WATER MANAGEMENT
DXB Pump & Power - improving uptime in mine water management
Designing new energy efficient pumpsets around engine availability is becoming the norm for DXB Pump & Power , a leading supplier of mine dewatering pumpsets based in the UK . With traditional engine manufacturers offering delivery sometimes with over 50 weeks of delays , pump manufacturers have had to redesign their pumpsets for slurry and dewatering to include engines from manufacturers not normally seen in worldwide mining markets and DXB told IM that it has been very successful in doing this .
With more mines now using on-road trucks for hauling minerals and ores either on site or away from the mine , the use of engines from Scania and Volvo by DXB has led to a good aftersales support functionality ' in country ' offering immediate supply of spares and skilled service engineers when required to ensure water supplies to process plants remains reliably online .
Many rigid 44 t Scania trucks for example are being supplied with the inline 6-cylinder 13 litre or 16 litre V8 engines used on DXB Pumps with over 300 kW of available power in either Stage II-III for mines in lesser regulated regions like Africa and the Middle East , or Stage V or Tier 4 Final engines for use in more emissions regulation compliant markets such as Europe and the USA .
Simon Ruffles , DXB Pump & Power Founder & Managing Director says these engines have proved to be both highly reliable and very fuel efficient in pumping applications due to being extremely rugged and durable with 5,000 hours of operation before anything greater than regular services are needed to be done .
More importantly to both the OEMs and the mines themselves , the delivery times for these high performance engines are far shorter than the engine deliveries seen from more traditional suppliers ( primarily because of the additional 2-3 months time savings delivering those engines from the US ) which allows more nimble OEMs like DXB Pump to work with mines in time for the critical wet season where water management is absolutely critical .
Ruffles adds : “ Historically it has been almost automatic for the mines to specify pumpsets with engines that had similar service parts and consumables to those on other mining equipment units such as
DXB Pump & Power now offers a complete shovels and dozers on range of Scania powered mine dewatering
sites , but this led to pumpsets increased costs of pump ownership and delays in deliveries of equipment like our pumpsets . Today this is different because the major European engine manufacturers have excellent service networks and support in country to support the same engines that are on our pumps reducing pumping costs and increasing uptime on site in many smaller mines .”
An example of the change in the market is the acceptance of the Scania DC16 V8 engine on dewatering pumpsets where 15 litre mining equipment engines had only previously been seen as acceptable . Costs and availability of spares for these engines were slower to those of the Scania , but also the delays in getting hold of these 15 litre engines drove OEMs to look elsewhere and just like in the oilfield sector , mining markets have seen the benefit of using Scania engines now on their pumpsets for critical water management applications where downtime is unacceptable and costly .
DXB Pump & Power says it now offers a complete range of Scania powered mine dewatering pumpsets for use in non-emission regulated regions complete with crash frames , four-point lifting frames all of which slide inside standard shipping containers ensuring swift delivery including if required , by air anywhere in the world . distances in slurry pipelines . Many of the mines are in dry and remote locations too , so water is a crucial resource not only for operations , but for use and consumption by staff at the mining companies .
Chile ’ s copper mines produce approximately a quarter of the planet ’ s copper supply , with the majority of its production coming from one of the world ’ s driest places . While it ’ s important to ensure there is access to water in these locations , it ’ s also worth noting that the amount of water the Chilean mining industry consumes annually could be used to sustain 75 % of the Chilean population ’ s needs .
Similarly , Brazil is estimated to use 1.6 % of its total water supply for mining which could sustain the entire rural population of Brazil with water . Just as water is vital to effective mining pipeline operations , it ’ s essential for the survival of people in residential areas too . Data from the Pastoral Land Commission indicates that 124 out of the 197 recorded conflicts about water in Brazil occurred in areas where mining ore extraction is common .
A recent article by Angela Maya , Sales & Support Engineer at Atmos International , states that following pressure from external sources about their water usage , many Latin American mining pipeline operators are now looking at their water management and how they can make best use of the water resource . For example , Chilean mining pipeline companies have turned to desalination plants following the introduction of a ban on the use of fresh water in mining to preserve water supply during their drought . Many other mining companies are following suit when it comes to desalinated water too .
“ Desalination is the process of removing mineral salts ( or saline ) from water . With fresh water being in short supply in the Middle East , desalination is a widely used process to supply drinking water to residential areas . The Water Conversion Corporation ( WCC ), which has an extensive pipeline network including tank farms that take desalinated water from the coast to the desert , has previously used Atmos Simulation ( SIM ) Suite ’ s optimiser module to recommend its pumping schedules .”
Due to the mining industry requiring uncontaminated water , desalination is often used to support mining pipeline operations and can involve many approaches . The most common desalination process is reverse osmosis , which
involves using high pressure to pass seawater over a membrane which filters out the minerals and other contaminants , creating desalinated water . The resource is then distributed to where it ’ s required . Remaining desalinated water can be lost through evaporation , reused or returned to the environment .
Water usage in the Latin America mining industry occurs alongside widespread water shortages in residential areas , which has only been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic , so efforts are being made to optimise water usage and reduce wastage .
“ As previously mentioned , Atmos SIM ’ s optimiser module can help plan pipeline operational requirements in advance , but simulation software can also provide look-ahead modules . For example , Atmos SIM ’ s nominations look-ahead avoids overruns in a pipeline operation by mapping out pressures on the pipeline based on loads and nominations . For a pipeline in a mining and slurry network transporting desalinated water to the concentrator plant , solutions like look-aheads and optimisers can ensure bookable capacity is never underestimated or overestimated so there
62 International Mining | MARCH 2023