Manipulating the nature of slurry flows to overcome production and maintenance challenges

DR STEVE ALGIE CONSULTANT, FLOCEP PTY LTD

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What is PROmotion™ Technology? PROmo&on  Technology  is  the  basis  for:  

•  a  family  of  devices  that  

•  solve  problems  arising  from  the  inherent  tendency  for  

•  segrega&on  of  the  solids  within  slurry  flows  

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Engineering models (usefully) simplify reality

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Newitt’s slurry flow classification (single particle size)    

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Fully  suspended  

Suspended  with  moving  bed  

Suspended  with  salta?on  (par?cles  ‘hop’  along  pipe)  

Blocked  pipe  Len?cular  deposits  

Sta?onary  deposits  with  ripples  In

creasin

g  velocity  

Increasing  solids  concentra?on  

FLOprep unit

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•  Flow  prepara?on  upstream  of  hydrocyclone  distributor    

•  Solids  loading  ≈60%;  high  abrasion  index  (47)  

•  FLOprep  installed  2012  •  Projected  life  188  weeks  

•  Flow  rate  changes  have  not  affected  performance  

•  Accepted  and  performance  validated  by  client  

Evolu&on  Mining  -­‐  Edna  May  Opera&ons  

FLOdistributor

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Evolu&on  Mining  -­‐  Edna  May  Opera&ons  

During  installa&on  in  a  scheduled  12-­‐hour  shut-­‐down  

In  use  

FLOdistributor

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Evolu&on  Mining  -­‐  Edna  May    Opera&ons  

•  Gold  recovery  increased  from  ≈90%  to  ≈  94%  

•  Stable  performance  allows  op&mal  process  opera&ons  

•  Maintenance  costs  reduced  95%  •  uniform  wear  on  cyclones  

•  Underflow  densi&es  uniform  to  1%  solids  (74-­‐75%)  •  Maintenance  intervals  increased  from  3  days  to  4  months  •  Cyclone  life  cycle  increased  from  3  weeks  to  4  months  •  Rubber-­‐lined  spools  not  replaced  in  more  than  two  years’  opera&on  (previous  ceramic  spools  had  16  week  life)  

 

MAXbend®

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The  situa?on:  •  Most  severe  loca?on  in  the  plant  for  bend  wear    

•  Superheated  caus?c  slurry  entering  first  flash  tank  

•  Flashing  inside  bend  results  in  very  high  erosion  

•  Standard  bend  life  120  days    

Alumina  refinery  in  southwest  WA  

MAXbend® performance

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•  MAXbend®  installed  in  alumina  refinery  in  2012  •  service  to  date  ≈900  days  

•  Projected  life:1800  days  (15  &mes  mul&plier)  •  Accommodated  a  flow  rate  increase  of  ≈20%  with  no  effect  on  MAXbend®  performance    

•  Acceptance  and  validated  performance  by  both  clients  •  Rental  op?on  offered  to  clients  and  under  considera?on  

Similarly  spectacular  results  in  Sandfire  Resources’  DeGrussa  copper-­‐gold  opera&ons  

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MAXbend®   Performance Timeline

Standard  Bend  Life   MAXbend®  Bend  Life  

Note  :  Expected  life  based  on  inspec&on  results  from  1  year’s  service  (April  2013)  and    2  year’s  service  (June  2014)  

A  PROmo&on™  Technology  

Where might you use PROmotion™ Technology? PROmo?on™  Technology  pays  off  in  places  where  the  non-­‐homogeneous  flow  inside  the  pipe  might  get  you  into  trouble:  •  Measurement,  or  sampling  •  Addi?on  of  a  chemical  •  Spliang  a  slurry  flow  •  Where  there’s  a  bend  in  the  pipe  

 

Consider  how  much  easier  these  opera&ons  would  be  if  the  slurry  were  actually  homogeneous  at  these  points!  

Then  …  

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Think of PROmotion™ Technology!   FloCEP  informa?on  contacts:  

  www.flocep.com.au  (under  construc?on)  

  scof@maxbend.com.au  

  Phone:  +61  8  9353  3929  

  Author  contacts:  

  Dr  Steve  Algie  

  algie@mul&line.com.au  

  Phone:  +61  8  9385  9969  

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