IM 2022 January 22 | Page 14

HIGH PROFILE with these features is no coincidence since constant innovation is part of our company mission .”

Mine with Mind

Diemme Filtration recently unveiled its massive GHT5000F DOMINO filter press , big enough to meet the demands of the world ’ s largest dry tailings stacking projects . Paul Moore reports

Diemme Filtration on November 30 , 2021 officially unveiled its record breaking GHT5000F DOMINO filter press via a live online event from its headquarters in Lugo , Italy . The widely anticipated model is the largest filter press in the world – with a plate size of 5 x 5 m – is bound for an as yet unnamed Peruvian copper mining company which is to use it as part of a major new tailings project , first in a pilot trial but later , assuming that is successful , as part of a much larger bank of up to 9 or 10 of these presses for a total capacity of over 80,000 t / d .

The GHT5000F means everything optimised for state of the art filtration – F stands for fast indicating fast cycle times . But Diemme also has the ambition to become the best ally possible for responsible tailings management – to help the industry Mine with Mind .
Diemme Filtration ’ s CEO Rosario Tagliavini said of the machine ’ s development : “ The challenge for us was not just to have the largest equipment but to ensure on such a large machine the same excellent filtration efficiency that we currently obtain with smaller units . We succeeded thanks to a very innovative filter plate concept but it was by no means a foregone conclusion . The complexity of a filter press lies not so much in its electromechanical design as in its internal fluid dynamics - the way in which the fluids and the particles move , distribute and interact within the filter bank has a significant influence on filtration performance . As the size of the machine increases , also the complexity of the whole system increases exponentially . As you know there are currently several options for tailings management but in some circumstances – for example aiming to obtain very stable dry stacking or to recover as much water as possible , pressure filtration is still unrivalled . Until now , even the largest filters available in the market were not big enough for the huge amount of tailings that some
mining operations produce each year .”
He said Diemme became aware of this
shortcoming in 2017 when it realised that even the GHT2500 which at the time of its launch in 2010 was the machine with the largest filtration area in the world was not big enough for the needs of some of its customers . “ So the time had come for Diemme to think about something new – to develop a solution that would represent in terms of throughput and efficiency – a real game changer in the filtration industry . A system that could make technically feasible but also finally , economically viable , the realisation of very large dry stacking facilities . And so the GHT5000 was born – the new machine maintains all the features that have made the GHT series the most referenced model of filter in the tailings dewatering application with hundreds of installations on five continents .”
In this new machine , however , the dimension of plate - until now available in 1.5 x 1.5 , 2 x 2 and 2.5 x 2.5 m has been increased to 5 x 5 m , and this significant increase in size is combined with further technical aspects that make this
equipment far more intelligent and reliable ,
thanks to the contribution of a new sophisticated digital system for data acquisition , monitoring and analysis . He concluded : “ The fact that we were the first in the world to develop a machine
The smartest and most efficient press ever made
Then Andrea Pezzi , Diemme Director of Marketing presented some of the technical innovations of the GHT5000F . The machine has fast plate pack opening – 141 plates in one minute . The 5 x 5 m plates are specifically designed to treat high flow rates ; in particular the feeding and discharge hoses are sized to minimise abrasion and therefore maintenance downtime . A new platform at the end of the machine allows easy access to all parts . The unit is also surrounded at the top by an integrated maintenance platform so no additional floor area is needed around it , saving capex . Operation is optimised thanks to innovative drip tray and plate pack opening and closing systems , the cloth shaking and the cake conveying system – in one cycle it can treat up to 150 t of cake and the filter has the potential to process up to 12,000 t / d of solids . The cloth washing system is also innovative using both low pressure rinsing for the main cycle to remove dust after shaking and intermittent high pressure rinsing using two vertical washing bars moving up and down the chambers , which also refreshes the filterability of the cloths . These are mounted on a platform which also allows additional top access for maintenance . Cloth replacement has been improved from the top with fast , multiple cloth replacement at the same time from both sides using a rotatable lifting frame . The whole GHT5000F has been designed to be shipped in modules that can be easily reassembled onsite with the quantity of cabling minimised .
The machine is smart with a high degree of automation – it is equipped with the new Aida system tutor which is designed to provide customers with realtime information on the statuses and performance of their filter presses via continuous function monitoring , the data being accessible from a computer , smartphone or tablet . Aida can also interface with various platforms including Mindsphere , the standard Diemme filtration app , customised filter press apps as well as other apps the customer may already use . Aida process data to provide valuable information for plant management decisions leading to improved control of the filtration process and operating costs ; tracking and monitoring of the status of each filter cloth ; values and trends of flows and utilities consumptions in the system and status of equipment . Ultimately it allows predictive and preventative maintenance to reduce downtime and plan more efficiently . Predefined and customised KPIs can be set including uptime , flowrates , power consumption , water recovery , production and cake moisture . IM
12 International Mining | JANUARY 2022