Water is present in all places in mining and its management varies based on its position within the mining processes. In a current in-depth article by pumps main KSB, the corporate outlines how this in turn influences the selection of applied sciences utilized in pumping water. “Alongside the protected supply and recovery of course of water is the problem of removing ground water. Process water and groundwater contain abrasive and corrosive parts in various portions which have an adverse affect on pump efficiency and life. Working situations, distant locations, various temperature ranges and the lack of electrical energy are also extremely influential elements.”
The copper mines in Chile and the iron ore mines in Western Australia may be many 1000’s of miles apart, but these mining operations nonetheless require dewatering and the protected disposal of doubtless contaminated water. “The same could be mentioned of the coal mines of Mozambique and the silver mines of Mexico. What all of them have in frequent is a requirement for environment friendly and effective water and slurry pumps. Well-matched solutions assist to maximize the longevity and efficiency of the system and likewise optimise cost-performance ratios, all attributes fulfilled by KSB’s Hard Rock Mining Division.”
The changing face of mining
The search for extra rare and precious minerals and metals has opened up mining in nations and locations the place beforehand the trade was small scale or non-existent. Consequently, mining corporations and equipment manufacturers have needed to develop new strategies and products. And with the main mining companies having operations in lots of world places, changing into a most well-liked equipment supplier is important. “The dewatering market is slowly shifting from a pure CAPEX point of view to an increasingly OPEX perspective,” stories Brett Lewis, Mining Manager at KSB Australia. “This is particularly true for the massive mines that understand that poorly designed tools that frequently fails, causes a significant improve in replacement and servicing cost. Some mining corporations are actually committing to a carbon impartial target within the next 20 to 30 years, so are focussing on excessive efficiency equipment. They want to part out diesel reliance by connecting most bores to their local electrical grid.”
KSB says it is aware that mining corporations are recording pump performance and are accumulating data to compare manufacturers and better rank their qualities or deficiencies. “This is sweet information for KSB as the corporate is dedicated to delivering high reliability and efficiency pumps, so helping to scale back the carbon footprint of mining dewatering operations.
Is there a ‘one-fits-all’ pump solution?
KSB says the reply to this could be a resounding ‘no’, but “by sharing experiences between offices and likewise incessantly working with the identical international mining companies, KSB has been able to develop acceptable solutions. KSB’s involvement within the iron ore industries in Brazil and Australia show two different approaches to dewatering, each using vertical multi-stage pumps.”
In Brazil’s Minas Gerais State open pit iron ore mines extreme floor water, monsoons and underground lakes are issues. To maintain steady manufacturing water has to be pumped to a dewatering lake which has a dynamic water level that have to be raised two or thrice a yr. KSB Brazil’s resolution is a floating station fitted with KSB vertical turbine B pumps positioned over a pontoon (Fig.1). The pontoon rises and falls with changes within the water degree so there is not any want for the pumps to be repositioned. This results in cost-savings to the customer. After 20 successful years it has turn out to be the usual for this type of gear in South America.
“The floating station supporting the pumps over the pontoon delivers the flow fee requested by the shopper,” explains Jardel Ribeiro, Sales Manager, KSB Brazil. “Sometimes the pumps, high energy motors and related gear ends in the dimensions of the floating station being elevated. Stabilizing gear that weighs greater than 200 t requires a lot of planning, along with the challenge of building a system in such a distant area.”
Boreholes in Australia
In the Pilbara Region of Western Australia iron ore is mined in a number of places across the Chichester hub zone, an space between 5 and 9 km broad and 80 km long. The mineral deposit sits between ninety m and 117 m below the surface. With the groundwater and water table regularly replenished in wet seasons and cyclones including to the inundation, greater than 75% of the iron ore is beneath the water desk. If too much water mixes with iron ore, it turns into low grade and unsuitable for export, which ends up in large revenue losses. Also, surface dewatering processes are extraordinarily pricey if the water could be very high.
The accepted dewatering course of inside the region is to pump the water out via boreholes. However, this isn’t with out its challenges. High water temperatures and excessive salinity lead to extreme corrosion, whilst iron bacteria can develop on motors which forestall environment friendly motor cooling. The presence of fuel is a constant menace in some areas as this causes gasoline lock on the impellers resulting in heavy vibrations, which locations a fantastic pressure on the motor, loss of flow price and motor failure.
This implies that standard off-the-shelf products aren’t all the time suitable and the incidence of failures is excessive. Typically, most bore pumps fail within 12 months, and sometimes only some weeks. At its Hope Valley facility in Western Australia, KSB offers mine operators with its UPA multistage borehole pump, customised to withstand website situations. Although a costlier product than its rivals, the UPA has been shown to ship a significantly longer working life and reduced prices of possession. KSB’s proprietary technology that inhibits the growth of iron bacteria makes the UPA a winner.
Trailer mounted models
In Africa the setting and minerals being mined require revolutionary approaches to dewatering. In the Katanga Province of the Democratic Republic of Congo, house to several open cut and underground copper mines wet seasons wreak flooding havoc. Here, KSB is delivering a quantity of completely different pumping options involving each UPA Z borehole pumps and surface-mounted Omega pumps. “To prevent mining operations from being shut down, a fast localised response is required,” says Rob Bond, Area Manager Mining-Sub-Saharan Africa. “Our solution has been to supply Omega pumps mounted on rough terrain trailers. We provide a whole package deal made up of the pump, engine/motor, couplings, gearbox, hydraulic drives and auxiliary gear together with vacuum pump, control panels, screens and so forth that delivers excessive head pumping.”
A comparable resolution can also be provided for the open cast Moatize coal mine in Mozambique the place the water ranges should stay low for continuous production reliability. Whilst borehole pumps provide good reliability on a constant basis, when the rainy season starts, more assets are in demand KSB SA provides skid-mounted Omega units. To date, KSB SA has provided 152 units and all are working reliably.
Latin America
In Mexico’s Zacatecas silver mines underground water is a continuing downside. According to Roberto Valenzuela, Sales Manager Mining KSB Mexico, the water incorporates stable particles so the excessive pressure encapsulated UPA borehole pumps should be wear-resistant for long term effectivity. Because the dewatering pumps work at a high pace, the impellers and the wear ring can suffer from premature wear. Using Multitec horizontal multistage pumps with KSB’s C6 commonplace chrome coating, wear is greatly minimised. “We have had pumps operating on this mine for over two years without the impellers being modified,” says Roberto Valenzuela. “It is an answer that no competitor presents, and adds value for the client by way of lowered maintenance, spare parts and greater mining uptime.”
In Chile’s Atacama Desert copper and gold is mined at altitudes ranging between 2,000 m and four,500 m. Remote websites, mine depths and the unavailability of electricity needed to drive excessive capacity pumps complicate dewatering. High volumes of water contaminated by minerals can delay drilling and blasting and end in environmental pollution. KSB Chile has met these challenges by supplying encapsulated borehole pumps and cantilevered Etanorm pumps, pushed by diesel motors.
“Our customers require high-pressure pumps in a modular configuration that could be moved with the expansion of the open pit,” feedback Patricio Araya, Mining Head KSB Chile. “The answer is to use horizontally positioned borehole pumps with a special configuration for sand filters encased in a stress shroud. เกจวัดแรงดันเบนซิน provides the customer flexibility and versatility as a end result of the tools is compact, develops high pressures and is easy to move across the website.
To accommodate growing flows and discharge stress pumps are configured in series and in parallel specifically for the client’s necessities. Being coupled to diesel engines allows steady, autonomous operation in locations without electricity for between 12 and 24 hours without refuelling. Vertical Etanorm pumps and cantilever-type UPA pumps put in on a raft enabling them to deal with the accumulation of water inside the mine, eliminating factors such as unfavorable suction head at excessive altitudes. KSB equipment for mine drainage is supplied in normal versions, with variations for rafts or well pumps put in in strain jackets. Having viable options for dewatering provides worth to the customers operations and can be essential as a result of each year minerals are discovered at deeper ranges.
Innovation in Indonesia
Indonesia is considered one of the world’s largest exporters of thermal coal, and in addition a serious participant in copper, gold, tin, bauxite, and nickel. Here KSB pumps are acknowledged for his or her excellent capacity to carry out in extreme open pit mine sites. Its improvement of dewatering and dredge pump units (DnD), as a solution for mining functions, particularly for open-pit mine sites is one example of KSB’ commitment to steady product improvement and improvement. To date, greater than 260 DnD pumps with GWI® LCC and LSA pumps have been put in in mines across Indonesia and South East Asia. In 2013, KSB Indonesia launched a new mannequin, the DnD Cruiser with enhancements requested by customers.
KSB builds the whole diesel pushed pump unit on a barge, full with fuel tank, vacuum pump, management panel etc, and ships them on trailers for simple commissioning at site. Because monsoon rains are seasonal dewatering is also a seasonal activity and this means pumps can stand idle for several months through the dry periods. Recognising this example, KSB has introduced a rental programme, whereby the pumps are equipped fully-kitted out according to the customer’s requirements. By not having to buy the pump sets, clients are relieved of the prices of possession and know that after they require models they come ready for operation.
Summary
KSB’s mine dewatering methods allow the safe and efficient decreasing of groundwater in open pit dewatering, underground drainage and borehole drainage functions. Regardless of a mine’s location, the kind of mining operation being carried out, the geological and the aggressive and corrosive nature of the water, KSB has fluid dealing with technologies that may fit all eventualities. This situation has come about by way of the cross-fertilisation of ideas, technologies and experiences gained over many decades by our corporations around the globe, supported by in depth funding in research and growth. Wherever a pumping answer is required, we are able to convey a co-ordinated response to the table.
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