BATTERY AND ELECTRIC MACHINES
Aramine plans to launch the miniLoader L140B V2 this month , which comes with a new battery pack that retains the same lithium iron phosphate chemistry as the first iteration but uses a prismatic battery cell
uses a prismatic battery cell . “ This has allowed our machine to gain 57 % autonomy ( from 3.5 hours operation to 5.5 hours operation ) and reduce the charge time by 20 % ( from 4 hours 20 minutes to 3.5 hours ),” Melkonian said . “ Thus , our L140B V2 will become extremely performant and competitive versus any diesel or battery-powered machine .”
And the good news for customers already using the existing L140B is that a battery module retrofit is also available . All that is needed is a free operating system update after purchase to yield these benefits .
MacLean continues to make BEV impact
With over 50 battery-electric vehicles ( BEV ) commissioned around the world and 250,000 operating hours logged since its electrification program was launched in 2015 , MacLean is better equipped than most to review where the sector currently is in terms of its electrification maturity .
The company has three BEV launches slated for 2023 – the same year it turns 50 – and these machines are also benefitting from the use of a different battery system that , Maarten van Koppen , VP Product Development , says , comes with a 30 % power improvement without any loss in performance .
“ We are now equipping our vehicles with a new XALT Energy battery that has a capacity of 134 kWh , compared with the predecessor we were using that had 106 kWh ,” he told IM . “ This means you have more range to play with , making it easier to operate the machine regardless of the underground environment .”
MacLean has been testing out this range at its Maclean Research & Training Facility in Sudbury , Ontario , ahead of deployment into its commercial vehicles , with a cassette truck being the proverbial ‘ guinea pig ’.
“ These will eventually be part of our standard offering ,” van Koppen said . “ And , as these packs are larger ( from a power perspective ), we have the opportunity to put half the battery packs in there for 67 kWh of capacity . This could be a way to keep the cost down on vehicles that don ’ t have to tram very far , for instance .”
The change in battery system has come at the same time the company is offering an alternative to the on-board charging philosophy it previously used on all its production support BEVs .
This means MacLean will be able to offer CCS- 1- or CCS-2-compliant off-board chargers with up to 200 kW of charging power . van Koppen explained the move : “ Our onboard charging strategy has been successful in getting machines going , but it is , in general , more expensive to have the chargers on board – especially when looking at the 100 kW packages . When you look at powering a fleet of batteryelectric equipment and you have the right mine design to deploy 6-7 off-board chargers instead of having on-board chargers on all equipment , it makes sense . The available charging rate is also much higher .”
This thinking was crystallised with the development of MacLean ’ s fit-for-purpose underground mine grader , the GR5 .
Available in battery-electric drive and dieselpower form , this machine offers up a ruggedised , high performance mobile solution for keeping haulage ramps in optimal condition . It is also designed to work in 5 m x 5 m headings .
“ It kind of all came together when thinking about the grader as this machine should always be on the move ,” van Koppen said . “ To put power into the grader as quickly as possible , you need off-board charging .”
Through collaboration with customers , MacLean is also offering options to accommodate sub-optimal power supply for its BEVs , he added .
“ We are now putting more emphasis on power quality whenever we speak to customers ,” van Koppen said . “ The quality of the power coming into the mine can have a big impact on a batteryelectric machine ’ s performance as a lot of the components struggle to deal with high peaks or noise on the signature .”
MacLean has had issues in the past with chargers being damaged as a result of this , so it is now offering additional protection for these chargers .
These protections are being offered on all its machines , including the battery-powered SS5 Shotcrete Sprayer currently being trialled by Barminco at the AngloGold Ashanti-owned Sunrise Dam operation in Western Australia .
The development of MacLean ’ s fit-for-purpose underground mine grader , the GR5 , led to the company designing off-board charging systems
40 International Mining | MAY 2023