Investigating Dynamic Behavior in SAG Mill Pebble Recycling Circuits: A Simulation Approach
Journal article, 2024

The dynamics of milling circuits, particularly those involving Semi-Autogenous Grinding (SAG) mills, are not adequately studied, despite their critical importance in mineral processing. This paper aims to investigate the dynamic behavior of an SAG mill pebble recycling circuit under varying feed ore conditions, focusing on both uncontrollable parameters (such as ore hardness) and controllable parameters (including circuit layout and pebble crusher configurations). The study is carried out with Simulink dynamic simulations. Our findings reveal several key insights. Firstly, plant designs based solely on static simulations may not be adequate for large or complex circuits, as they fail to account for the dynamic nature of milling processes. Second, incorporating stockpiles after pebble crushing can effectively mitigate the impact of dynamic fluctuations, leading to more stable circuit performance. Third, different circuit layouts can facilitate easier maintenance and operational flexibility. Notably, finer pebble crushing can enhance circuit throughput by 5% to 10%.

pebble

dynamics

cone crusher

simulation

SAG mill

Author

Haijie Li

FLSmidth AS

Gauti Asbjörnsson

Chalmers, Industrial and Materials Science, Product Development

Kanishk Bhadani

Chalmers, Industrial and Materials Science, Product Development

Magnus Evertsson

Chalmers, Industrial and Materials Science, Product Development

Minerals

2075-163X (eISSN)

Vol. 14 7 716

Subject Categories

Other Mechanical Engineering

Other Electrical Engineering, Electronic Engineering, Information Engineering

DOI

10.3390/min14070716

More information

Latest update

8/5/2024 1