Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
therefore appears that the size of the =ine particles is closely connected with the
internal structure of the material, and the size of the larger particles is more closely
connected with the process by which the size reduction is effected.
This effect is well illustrated by a series of experiments on the grinding of coal in a
small mill, carried out by HEYWOOD. The results are shown in Figure 1, in which the
distribution of particle size in the product is shown as a function of the number of
Figure 1. Effect of progressive grinding on size distribution
revolutions of the mill. The initial size distribution shows a single mode corresponding
to a relatively coarse size, but as the degree of crushing is gradually increased this
mode progressively decreases in magnitude and a second mode develops at a
particular size. This process continues until the =irst mode has completely disappeared.
Here the second mode is characteristic of the material and is known as the persistent
mode, and the =irst is known as the transitory mode. There appears to be a grind limit
for a particular material and machine. After some time there seems to be little change
in particle size if grinding is continued, though the particles may show some
irreversible plastic deformation which results in a change in shape rather than in size.
The energy required to effect size reduction is related to the internal structure of the
material and the process consists of two parts, =irst opening up any small =issures
which are already present, and secondly forming new surface. A material such as coal
contains a number of small cracks and tends =irst to break along these, and therefore
the large pieces are broken up more readily than the small ones. Since a very much
greater increase in surface results from crushing a given quantity of =ine as opposed to
coarse material, =ine grinding requires very much more power. Very =ine grinding can
be impeded by the tendency of some relatively soft materials, including gypsum and
some limestones, to form aggregates. These are groups of relatively weakly adhering
particles held together by cohesive and van der Waals forces. Materials, such as quartz
and clinker, form agglomerates in which the forces causing adhesion may be chemical
in nature, and the bonds are then very much stronger.
In considering energy utilisation, size reduction is a very inef=icient process and only
between 0.1 and 2.0 per cent of the energy supplied to the machine appears as
increased surface energy in the solids. The ef=iciency of the process is very much
in=luenced by the manner in which the load is applied and its magnitude. In addition
the nature of the force exerted is also very important depending, for example, on
whether it is predominantly a compressive, an impact or a shearing force. If the applied
force is insuf=icient for the elastic limit to be exceeded, and the material is compressed,
energy is stored in the particle. When the load is removed, the particle expands again
to its original condition without doing useful work. The energy appears as heat and no
size reduction is effected. A somewhat greater force will cause the particle to fracture,
however, and in order to obtain the most effective utilisation of energy the force should
be only slightly in excess of the crushing strength of the material. The surface of the
particles will generally be of a very irregular nature so that the force is initially taken
on the high spots, with the result that very high stresses and temperatures may be set
up locally in the material. As soon as a small amount of breakdown of material takes
place, the point of application of the force alters. BEMROSE and BRIDGEWATER and
HESS and SCHO NERT have studied the breakage of single particles. All large lumps of
material contain cracks and size reduction occurs as a result of crack propagation that
occurs above a critical parameter, F, where:
where: a = crack length,
= stress, and
Y = Youngs modulus.
ENERGY REQUIREMENTS
Although it is impossible to estimate accurately the amount of energy required in order
to effect a size reduction of a given material, a number of empirical laws have been
proposed. The two earliest laws are due to KICK and VON RITTINGER, and a third law
due to BOND has also been proposed. These three laws may all be derived from the
basic differential equation:
which states that the energy dE required to effect a small change dL in the size of unit
mass of material is a simple power function of the size. If p = 2, then integration gives:
Writing C = KRfc, where fc is the crushing strength of the material, then Rittingers law,
=irst postulated in 1867, is obtained as:
Since the surface of unit mass of material is proportional to 1/L, the interpretation of
this law is that the energy required for size reduction is directly proportional to the
increase in surface.
If p = 1, then:
and , writing C = KK fc :
which is known as Kick s law. This supposes that the energy required is directly
related to the reduction ratio L1/L2 which means that the energy required to crush a
given amount of material from a 50 mm to a 25 mm size is the same as that required to
reduce the size from 12 mm to 6 mm. In equations (3) and (4), KR and KK are known
respectively as Rittingers constant and Kicks constant. It may be noted that neither of
these constants is dimensionless.
Neither of these two laws permits an accurate calculation of the energy requirements.
Rittingers law is applicable mainly to that part of the process where new surface is
being created and holds most accurately for =ine grinding where the increase in surface
per unit mass of material is large. Kicks law, more closely relates to the energy
required to effect elastic deformation before fracture occurs, and is more accurate than
Rittingers law for coarse crushing where the amount of surface produced is
considerably less.
Bond has suggested a law intermediate between Rittingers and Kicks laws, by putting
p = 3/2 in equation (1). Thus:
where:
Bond terms Ei the work index, and expresses it as the amount of energy required to
reduce unit mass of material from an in=inite particle size to a size L2 of 100 m, that is
q = . The size of material is taken as the size of the square hole through which 80 per
cent of the material will pass. Expressions for the work index are given in the original
papers for various types of materials and various forms of size reduction equipment.
B. CRUSHERS
A crusher is a machine designed to reduce large rocks into smaller rocks, gravel, or
rock dust.
Crushers may be used to reduce the size, or change the form, of waste materials so they
can be more easily disposed of or recycled, or to reduce the size of a solid mix of raw
materials (as in rock ore), so that pieces of different composition can be differentiated.
Crushing is the process of transferring a force ampli=ied by mechanical advantage
through a material made of molecules that bond together more strongly, and resist
deformation more, than those in the material being crushed do. Crushing devices hold
material between two parallel or tangent solid surfaces, and apply suf=icient force to
bring the surfaces together to generate enough energy within the material being
crushed so that its molecules separate from (fracturing), or change alignment in
relation to (deformation), each other. The earliest crushers were hand-held stones,
where the weight of the stone provided a boost to muscle power, used against a stone
anvil. Querns and mortars are types of these crushing devices.
2. Gyratory crusherA gyratory crusher is similar in basic concept to a jaw crusher, consisting of a concave
surface and a conical head; both surfaces are typically lined with manganese steel
surfaces. The inner cone has a slight circular movement, but does not rotate; the
movement is generated by an eccentric arrangement. As with the jaw crusher, material
travels downward between the two surfaces being progressively crushed until it is
small enough to fall out through the gap between the two surfaces.
A gyratory crusher is one of the main types of primary crushers in a mine or ore
processing plant. Gyratory crushers are designated in size either by the gape and
mantle diameter or by the size of the receiving opening. Gyratory crushers can be used
for primary or secondary crushing. The crushing action is caused by the closing of the
gap between the mantle line (movable) mounted on the central vertical spindle and the
concave liners (=ixed) mounted on the main frame of the crusher. The gap is opened
and closed by an eccentric on the bottom of the spindle that causes the central vertical
spindle to gyrate. The vertical spindle is free to rotate around its own axis. The crusher
illustrated is a short-shaft suspended spindle type, meaning that the main shaft is
suspended at the top and that the eccentric is mounted above the gear. The short-shaft
design has superseded the long-shaft design in which the eccentric is mounted below
the gear.
The gyratory crusher shown in Figure 3 employs a crushing head, in the form of a
truncated cone, mounted on a shaft, the upper end of which is held in a =lexible
bearing, whilst the lower end is driven eccentrically so as to describe a circle. The
crushing action takes place round the whole of the cone and, since the maximum
movement is at the
bottom, the characteristics of the machine are similar to those of the Stag crusher. As
the crusher is continuous in action, the =luctuations in the stresses are smaller than in
jaw crushers and the power consumption is lower. This unit has a large capacity per
unit area of grinding surface, particularly if it is used to produce a small size reduction.
It does not, however, take such a large size of feed as a jaw crusher, although it gives a
rather =iner and more uniform product. Because the capital cost is high, the crusher is
suitable only where large quantities of material are to be handled.
The jaw crushers and the gyratory crusher all employ a predominantly compressive
force.
3. Blake CrusherThe Blake crusher was patented by Eli Whitney Blake in 1858. The Blake type jaw
crusher has a =ixed feed area and a variable discharge area. Blake crushers are of two
types- single toggle and double toggle jaw crushers.
In the single toggle jaw crushers, the swing jaw is suspended on the eccentric shaft
which leads to a much more compact design than that of the double toggle jaw crusher.
The swing jaw, suspended on the eccentric, undergoes two types of motion- swing
motion towards the =ixed jaw due to the action of toggle plate and vertical movement
due the rotation of the eccentric. These both motions, when combined, lead to an
elliptical jaw motion. This motion is useful as it assists in pushing the particles through
the crushing chamber. This phenomena leads to higher capacity of the single toggle jaw
crushers but it also results in higher wear of the crushing jaws. These type of jaw
crushers are preferred for the crushing of softer particles.
In the double toggle jaw crushers, the oscillating motion of the swing jaw is caused by
the vertical motion of the pitman. The pitman moves up and down. The swing jaw
closes, i.e., it moves towards the =ixed jaw when the pitman moves upward and opens
during the downward motion of the pitman. This type is commonly used in mines due
to its ability to crush tough and abrasive materials.
Figure 5. Cut-away view of the Hardinge conical ball mill showing how energy is proportioned to the work
required
The ball mill is used for the grinding of a wide range of materials, including coal,
pigments, and felspar for pottery, and it copes with feed up to about 50 mm in size. The
ef=iciency of grinding increases with the hold-up in the mill, until the voids between the
balls are =illed. Further increase in the quantity then lowers the ef=iciency.
The balls are usually made of =lint or steel and occupy between 30 and 50 per cent of
the volume of the mill. The diameter of ball used will vary between 12 mm and 125
mm and the optimum diameter is approximately proportional to the square root of the
size of the feed, with the proportionality constant being a function of the nature of the
material.
During grinding, the balls wear and are constantly replaced by new ones so that the
mill contains balls of various ages, and hence of various sizes. This is advantageous
since the large balls deal effectively with the feed and the small ones are responsible
for giving a =ine product. The maximum rate of wear of steel balls, using very abrasive
materials, is about 0.3 kg/Mg of material for dry grinding, and 11.5 kg/Mg for wet
grinding. The normal charge of balls is about 5 Mg/m3. In small mills where very =ine
grinding is required, pebbles are often used in place of balls.