Tag Archives: ultrafine grinding

SGS to bring Glencore Technology’s Albion Process testing to Africa mining market

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Metallurgy, Mineral processing, Mining services, Precious metals, , , , , , , , ,

SGS Minerals is to offer Glencore Technology’s Albion Process™ test work to mining companies in Africa after the two extended an agreement and certification related to the hydrometallurgical process.

While SGS already has a relationship with Glencore Technology through SGS Lakefield – through an agreement signed last year – the extension opens up the potential for more large packages of work of “high relevance and value”, Glencore Technology says.

“For Glencore Technology, it extends further the global reach of Albion Process test work as it has grown 300% in the last 12-24 months and is seen as uniquely viable in terms of capital costs, operational costs and project feasibility,” the company said.

The new test work locations will now include Randberg in South Africa, with other locations being discussed elsewhere around the world, according to Glencore Technology.

The Albion Process uses a combination of ultrafine grinding and oxidative leaching at atmospheric pressure to work. It also tolerates a more variable feed and lower grade than other processes, according to Glencore Technology, meaning it can make some projects feasible and profitable where alternative technologies could not. The sulphides in the feed are oxidised and valuable metals liberated, with the economic metals recovered by conventional downstream processing. Test work requires only small sample masses with no pilot plant, Glencore Technology says.

The process has produced high recoveries in refractory gold and in base metal concentrates at the six Albion Process plants in operation across the globe, according to the company.

Glencore Technology’s Paul Voigt said: “The extension to Africa has been under discussion for quite some time. We know the importance of local contact and context. It’s also part of a wider focus we have for the African continent.”

SGS’ Niels Verbaan, said: “This is a natural and highly relevant extension of our work with Glencore Technology on Albion Process test work. We look forward to a larger global footprint to help operations in Africa and the Americas, especially those with complex mineralogies, to get an objective opinion on process options.”

SGS is the third certified provider of test work, joining Core Resources in Australia and TOMS Institute in Russia.

MATSA wins quick payback from Weir Cavex hydrocylone installation

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

Weir Minerals says the introduction of a Cavex® hydrocyclone cluster at MATSA’s processing plant, in Spain, has delivered payback in just three days.

MATSA is a modern Spanish mining company based in the north of the Iberian Pyrite Belt, a mining district that has been active for more than 2,500 years. The company, owned 50:50 by Trafigura and Mubadala Investment Company, owns and operates three mines in the province of Huelva, Spain: Aguas Teñidas and Magdalena, located in Almonaster la Real, and the Sotiel mine, in Calañas.

The processing plant, in Almonaster, recently went through a €236 million ($266 million) expansion that saw capacity go from 2.2 Mt/y to 4.4-4.7 Mt/y through the addition of a second plant. The plant now has the capacity to treat copper and polymetallic ores through three grinding lines.

Weir Minerals says it has been working with MATSA to optimise its minerals treatment plant’s primary and secondary grinding circuits.

Seda Kahraman, Regional Process Engineer Manager for Weir Minerals, said: “We have been working with MATSA for 12 years and our service team has built a solid partnership with them. We opened a service site close to MATSA and employed a full-time Service Engineer on site to provide adequate support.

“Their success is our success, and working on this particular project was both very challenging and very rewarding. They needed to increase their grinding circuit capacity from 275 t/h to 307 t/h, whilst reducing the quantity of ultrafines in the final overflow of the second hydrocyclone cluster.”

Antonio Gamiz, MATSA Plant Technical Director, said: “To maximise our plant productivity we needed a Cavex hydrocyclone cluster that was specifically designed to our application. This was achieved without an extension of the plant area and with minimal capital expenditure.”

Weir Minerals took a holistic approach to this challenge by first creating a simulation of the entire primary and secondary grinding circuit. This enabled it to visualise how the process should be running, and the most appropriate way to deliver this.

Following the simulation, the best operating conditions were calculated to support the required capacity increase and elimination of slimes, Weir said. This included the ball mills, mill liners and hydrocyclones. Using 3D laser scanner technology, the team at Weir Minerals developed a suitable layout for the equipment, including modification and steel structures.

Kahraman said:“This truly was a turnkey solution; the team had to pull together all their smarts, capabilities and tools to ensure MATSA’s grinding capacity was raised, whilst simultaneously reducing the quantity of ultrafines from their overflow. We achieved this with a range of tools and techniques including engineer design, subcontract management, and manufacturing of steel.”

To deliver the solutions MATSA required, Weir Minerals replaced the primary hydrocyclone cluster, as well as the spare parts on the secondary hydrocyclone cluster; redesigned the steel structure and walkways; installed new hydrocyclone feed pumps and piping configurations, installing and commissioning the entire project, Weir said.

The modification to the steelwork and piping, as well as the assembly of the new three-way Cavex 650CVX hydrocyclone cluster were completed in less than four days without any production interruptions, according to Weir.

Upon analysing samples from various points in the grinding circuit, it was confirmed the feed capacity had successfully increased to 300-307 t/h.

Kahraman said: “In addition to the desired increase in grinding capacity, we also improved circulating load in the primary ball mill and restored the feed pressure to the Cavex hydrocyclones to 85 kPa. We are thrilled that MATSA achieved payback in just three days due to the increase in production by 500 t/d, and achieved additional revenue of €2,751/h.”