FILTRATION & THICKENING
Dewatering by design
With greater focus on filtered and thickened tailings , thickeners and filters are playing a key role in both current operations and those planned for the future , as wet tailings dams become a secondary option , reports Paul Moore
In general there is a lot of demand currently for high performance filters in the mining market ; and in particular there are a number of mining majors that are very interested to know about the performance of the largest of them all - the GHT5000F Domino filter press from Diemme Filtration that is now in operation at Toquepala in Peru . These are primarily the larger copper and iron ore miners who have very large tailings volumes and want to be first followers as this very large type of filtration press is proven .
Andrea Pezzi , Diemme Director of Marketing and Communication , told IM : “ The unit is performing exactly as we expected – it has been hitting the target capacity of 8,000 t / d and even more ; and the target moisture content of 15 % is consistently being achieved . We are now focusing on optimising the overall operational cost , for example , further extending the filter media life , though it is already at a very good level ; plus further maximising water use efficiency . So we have already reached a steady phase of production , and are now in the optimisation and improvement phase ; and for Southern Copper Corp ( SCC ), the mine operator , this is helping them in their analysis of whether to scale up to their eventual requirement for 9 or 10 similar sized units to achieve 80,000 t / d plus throughput of tailings . And for our other clients that are looking to do something similar , who have similar capacities or even higher up to 300,000 t / d or more , they are keeping a close eye on progress and some of them may also get the chance to visit the Peru operation for themselves .” Pezzi added that Diemme is planning a special webinar , broadcast live from the Diemme Academy , with updates on the operational story so far with the Toquepala Domino unit , which will take place before the end of 2023 and will allow those not able to see the press in person to hear about the data and results achieved to date . In addition , the Peru unit has already been followed by a second Domino , which has already been built by Diemme in Lugo and has begun shipment to the customer , which is a major copper mining operation in Chile . Commissioning is likely to be in 2024 .
All Domino units are supplied with AIDA , Diemme ’ s added value IIoT solution that allows customers to have a real time , detailed and clear view of their solid-liquid separation process , including the performance and efficiency of the filtration system . It allows for an efficient strategy for spare parts management , procurement and a planning of routine maintenance and via the AIDA app , it is possible to monitor real-time values and trend of flows , utilities consumptions in the system and the status of equipment . Pezzi said that its other 10 + customers for AIDA are dominated by its best seller large filter press in mining , the GHT2500F . In addition , AIDA is retrofittable to existing filter
The Diemme GHT2500F is one of the most used and most in demand large filter presses in mining
presses . “ And its not just about collecting data and monitoring – but also providing periodic reporting to clients based on all the data analysis and making in-depth suggestions in areas like preventative maintenance and filter press optimisation . It has lot of human touches in it as well in the monthly analysis we send back – overall it is a real differentiator for us .”
This GHT2500F model has global iron ore , nickel , red mud ( the GHT2500P overhead beam variant ) and other references in Brazil , Chile , New Caledonia , Australia and elsewhere including recently units going to iron ore operations in India . The Diemme GHT2500F units – three of them – at iron ore miner CMP in Chile are about to begin production at a 6,000 t / h facility in the Huasco Valley . In New Caledonia , Diemme is installing nine GHT2500F units for nickel hydroxide of which three are already operating with Prony Resources . Another three GHT2500F units have been shipped to Peru for Pan American Silver ’ s Ag-Zn-Cu-Pb mine , with Pan American already successfully using Diemme filters at its operations in Mexico .
Why is this unit so popular currently in the market ? It was first off specially developed for the treatment of large volumes of material and for highly filterable products such as mineral concentrates and tailings . “ It is a high capacity unit capable of over 2,000 t / d but also one with a lot of flexibility . We have also just put onto the market the GHT2500F30 model , which is an extended version , having 141 filter plates instead of the existing maximum of 101 . This means we have a huge range of options for most medium
8 International Mining | OCTOBER 2023