HEAVY ENGINEERING & WEAR PARTS
ME Elecmetal ’ s heavy-duty liner application enhanced tower mill availability by 50 %, ensuring a significant boost in operational efficiency at one specific operation , the company says
mill liners to six months emerged as a critical objective , enabling synchronisation of maintenance intervals between the SAG plant and the tower mills , leading to a significant boost in availability for both the flotation plant and the client ’ s primary production line .
The client ’ s original 1250 tower mill liner design was characterised by a configuration comprising a pair of end liners with a maximum thickness of 318 mm , and four pairs of identical upper wear liners , each with a maximum thickness of 185 mm .
The revised proposal introduced a heavy-duty design that integrates steel redistribution to reinforce the liners with enhanced wear resistance . The benefits associated with this design provide evidence of the product ’ s effectiveness and its level of competitiveness compared with other market alternatives , ME Elecmetal says .
The result is a new line with a lifespan of six months , surpassing the previous four-month duration recorded with the original design in previous campaigns .
ME Elecmetal ’ s alloy demonstrated superior performance against abrasive wear compared with the previous condition in the mill , it says , with pre-industrial trial tests indicating a minimum 25 % increase in performance level when using this alloy .
ME Elecmetal proposed a specific test to assess the outcomes post-implementation of a liner change . This test entailed the development of a new liner design , incorporating an intelligent distribution of liner thickness and utilising an alloy with superior wear performance .
After the campaign , the pieces were arranged for the ME Elecmetal team to conduct scans of the outgoing liners using a 3D laser scanner . Upon reviewing the images , it was evident the liners experienced less wear than the previous campaign , where a standard design was used , the company says .
ME Elecmetal said : “ In general , all the components manage to safeguard the maximum allowable wear towards the blade up to 1,000 mm at the critical radius . Despite operating 24 % more effective hours , the critical radius with which the components came out was 5 % greater at the tip that experienced the most wear , ending up with a remaining critical radius of 1,046 mm .”
The following results were obtained : n The tested end liners operated 24 % more effective hours than the standard design end liners in the previous campaign ; n Side A end liner was left with a radius 12 % larger than the standard design end liner ; n Side B end liner was left with a radius 5 % larger than the standard design end liner ; n The Heavy Duty end liner on Side A successfully safeguards 100 % of the mill ’ s curvature , as it still had 114 mm remaining before reaching the recommended critical radius for replacement ; n The Heavy Duty end liner on Side B successfully safeguards 100 % of the mill ’ s curvature , as it still had 46 mm remaining before reaching the recommended critical radius for replacement ; and n Compared with the nominal condition , wear rates decreased by 46 % and 30 % for ME Elecmetal end liners A and B , accordingly . According to the wear generated in this campaign and based on a linear projection of it , it is estimated the components could have been operating for about 4,500 effective hours .
Compared with the previous situation , this means it would have achieved the ambitious goal of reaching a 50 % effective increase in the components lifespan , ME Elecmetal says .
Duratray boosts SDB capacity
Duratray International says it has taken its business to a new level in Australia with a state of the art factory that has more than doubled its suspended dump body ( SDB ) capacity .
The move represents the culmination of many years of activity in the country since its parent , Chile ’ s Conymet International Group , bought Duratray and its renowned SDBs from Pacific Dunlop in 2001 , which included its Australian operations , Duratray International Pty Ltd .
Marcelo Medel , Duratray Managing Director , told IM recently : “ We have had an existing workshop in Bayswater , an eastern suburb of Melbourne , since we purchased Duratray over 20 years ago . We had been looking to expand for some time – to more than double the size of the factory to meet market demand and thereby double our revenue , but the existing site was ageing and did not have the latest technology in place . So , three years ago we decided to go with a state of the art , greenfield location tailored to our needs with all the latest equipment .”
Medel continued : “ The fact that our capacity
Duratray ’ s new state of the art factory has more than doubled its suspended dump body capacity , it says
12 International Mining | JUNE 2024