Automation Appilications in Mineral Processing Plants

Mineral dressing automation plays an important role in stabilizing the mineral processing production process, improving the technical and economic indicators of mineral processing, improving operating conditions, reducing labor intensity and ensuring safe production. The degree of automation of mineral processing is an important indicator to measure the degree of modernization of mineral processing plants.

More than 30 kinds of instruments required for the automatic detection and control of the mineral processing process have been produced in China.

For example, various types of belt scales, flow meters, density meters, industrial pH meters, electric ears, etc. have been commonly used in the monitoring of various parameters of the mineral processing plant;

X-ray fluorescence analyzers, high-voltage X-ray current-carrying analyzers, ZPF online grade analyzers, and isotope current-carrying grade analyzers have been used in mineral processing plants to detect iron ore components.

WSC-1 type mineral moisture meter is used to detect the moisture content of concentrate, which is fast and convenient. It is equipped with a single board computer and can print out the test results in time.

SZ-1 type neutron moisture meter is used for on-line detection of iron ore concentrate in mineral processing plants, with an error of ≤±0.5%.

The CLY-1 ultrasonic on-line ore particle size analyzer has reached the level of the PSM-400 ultrasonic on-line slurry particle size analyzer, and is used in the grinding circuit of the beneficiation plant to detect the grading particle size. The instrument is equipped with a computer, an output instrument and an interface circuit, which can be directly used to control the grinding particle size.

The automatic control of the iron ore concentrator is mostly in the adjustment of a few parameters or local control, form filling management, etc.

1. Automatic Control of Grinding and Classifying

Dashihe Concentrator took the lead in implementing automatic control of grinding and classifying. The plan is: The mill is fed with constant ore, the electric ear monitors the operation status, and the grinding concentration is controlled by proportional water distribution to achieve the purpose of particle size control. The control system works well, stabilizes the operation, and increases the output of the grinding machine by more than 5%.

The first-stage and second-stage grinding machines and classifiers of Meishan Concentrator are automatically controlled by MKZ-80 microcomputer control system, which improves the control means and level, and the economic benefits are more significant.

(Automatic Control of Grinding and Classifying)

MKZ-80 microcomputer control system adopts digital model and digital joint control method, using Chinese TMC-80 industrial control machine with microcomputer belt, electric ear, electromagnetic flowmeter and pressure transmitter and a few other domestic instruments to realize the adjustment of ore volume and water volume of the first and second grinding classification, so that the particle size and concentration can be controlled within the set range. The industrial operation shows that the control accuracy meets the requirements, the standard deviation of particle size is 3, the standard deviation of concentration is 2, the particle size qualification rate is 14 percentage points higher than the manual operation, and the qualification rate is more than 80%.

After the automatic control is realized, the hourly output of the grinding machine is increased by 5%, and the payback period of the automation investment is only 4 months.

2. Automatic Control of Thickener

The automatic control of the thickener, especially the computer control of the underflow concentration, is popularized very quickly. The underflow of the concentrator in Hainan Concentrator is controlled by computer, and the concentration is increased to more than 30%. Subsequently, several other concentrators adopted it one after another.

GX-12 high-efficiency thickener adopts computer to control underflow concentration and overflow turbidity and adjust the amount of flocculant added accordingly. Its control scheme and effect are very advanced.

3. Automatic Control of Autogenous Mill

In terms of the control of the autogenous mill, the Weitoushan Ore Concentrator uses power consumption to control the feed rate of the autogenous mill, and the Lizhu Concentrator uses a computer to adjust the best operating state to eliminate the phenomenon of empty grinding and belly swelling, and stabilize the production operation of the autogenous mill, so that the output of self-grinding machine can be increased by 8%, and a lot of electricity can be saved.

In addition, crusher material distribution control, metal detection and sorting control, slurry level control, slurry pH control, flotation dosing control, filter level control, pump control, etc. are also used in single or multiple applications in some mineral processing plants . Reporting and data processing are also computerized.

(Crushing and Screening Automatic System)

4. Integrated Automation System

Since April 2003, JISCO's beneficiation plant has successfully applied the integrated automation system. It is composed of PCS process control system, MES production execution system and computer support system.

Among them, PCS adopts the integrated design technology of EIC integrated computer distributed control system, advanced control technology and intelligent optimization control technology aiming at comprehensive production indicators, including the measurement of each process in the beneficiation production process, equipment monitoring and control, process adjustment, model control, Operator interface and multimedia monitoring system, etc.

MES adopts the production planning scheduling technology based on case reasoning, the production process dynamic cost control technology as the core, and the production process optimization operation and optimization management technology with the production comprehensive index as the goal.

More than two years of application practice have shown that the grade of comprehensive iron ore concentrate has increased by 0.57 percentage points, the metal recovery rate has increased from 77.24% to 79.25%, an increase of 2.01 percentage points, the cost of ore dressing has dropped steadily, and the comprehensive concentrate processing fee has dropped from 47.31 yuan/l to 45.17 yuan/t, a decrease of 2.14 yuan/t.

(Integrated Automation System)

There has been a major breakthrough in the application of the comprehensive automation system of JISCO's beneficiation plant, and the overall technology is at the international leading level, which is worthy of promotion and application in iron ore concentrators across the country.

In addition, the comprehensive automation and intelligent control and optimization of the Meishan Concentrator lasted for five and a half years from 1999 to 2004. The PLC-SCADA system structure realizes the operation monitoring of equipment in the workshops of medium crushing, gravity separation, fine crushing and grinding classification, the load control and balance adjustment of the medium crushing system and fine crushing system, the automatic control and yield optimization of the grinding system, and the networking and management of the integrated automation system of each workshop. The operation effect is good. It works fine.

Process control will be based on various factors such as the logistics relationship, reaction mechanism, process technology index requirements and interrelationships of the actual production process, and on the basis of obtaining various testing data transmitted by the basic automation level, process optimization setting technology is used to complete the optimal control and management of the entire mineral processing production process.

The above is the application of automation in iron ore processing plant. If you need to know more about the automation of ore dressing, or need to automate the construction and transformation of ore dressing plants, please leave a message or consult online customer service.