
  • Existing minerals processing facility modifications – upgrades to existing plant to accommodate production requirements for Phase 1; and
  • Phase 2 (3.5 Mt/y of granite ore, year 3 onwards) crushing and process plant expansion – future upgrades to both crushing and processing plants required for increased production rates, envisaged from year three onwards.

The re-engineering has mainly reduced capital and operating expenses around reduced ore handling costs by the introduction of direct tipping at a newly sited run of mine pad, incorporating the introduction of new semi-mobile primary jaw and secondary cone crushers, new operating parameters for the ore sorting circuit, and, to a lesser extent, changes to the existing dense media separation and fine gravity dressing circuits.

The revised front-end design also includes a significant tactical advantage through the introduction of a secondary crushed ore stockpile ahead of the ore sorters, Tungsten West said. This provides up to circa-40 hours of redundancy capacity to the crushing circuit, thereby de-coupling the front end crushing circuit from the minerals processing facility (MPF) – minimising downtime and maximising availability of the concentrator circuit.

Tungsten West has maintained the ethos of the original feasibility study in continuing to engineer-out as many operational, mechanical, electrical or ESG issues associated with the previous operation as possible and to ensure MPF availability and operability remains a priority, it said.

Back in July, Tungsten West concluded a re-evaluation of the options for bringing the Hemerdon mine back into production, announcing a new development plan that would re-optimise the March 2021 Bankable Feasibility Study. The plan was developed in response to global crises in power and diesel prices and the general inflationary environment for construction materials faced by the company.

The new plan has resulted in a remaining capital expenditure, including EPCM fees, of £31.1 million ($38 million) as of October 1.

Mark Thompson, Executive Vice Chairman of Tungsten West, said: “The feasibility study provides solutions to the energy price challenges and will enable increased operating efficiencies at the project. Key highlights from this study include a revised ore delivery and waste mining strategy, a split-phase approach to operational ramp-up to the full design specification, a new primary and secondary crushing method and location, a re-optimisation of the operating strategy for the X-ray Transmission ore sorters, re-design and re-engineering of the feed preparation, ore sorter buildings and structures, and a re-evaluation of the operation of unit processes and expected recoveries.

“We are build-ready at Hemerdon and we look forward to continuing to work with our partners and stakeholders to bring Hemerdon back into production in the fourth (December) quarter of 2023.”

TOMRA Mining to present complete diamond recovery solution at Mining Indaba 2023

Diamond mining, Mineral processing, Mining events, Mining services, , , , , , ,

TOMRA Mining is to use the backdrop of the upcoming Mining Indaba 2023 event in Cape Town, South Africa, to highlight its complete sensor-based ore sorting diamond recovery solution.

Kai Bartram, Global Sales Director, Corné de Jager, Global Segment Manager Diamonds, and Helga van Lochem, Area Sales Manager, will be available from February 6-9 at the event to discuss the benefits of TOMRA’s portfolio of sorting solutions for the diamonds, metals and industrial minerals industry, as well as the advantages of its advanced digital products and services, like the TOMRA INSIGHT cloud-based platform, the company said.

Today, TOMRA Mining has more than 200 machines in operation across the world.

Bartram said: “Our sorting technologies effectively address key issues that mining companies face, such as decreasing average ore grades and rising energy costs. Not only do we offer a complete solution, unique in the market, for diamond recovery, but we have proven that our sensor-based ore sorting technologies are extremely effective in a wide variety of applications such as chrome, manganese, gold, lead and zinc. There is a big untapped potential for our technologies in mining and so far we have only scratched the surface. Our excellent results show that we are on the right track and we have ambitious objectives of growth for TOMRA Mining.”

Its latest innovation in diamond recovery, the COM XRT 300 /FR sorter, is a new-generation machine that represents an industry first in diamond sorting, according to the company.

Kai Bartram (Tomra Mining photo by Pepe Lange 2022)

It uses the company’s proprietary ultra-high-resolution sensor, advanced new image processing and high-precision ejector valve system to produce an ultra-high diamond-by-weight concentrate with an exceptionally low yield. The sorter offers 100% diamond detection within the specified size fraction and >99% guaranteed diamond recovery with appropriate feed material preparation, according to the company. It is also a dry process that doesn’t require water or chemical reagents.

“Our Final Recovery sorter has the potential to revolutionise diamond flowsheets,” de Jager said. “This user-friendly, compact and easy-to-operate sorter offers higher efficiency and better grade, with fewer sorting stages and a smaller footprint. It reduces complexity and operational costs.”

The TOMRA COM XRT 300 /FR completes TOMRA’s complete partnered diamond recovery solution, which covers the entire process, from Bulk Concentration to Final Recovery and Sort House applications.

“We are now able to offer our customers a full XRT solution to sort +2-100 mm particles: our bulk concentration sorters for +4-100 mm particles and the COM XRT 300 /FR in its Final Recovery, Sort House or small-capacity exploration applications for +2-32 mm particles,” de Jager added.

Weir preparing to trial proprietary ore sorting tech by the end of 2022

Automation, Comminution of minerals, Explosives and blasting, IoT, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Mining software, Sustainable mining, Water management, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

In the Weir Group Capital Markets Event presentation last week, Chris Carpenter revealed that the company was collaborating within its divisions on trials of ore sorting technology in an effort to move less rock at mine sites and optimise processing within the plant.

Carpenter, Vice President of Technology at Weir ESCO, said the company was combining Motion Metrics’ particle size distribution (PSD) capability with ore characterisation technology to explore “in-pit sorting” opportunities for its clients.

“Looking further out, we believe ore characterisation and in-pit ore sorting has the potential to transform mining by moving less rock, using less energy and creating less waste,” he said during his presentation. “Ore characterisation technology, which is underpinned by sophisticated sensing systems, captures critical data on properties and composition of rock, including rock hardness and mineral and moisture content.

“When coupled with Motion Metrics fragmentation analysis technology, it has the potential to be a game changer, giving miners a full picture of the size and characteristics of rocks.”

Motion Metrics, a developer of artificial intelligence (AI) and 3D rugged machine vision technology, was acquired by Weir almost a year ago, with the business incorporated into the Weir ESCO division. Its smart, rugged cameras monitor and provide data on equipment performance, faults, payloads and rock fragmentation. This data is then analysed using embedded and cloud-based AI to provide real-time feedback to the mining operation.

These technologies were initially developed for ground engaging tool applications but have recently been extended into a suite of products and solutions that can be applied from drill and blast through to primary processing.

Carpenter said the added PSD capability from Motion Metrics was expanding the company’s value presence across the mine to the processing plant, where Weir Minerals operates.

“Results from early adoption of Motion Metrics PSD solutions have been extremely encouraging,” he said. “Feedback from customers is positive; data sharing and collaboration have increased.

“Given this early progress, we are really excited about the opportunity and expect fragmentation analysis to be a key growth driver for Motion Metrics in the years to come.”

On the in-pit sorting potential, Carpenter said Weir ESCO had laboratory-validated equipment and field trials of its proprietary solution that were due to start at customer sites before the end of the year tied to these developments.

“If successful, this technology opens the door to in-pit sorting, where miners complete the first stage of crushing in the pit and analyse the outputs to make real-time decisions about which rocks have sufficient mineral content to be moved,” he said. “This is a step change from the current process, where energy is expended in transporting and processing all of the rocks, regardless of mineral content, and with significant waste generated from zero- and low-grade material.”

He concluded: “Our vision is to move less rock, moving only the rocks with sufficient mineral content and using the data that is captured on size and hardness to optimise processing. The natural evolution thereafter will be towards real-time automation control of processing equipment, ensuring the right rocks are processed in the most efficient way, using less energy and creating less waste.”