PRE-CONCENTRATION AND ORE SOR TING
installation is in Chile as part of a 6,500 t / h conveyor application being used for data reconciliation. NextOre has also successfully proven the ore sorting bus siness case on a 2,800 t / h installation at First Quantum Minerals’ Kansanshi copper mine in Zambia.
As if this wasn’ t enough, Beal said the company was working on a“ significant project outside of copper” that could soon be made public.
He explained:“ We have executed contracts with CSIRO – for the development of the technology – and the client for development of the technology all the way through to supplying on-conveyor systems for their project. They already see a very clear commercial rationale for using bulk ore sorting in their commodity
, and the transformative impact that could have on their operations.”
Weir stepping into sorting territory
Major mining OEMs have talked up the gamechanging potential of pre-concentration and / or ore sorting in the mineral processing space for some time, with W eir being one of these major proponents.
For Chris Carpenter, VP of Technology for Weir’ s ESCO ® division, the potential‘ win’ for the company and the wider sector in this pursuit is the potential to improve“ orebody knowledge” and leverage all the benefits that come with acquiring such information.
Weir’ s dedication to this industry dynamic has recently been seen in the pursuit of Australiabased Micromine; an acquisition that, postcompletion, will combine with Weir’ s MOTION METRICS™ and NEXT intelligent solutions and accelerate the company’ s vision for a digital platform using data from across the mining value chain to optimise resource planning, mine design and operations, and processing activities, the company says.
It’ s easy to see the data from Weir’ s advanced sensing systems complementing this rapidly expanding digital platform in the future.
IM has reported on a project the company has been working on in this space leveraging hyperspectral imaging( HSI) sensors, 3D particle size distribution( PSD) analysis and machinelearning algorithms.
The last update from Carpenter in July included details of a BeltMetrics™ ore monitoring trial installation using MOTION METRICS advanced imaging sensor for PSD analysis and a commercial, HSI sensor positioned above a conveyor directly after the crusher in a mine’ s flowsheet. Alongside this, Carpenter also shared details of a fixed-term trial in a TruckMetrics™ ore monitoring installation – where it analysed around 1,000 truck trays’ worth of material – at the same copper operation.
Carpenter admits Weir has high ambitions for this project given the high value sustainability benefits for its customers, explaining that he would like these projects to be moving faster, however the company is not willing to compromise the high standards and rigour associated with its development process.
“ I am very pleased with the advancements in what we refer to as fixed sensing,” he told IM in early March, clarifying that this relates to a sensor fixed into place on stationary equipment( ie above a conveyor belt or positioned above a truck tray).
Weir has already conducted a BeltMetrics trial installation using MOTION METRICS advanced imaging sensor for PSD analysis and a commercial, HSI sensor positioned above a conveyor directly after the crusher in a mine’ s flowsheet for ore characterisation purposes
In addition to the existing BeltMetrics and TruckMetrics trials, the Weir teams in
Venlo, the Netherlands, and British Columbia, Canada, have scanned and analysed well over 100 customer ore samples to validate the systems capabilities.
The setup of the two testing hubs is allowing technicians to analyse“ highly structured data”
Screening for the sort
The need to expand the values or lives of assets while reducing both energy and water use has led a lot of mining companies to the doors of ore sorting and pre-concentration technology vendors, however evaluating which of the many solutions on offer to choose through testing is currently a major industry bottleneck, according to SRK Consulting Canada.
The company, though a partnership with Base Metallurgical Labs, in Western Canada, is
only indicate pre-concentration amenability, but also provide key inputs into the preoffering a“ pre-concentration screening test” using XRT-based sensor technology that can not
testing, the XRT sensor testing rapidly and cost-effectively assesses the potential for preconcentration strategy selection and evaluation. Used in conjunction with crushing / screening
concentration, which can then be applied to scoping or prefeasibility studies, SRK says. The objective of both is to consider pre-concentration at an early study stage and quantify the impact on project economics.
The laboratory test can be carried out with 30-50 kg of ½ core samples, measuring the metal deportment by size at different levels of impact breakage, comparable to primary / secondary stage crushing. Integrating this protocol into existing comminution test protocols minimises disruption to metallurgical testing programs, according to SRK. As well as estimating the grade by size response to crushing and screening, coarse particles are tested for sensor response, typically with dual-energy XRT.
SRK says:“ SRK and Base Met test and analyse sample results using a standardised procedure, which allows for benchmarking against other projects and operations. The goal is to enhance interpretation of scan results over time using machine learning. Our XRT sensor testing can be included in metallurgical testing programs with minimal sample loss and no disruption. It
can also be supported by larger-scale performance testing already being done by sorting equipment manufacturers.”
SRK has imminent plans to add an XRF sensor to the lab capabilities at Base Met to further its testing optionality.
70 International Mining | APRIL 2025