AUSTRALIAN mining group Pasminco says it uses the Discflo disc pump at the copper Broken Hill mine, New South Wales.
The miner says the equipment is used for pumping highly abrasive and dense copper concentrate.
The company says its main challenge was to find a pump that lasted longer than two weeks in service, especially since copper is corrosive. The Discflo disc pump is rubber-lined for extra abrasive protection.
The first production model was installed in 1998. BC Engineering reports that the pump has been running without any down time since then.
The supplier says the pump is based on noncontact technology. The operating principle behind the pump is a boundary-layer viscous drag.
Examples of where the pump is used include the chemical recovery process and additionally in areas where sludges have a high solids content or where there are high levels of entrained air.
The unit is designed to handle up to 70% of entrained air or gas without cavitating.
Discflo manufactures a line of sump and dry pit pumps for heavy-duty sewage, sludge and slurry applications. Using disc-pac technology, these pumps provide low-cost solutions.
The manufacturer says its sump and dry pit pumps can be engineered in stainless steel as well as in ductile iron, hastelloy and other metals, to meet the user’s specific abrasion and corrosion-resistance needs.