IPCC
IPCC for greener mining
As mines face a monumental task to meet decarbonisation deadlines , in-pit crushing & conveying , and variations on the theme , has moved back up the list of mining company future planning considerations , reports Paul Moore
The big issue with in-pit crushing & conveying ( IPCC ) in mining was always initial cost , worries about lack of flexibility , lack of experience in maintenance and IPCCspecific mine planning & operations , plus some high profile project failures despite most of these being down to the mine focus changing rather than the IPCC equipment not working as designed . But in tandem with all this a number of big projects have now been successful , albeit with some tweaking – like Vale ’ s S11D , plus semi-mobile crushers are almost the norm for large open pits now while several high angle conveyor projects have finally made it to completion and operation . With all this as a backdrop the biggest draw for IPCC is now the environment – all the big mining houses have made sweeping commitments to drastically cut their mining Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030 and beyond but they are left with fleets of 100s of diesel haul trucks and only limited progress in green mining trucks ( see this month ’ s Mining Trucks article for more on that ).
Another big factor in IPCC being considered again in most large projects now is the work being done on bulk ore sorting – sorting ore in the pit to preconcentrate and cut milling costs , energy use and therefore also contribute to more sustainable mining . MMD as an example has made major strides in supplying a complete bulk ore sorting solution to customers like Anglo American , bringing together all the major elements .
Yet another factor is the focus on dry stacking of tailings , which involves a lot of conveying and stacking technology , arguably variations on the theme of IPCC . As miners get to know these types of systems , they also see the potential for materials handling in primary mining upstream .
The following project updates and examples attempt to give a broad overview of some of the types of projects currently underway in terms of scope , size and drivers . Interestingly the CIS has seen a lot of IPCC activity , partly related to the climate extremes but also a willingness to consider new options on the part of the mining companies there .
TAKRAF taking on the Lebedinsky challenge
TAKRAF ’ s Chief Mine Planning Engineer , Rico Neumann recently gave IM the most detailed review yet on the company ’ s progress with its 55 Mt / y IPCC system project at the Lebedinsky ( Lebedinskij ) GOK iron ore operations of Metalloinvest , one of Russia ’ s and the world ’ s leading producers of iron ore products . In 2017 , TAKRAF received the EPCM contract for the IPCC system at the mine , which is located near Gubkin in the Belgorod region , around 500 km south of Moscow . It has been operating since the 1970s and boasts iron ore reserves of close to 4 billion tonnes . The new IPCC system is under construction and will replace the existing railroad ore transport system out of the pit . It consists of :
MMD 500 t Atlas Transporter relocating an IPSC feeder module into a new bench cut
n 2 x semi-mobile designed primary crushing plants with apron feeders n 2 x crusher discharge conveyors n 2 x acceleration conveyors n 2 x pit ramps – overland conveyors bridging
280 m of topographical height n 4 x plant conveyors n 1 x stockyard feed and reclaim conveyor n 1 x bucket-wheel stacker reclaimer n 1 x mobile loading hopper with apron feeder at stockyard The IPCC system , including a 2 x 130,000 t stockyard has to feed the processing plant with 55 Mt of iron ore per year . As a result , each of the primary crushing plants , as well as all of the conveyors were designed with a capacity of 5,500 t / h , except the stockyard feed and reclaim conveyor , which were designed with a capacity of 8,000 t / h . A special feature of the system is its high level of redundancy , which is realised through the twin arrangement of crushers and conveyors , continuously adjustable distribution chutes , at almost all transfer towers and two reversible conveyors to feed and reclaim the back-up stockyard . The entire system was designed for the harsh winter conditions , as well as including various intelligent features to facilitate maintenance across all areas . The system also includes various elements catering to automated operation and control , including a
34 International Mining | MAY 2021