Integrated Sensor Based Sorting and HPGR Comminution Circuit for Improved Energy Efficiency

Energy efficiency is a primary focus for the mineral processing flowsheets of the future. In recent years, High Pressure Grinding Rolls (HPGR) have demonstrated significant energy savings as compared to conventional SAG mill circuits and Alex Doll, of Alex G. Doll Consulting Ltd, Ireland, has produced a 22 minute video which discusses the similarities, the strengths and the weaknesses of these two important comminution techniques.

The integration of energy efficient comminution with sensor-based sorting (SBS) has the potential to significantly reduce overall mineral processing energy usage, by rejecting low grade rock ahead of energy intensive comminution, and SBS has featured strongly in recent MEI Conferences, particularly in comminution conferences, and it was good to hear that a paper presented at Comminution '23, a cooperation between Steinert Latinoamericana, Nexa Resources and MinPro Solutions, has received a High Commendation from CEEC, one of our conference industry advocates. The paper proposed an interdisciplinary and holistic approach to better understand the impacts of SBS on a SABC circuit for a polymetallic ore, the results pointing to a 10% increase in grinding capacity, 44% reduction in water usage, 34% reduction in energy consumption and 43% reduction in fine tailings generation. In addition, the metal production and recovery were improved due to a better performance in flotation. 

We can expect much more on SBS at next year's Comminution '25 in Cape Town and in a keynote lecture, Bern Klein, Professor of Mineral Process Engineering at the University of British Columbia, Canada, will present a conceptual SBS with HPGR comminution circuit in tertiary and quaternary stages. The energy consumption will be compared to a conventional SABC circuit for a large copper mine. 

There is a call for abstracts for Comminution '25, which should be submitted by October 31st. If you would like to exhibit please let us know as soon as possible, as due to high demand, and the main exhibition area selling out, we have placed extra 2x1m booths outside the conference room, but only 3 are currently available.

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