The Cavex® 2 hydrocyclone marks a major change in sustainable development, saving water and energy

2021-11-24 03:16:28 By : Ms. Eva Ho

Sustainable mining remains a controversial topic, and operators are facing tremendous pressure to minimize their environmental impact. As the world moves towards a more environmentally friendly lifestyle, the importance of sustainability in the mining industry is driving the development of new technologies in the industry.

The equipment we have developed can efficiently and sustainably transport natural resources, especially in the process of classification and separation. Hydrocyclones have a significant impact on these processes: recovery of valuable minerals, waste production in tailings and spare parts, crushing Water and energy consumption of the circuit. The importance of sustainable hydrocyclone technology

Mineral recovery rate is a key factor in determining the economic feasibility of mining operations. According to the grade value, it represents the part of the mined raw ore that can be turned into a saleable product. The recovery rate is also related to the size of the mineral release, which defines the product size required for the production of the crushing circuit in the factory.

The hydrocyclone determines the particle size distribution and thus the recovery rate of the operation. Inefficient hydrocyclone devices with low recovery rates waste mineral resources and increase tailings.

Generally, the crushing and grinding circuit consumes more than 50% of the total energy consumption of the mine. In closed-circuit grinding applications, ball mills are usually used and are very energy-efficient, because the absorbed energy consumed by the ball mill is less than 1%. The operation of the hydrocyclone and the ball mill will significantly affect the efficiency and consumption rate of the entire grinding circuit, because in addition to defining the particle size, the hydrocyclone also defines the material load in the circuit with the highest energy consumption and the feed of the most energy-efficient equipment rate.

Efficient hydrocyclone operation is essential to reduce unnecessary load and related energy, water and spare parts consumption of the entire plant. The correct size hydrocyclone with specially designed features can increase the recovery rate and reduce consumption, thereby increasing efficiency and sustainability. Although the original Cavex® hydrocyclone chamber design is still the most advanced on the market, we changed the geometry of the equipment to increase the cutting point, fine powder bypass, and unit capacity to provide more sustainable operation. Cavex® 2 hydrocyclones provide finer separation and higher capacity

Another consideration for classification and separation is the cutting point of the hydrocyclone. This means that the particle has a 50/50 chance to report the size of the overflow or underflow. Specific gravity, solid feed percentage, pressure, and hydrocyclone geometry all help determine the cutting point.

Pressure is the key factor that exerts centrifugal force on the particles after they enter the feeding chamber. Coarse particles are pushed away from the air core of the hydrocyclone, sending small fragments to the overflow. Higher pressure produces finer products. However, higher pressures require higher pumping energy and increase the backup consumption of pumps and cyclones.

The percentage of feed solids has the most significant effect on the cut point related to the pulp viscosity and the density of the particle population around the air core. To obtain a finer cutting point, the feed should be diluted. The more the feed is diluted, the higher the water consumption in the grinding circuit.

Recognizing the need for more sustainable mineral processing equipment that meets the above parameters, Weir Minerals developed the Cavex® 2 hydrocyclone.

At the beginning of this development journey, Weir Minerals envisioned a hydrocyclone that could achieve finer cutting points without sacrificing water, energy or the life of spare parts.

Tests have shown that under the same conditions, the new Cavex® 2 hydrocyclone can produce finer cutting points compared to other Cavex® models. This is mainly due to the advanced LIG ™ entrance and chamber design.

In addition to finer cutting points, another feature provided by the LIG ™ inlet and chamber design is a higher specific hydraulic capacity. Cavex® 2 can achieve up to 30% additional hydraulic capacity, allowing operators to increase throughput with fewer hydrocyclones. result? Significantly save money, reduce floor space and spare parts consumption, and provide sustainable operations. Advantages of down bypass

Bypass refers to the ratio of fine particles in the feed to the crude product conveyed to the underflow of the hydrocyclone by water, relative to the ratio of water flowing to the underflow. All hydrocyclones bypass fine particles to some extent, but they can be minimized through careful design and operating conditions.

Increasing the bypass will generate a high cycle load, consume the energy and spare parts of the entire circuit, which will have a negative impact on the performance of the grinding circuit.

The Cavex® 2 hydrocyclone is designed to minimize bypass and reduce circulating load to achieve high grinding efficiency, saving energy and spare parts consumption for operators. Sustainable classification and separation

Hydrocyclones are an important part of the grinding and beneficiation circuit. Cavex® 2 provides unprecedented classification efficiency, capacity, cutting points and bypass. With its new feed chamber design, LIG ​​™ reduces turbulence and improves the sharpness of the classification, thereby achieving higher recovery rates and reducing tailings.

Capacity increases up to 30%, finer separation and lower bypass rates reduce water and energy consumption, reduce carbon emissions and contribute to sustainable water management. The reduction in the area of ​​the hydrocyclone cluster and the reduction in wear rate also reduce the waste generated by the consumption of spare parts.

With the promotion of sustainable mining, operators understand that economic viability and profitability will increasingly depend on environmentally and socially responsible operations. By reducing water and electricity consumption, the Cavex® 2 hydrocyclone is a well-thought-out design aimed at achieving a more sustainable mining future.

  Free white paper Mining Energy Consumption 2021 Faced with tremendous pressure to improve the sustainability of the mining industry, this advanced research analyzes the mining energy data of more than 40 published studies to fully understand the true scale of energy use. Used in mining and mineral processing. Commissioned by the Weir Group, the study emphasized the importance of decarbonization to the industry and identified many important energy and emission reduction opportunities.

In the face of tremendous pressure to improve the sustainability of the mining industry, this advanced research analyzed mining energy data from more than 40 published studies to fully understand the energy consumption of the mining industry and mining properties, thereby showing the Real-scale processing of industry energy use.

Commissioned by the Weir Group, the study emphasized the importance of decarbonization to the industry and identified many important energy and emission reduction opportunities.

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