INCREASING THROUGHPUT THROUGH AG2 AT GUELB MOGHREIN MINE

In Autogenous Grinding (AG), rock-on-rock and rock on liner impacts are the main causes of breakage. With this in mind, attention must be paid to the following: 1. FEED SIZE: The reason for this is obvious. To recap, large, competent rocks are essential in mill feed to act as the means of converting electrical energy to mechanical energy for comminution of the remainder of the charge. Some mines have gone to the extent of changing fragmentation in the pit to ensure this is achieved. The results shown below are from a mine the author was involved with some years back, this increase in throughput was as a result of better fragmentation in the pit.

Increased AG mill throughput attributed to better ore fragmentation 2. MILL DENSITY: When converting from SAG to AG it requires a paradigm shift in operating practice regarding mill density. The two major reasons for this are: 1) The material needs to be evacuated from the AG mill much faster in order to prevent a buildup in mill load, and 2) Less cushioning is required. I.e. there are no balls to be coated, and the effect of cushioning is not desired as we strive for rock-on-rock impact. WITH THE TWO AFOREMENTIONED FACTS IN MIND, A MILL DENSITY IN THE RANGE 68-72% SOLIDS MIGHT BE DESIRABLE. This is not fixed and varies from location to location based on ore mineralogy and its effect on slurry rheology, trial and error will ascertain this. The results below show

the effect of lowering mill density on power draw.

Effect of lowering mill density on AG mills power draw (kW)

3. LINER TYPE: There is no recorded evidence in base metals processing of rubber liners being used in AG mills! The reason being that rubber liners absorb the impact of the rocks and help to dissipate the mechanical energy, thus leading to inefficient breakage. The underlying reason being energy loss due to the plasticity of the rubber. This is explained by the coefficient of restitution. Steel will have coefficient of restitution ranging from 0.35 to 0.60 and this figure increases with time as work hardening takes place. On the other hand, rubber will have coefficient of restitution in the range of 0.55 to 0.85 and this figure decreases with time. Most reputable foundries are capable of measuring up rubber liners and designing steel liners as a replacement. Eclipse foundry of South Africa sent two members of staff to Frontier a few years back and they measured up existing liners and designed new ones. 4. LINER DESIGN, LIFTER HEIGHT and LEADING FACE ANGLE: A reputable foundry will have milling software capable of simulating the trajectory of the charge with steel liners. This will often be different from the existing rubber liners. Overthrow, or under throw, will lead to inefficient grinding. Typical simulation results from such software package are shown below.

Milling software used in steel liner design

Milling software used in steel liner design

5. OPERATING CONDITIONS: The following matrix can be used as a guide to maximize throughput, this is subject to change as more operating data/experience is gathered. Table showing operating guidelines for AG2 No 1 2 3 4 5 6 MILL LOAD DOWN DOWN UP UP UP DOWN POWER DRAW DOWN DOWN UP UP DOWN UP HPGR LOAD UP DOWN UP DOWN DOWN UP ACTION INCREASE MILL DENSITY INCREASE MILL FEED DECREASE MILL FEED DECREASE MILL DENSITY DECREASE MILL DENSITY (OVERLOADING/BOGGING IMMINENT) DECREASE MILL DENSITY (FINES ARE BEING FLUSHED OUT)

Typical milling circuit

Ramoutar Seecharran Plant Superintendent 23rd August 2010