A LEADING thickener supplier has been given a helping hand to develop its feedwell design and move one step closer to transforming how the equipment is used in modern-day mining.
Outotec have developed “the most significant feedwell design enhancements in 15 years” with the help of CSIRO’s Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models.
Feedwells have two purposes; physically, they catch incoming feed, slow its momentum and distribute it evenly across the settling tank. Chemically, they flocculate incoming feed to aid settling.
Experts say the equipment’s dual roles make its design complicated because it is not possible to see what is happening within its structure.
According to Outotec, CSIRO’s CFD model aided design enhancements by creating a “virtual image” inside the feedwell to monitor the performance of flocculants and see how solids were distributed.
Modifications included extending the feedwell shelf to increase solids residence time, adding a fourth dilution port to improve flocculation, and using angled vanes to create two feed zones within the unit.
Outotec's new design is now in operation at a mineral sand site in Western Australia and at an alumina refinery in Queensland.
According to the company, the enhancements will dramatically transform mining processes by providing improved equipment that is used in every mineral processing application.
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