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PILOT HPGR CAMPAIGN AT THE CODELCO EL TENIENTE COPPER MINE

F.P. van der Meer R. Dicke P. Morales H. Elgueta M. P. Negroni

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CODELCO EL TENIENTE COPPER OPERATION Location: Plant Capacity: Ore Type/Mineralogy: Codelco El Teniente plant, near Rancagua, 89 km south of Santiago, Chile. 137,000 tpd. Reserves ca. 2.5 billion tons grading ca. 0.84%. Porphyry copper & molybdenite mineralogy. with copper- and sulphide rich breccia (Biotite, Tourmaline, Anhydrite). UCS 90-140 MPa approximately 430,000 t/y refined copper SAG and conventional milling, followed by flotation, thickening and filtration

Production:
Processing Scheme:

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REASONS for ON-SITE PILOT WORK

1. Variability testing of different ore types where representative testing of smaller ore samples abroad is limited, and costs for transport and testing for multiple ore samples is high. Samples tested included El Teniente, Andina and Chuquicamata ores. 2. Testing for periods of extended operation to provide an impression of the operability of a roller press, acquaintance of the operation, and evaluating availability.
3. Test the operation in a continuous closed circuit 4. Realistic indication for wear rate on roll surface and cheek plates 5. Provide a possibility of on-site determination of downstream effects (such as the reduced ball mill energy input and improved metallurgy)

6. Confirmation tests of initial small scale results (at KHD laboratories) on a semi-production scale.

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ARRANGEMENT of PILOT HPGR at EL TENIENTE

Nominal Capacity: 40-60 t/h Circulating load : 50-60 % Operating gap approximately 32 mm (1) Closed circuit 6 mm dry screening

6.0 MM

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SUMMARY of PILOT HPGR KEY DATA

Stud-Lined Rolls

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GENERALIZED PILOT HPGR SET-UP FLOW SCHEME

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PILOT HPGR SET-UP at EL TENIENTE

Feed Chute

Pilot HPGR
Discharge Conveyor to 6 mm screen Screen OS recycle conveyor

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PILOT HPGR TEST DATA COLLECTION

PARAMETERS TO BE RECORDED & MEASURED (1 second interval from data logger): Power consumption (kW) , both motors Movable roll position; operating gap, left and right Hydraulic pressure; left and right Feed rate; from weigh-belt feeder or from sample weight and test duration SAMPLES TO BE TAKEN Fresh feed HPGR effective feed including recycle HPGR products. Centre and Edge. Screen oversize (recycle) Screen undersize PRODUCT ANALYSES Particle size distribution Moisture Density (SG) Bulk density Flake size, proportion and strength

AUXILIARY MEASUREMENTS Roll surface and lateral wall wear, desagglomeration, screen efficiency

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EXAMPLES OF HPGR TEST DATA SERIES Codelco Andina Ore

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EXAMPLE OF TEST RESULTS El Teniente and Andina ores Effect of Pressure on Specific Energy and Specific Throughput

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EXAMPLES OF TEST RESULTS

Average Feed & Product Size Distributions

HPGR Centre Discharge with ca. 10 % flakes Weak flakes; disintegrate upon handling

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EXAMPLE OF TEST RESULTS El Teniente and Andina ores Effect of Pressure on Product Size

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ROLL SURFACE WEAR

Projected roll surface wear life from wear rate measurements indicates 7,500 to 12,000 operating hours for Stud-Plus Lining Optimized conditions ensure a strong autogenous roll coating

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OBSERVATIONS ENCOUNTERED
Gap skew from feed segregation and material flow hindrance in feed chute Shallow feed chute did appear to limit material passage at freezing conditions A wider chute and insulation did achieve better flow conditions

Mass flow calculations from belt cuts difficult to reconcile with actual throughput Weigh belt or feeder more reliable
Sufficient spares, maintenance and availability of support personnel essential

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COMPARISON OF PERFORMANCE Average Results

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CRUSHING CIRCUIT SPECIFIC ENERGY COMPARISON

Ch 2

Ch 2

Courtesy of Codelco

Ch HPGR

AND:
Ch 3

Additional savings in reduced ball mill energy and finished product generated in HPGR discharge
Mda. Bolas

Mda. Bolas

Conventional Crushing

HPGR

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COMPARISON OF PERFORMANCE average results for Andina, El Teniente and Chuquicamata with copper ores at similar conditions

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INDICATION OF FULL SCALE CAPACITIES of average results for Andina and El Teniente ores for a specific pressure of 3.0-4.0 N/mm

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CONCLUSIONS and OBSERVATIONS

Andina, El Teniente and Chuquicamata ores were amenable to HPGR with performance parameters near average of other copper ores Andina was slightly harder than El Teniente and Chuquicamata with higher energy input and lower specific throughput HPGR offers a lower energy consumption in the crushing circuit of average 18 % against SAG milling and 6-10 % against conventional crushing No differences were observed in flotation response

Presently projected or available HPGR unit sizes do facilitate maximum unit capacities of up to 3,000-4,000 tons per hour
Wear rates measured indicate roll surface life of 8,000 to 12,000 operating hours Control and arrangement of a homogenous feed supply is essential Pilot plant design needs attention equivalent to a production facility Preparation in sampling, mass rate measurement, feed supply is critical

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I THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND ATTENTION. If you have any questions, I would be happy to answer these.