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CURRENT SITUATION

SAG
2006
DEPARTMENT OF MINING ENGINEERING
UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
Vancouver, B.C., Canada

HIGHER PRODUCTIVITY THROUGH COOPERATIVE EFFORT: A

METHOD OF REVEALING AND CORRECTING HIDDEN OPERATING
INEFFICIENCIES
By Adrian Dance1, Walter Valery2, Alex Jankovic3,
David La Rosa4 and Sedat Esen5
1

ManagerProcess Integration & Optimisation, Metso Minerals Process

Technology AsiaPacific (MMPT-AP) Brisbane, Australia; 2General
ManagerMMPT-AP, 3ManagerDevelopment and Process Engineering,
MMPT-AP, 4ManagerProcess Control, MMPT-AP, 5Crushing Process
Technology Engineer, MMPT-AP

ABSTRACT

Most operations continue to function with the mine and concentrator

working in isolation. Both have separate objectives, separate cost
centres and key performance indicators (KPIs) that do not reflect the
customer/supplier relationships that inherently exist. Using these KPIs
alone, the two entities appear to operate efficiently; however considering
the whole operation, they often operate well below maximum efficiency.
Over the past ten years, the authors have developed a proven
methodology for revealing these inefficiencies and have worked with
operations around the world to significantly increase their production:
generating typically 5 to 20% higher throughput. A number of recent
optimisation and reenfield projects will be discussed in this paper to
describe the structured approach taken and demonstrate the benefits
that are achievable.

Despite considerable effort by Mine-to-Mill practioners over the past

decade, many mining companies continue to operate in isolation, with
the mine and concentrator focusing their attention on their own needs
rather than the goals of the entire operation. This is usually driven by
different sets of KPIs and separate cost centres. However, as frequently
as there exists an uncaring supplier (i.e. mine) there exists an unsure
customer (i.e. concentrator) about what their needs are.
When delivering material to the concentrator, the mine is well aware of
the need of quantity but what of quality? Is it possible to improve the
performance of the concentrator by changing operating practices and
objectives upstream in the mine? Absolutely, and this has been
demonstrated at numerous operations worldwide.
In light of current metal prices, operations are repeatedly asked (or told)
to increase production normally, with little or no capital investment.
This requires greater consideration of how they operate rather than the
size or number of pieces of equipment they use. Most mining and
processing professionals understand their business and do a good job
of controlling their costs, focussing on their weaknesses and trying to
improve their efficiency. However, what appears to be lacking is an
awareness of how they impact the next phase of the process or their
customer. This lack of awareness leads to inefficiency in the mineconcentrator interface. Ore has been defined as material that can be
processed for a profit this may or may not have anything to do with
grade. Unfortunately, grade is commonly the sole indicator of whether
material is suitable to be sent to the concentrator.
In order to reveal the inefficiencies entrenched in our operating
practices, we need to understand what rock properties are relevant. In
other words, we need to characterise the material in terms of its
downstream performance and be able to predict how well it will process.
After discovering what properties are important to processing, they can
then be termed quality parameters and used to determine if high grade
material is truly ore or waste.
OPPORTUNITIES
Over the past ten years or so, Mine-to-Mill studies have focussed on the
impact of run-of-mine (ROM) fragmentation or mill feed fragmentation
on concentrator throughput. In these cases, the property of interest is
material size: either the topsize, 80% passing size (P80) or distribution.

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So when considering the impact of feed size, what is the typical
situation? Normally, the mine (or supplier) delivers material of sufficient
quality to satisfy their own needs does it dig well? Will the truck loading
be good? Will it fit in the crusher? Beyond that, there is typically little
consideration of how to improve the quality of the ROM material further.
On the other hand, the customer (or concentrator) understands the
impact of feed size on their process but normally only the negative
effects and at the extreme levels: If the feed is too big, we have
problems and if it is too small we also have problems. Quite often the
effect of feed size on mill performance is not well understood and results
in the customer not being clear in their requirements: Just dont give us
the same stuff as last week.
Rather than focussing on the negative effects, the concentrator needs to
understand how quality parameters can positively affect performance. In
addition, understanding should be based on measurements that can be
reproduced: We need more of the 25mm material in the feed than what
we measured this morning.
Understanding which quality parameters are important to each
concentrator is the first step. The next one is to measure them
continuously if possible and then develop methods to control them so
that the quality of mill feed is as high as possible.
By communicating with the mine how the quality of their product (or the
concentrator feed) can affect downstream performance leads to ways to
improve the value of mill feed. That is, ore can now be judged on its
overall quality parameters and not just grade. Despite the grade, if
certain material will not process well due to low production or higher
costs that lowers its value. In addition, it eliminates the opportunity to
process material of higher value by using up concentrator capacity.
Understanding and measuring important parameters that affect mill feed
quality can lead to the identification and elimination of poor performing
ores that should not be sent to the concentrator without being blended.
The reason that most operations do not follow this path to enlightenment
is a lack of resources and a definite plan with clear objectives. Metso
Minerals Process Technology Asia-Pacific (MMPT-AP), have been
working with customers to develop such plans and to reveal the
inefficiencies hidden in the way they currently operate. The work is
rewarding in that often the improvements in efficiency are very
significant. In the case of throughput, MMPT-AP projects typically result
in increases of 5 to 20%.
MMPT-AP provide an integrated approach or methodology that
eliminates costly (both in time and resources) plant trials, from which the

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benefits can be difficult to quantify. Also, MMPT-AP can provide the
guidance and support to make the significant step changes that are
sometimes required.
In the case studies discussed below, the quality parameter of interest is
material size and the objective is increased production. There is no
reason the same approach cannot be used for cost reduction, recovery
increases or final product grade by characterising the material using
other quality parameters.
METHODOLOGY
The methodology that MMPT-AP uses is called Process Integration and
Optimisation (PIO) and has been developed over the past ten years at a
number of operations worldwide. It represents a wider application of
optimisation than Mine-to-Mill, as it can focus on any quality parameter
of interest and not just feed size. That being said, most of our
customers are interested in understanding how their material properties
affect mill production and how to increase mill throughput.
The methodology involves a number of steps: benchmarking, rock
characterisation, measurements, modelling/simulation and where
required, material tracking. A PIO project is normally comprised of a
number of site visits spaced over a few months. The first site visit is to
establish current operating practice, initiate rock characterisation and
collect measurements of blast fragmentation and mill performance. This
is followed by modelling and simulation studies to determine how to
best exploit hidden inefficiencies. These recommendations are then
followed by further site visits to implement the changes, monitor the
results and ensure the improvements are maintained over time.
We have made long-term agreements with some customers so that they
have access to our services without the delay of setting up individual
projects.
Benchmarking
The first step of a PIO project is to benchmark the current practices by
auditing the operation and control of the blasting, crushing, grinding and
flotation processes.
The quality of blast pattern implementation is assessed and the
resulting ROM fragmentation measured using image analysis. The
crushing, grinding and flotation circuits are surveyed and process
control strategies reviewed. All of these measurements allow
mathematical models to be developed for the complete process chain.
These models are later used to simulate the impact of operational
changes in the mine or concentrator on the entire process.

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Rock Characterisation
Once the current operating performance has been measured under one
set of conditions, the effect of changing rock properties can be
quantified. This involves rock characterisation.
The MMPT-AP methodology for rock characterisation utilises simple and
inexpensive measurements that can be performed by trained site
personnel. Quite often, the measurements are already being collected by
the operation. The advantage of simple measurements is the amount of
data that can be collected in a very short timeframe, as the samples do
not require shipping to an outside laboratory. When attempting to
characterise an entire orebody, the density of data is very important.
For rock characterisation, MMPT-AP use measurements of rock strength
(Point Load Index, PLI and/or UCS) and rock structure (Rock Quality
Designation, RQD and/or fracture frequency). Both PLI and RQD
measurements can be taken on drillcore and Point Load tests can also
be performed on irregular shaped samples of material.
The PLI value can be correlated to Unconfined Compressive Strength
(UCS) as well as the JKMRC Drop Weight test parameters A and b. The
Drop Weight parameters are necessary in order to model the crushing
and grinding circuits. Therefore, the use of the Point Load Index allows
sites to characterise their rock properties quickly and easily while still
making use of the sophisticated grinding models that are available.
The rock structure is represented by the RQD value that indicates the
fracture frequency present in the drillcore. This measurement is routinely
taken at operations for geotechnical purposes but has been shown to be
very useful in blast fragmentation modelling in the absence of detailed
rock mass structure mapping.
Once the PLI and RQD data are available, the range of rock properties
are mapped out and domains are defined (see Figure 1). Within each
domain, the material will behave similarly in the blasting, crushing and
grinding processes while all of the domains cover the complete range of
rock properties that are present.
Soft
Ore Type 1

Ore Type 2

Fine
Medium
Coarse
Fine
Medium
Coarse

Medium

Hard

1
3
4
7
9

2
5

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(When flotation is involved, material domains are defined based on
different characterisation measurements, but the method is the same.)
The domain structure shown in Figure 1 follows the existing ore type
characterisation used by the site but expands further into areas of
structure (coarse, medium and fine) and strength (soft, medium and
hard). The ranges of strength and structure used are based on the
variability of the orebody. The more variable the PLI and RQD values
measured in the orebody, the greater definition required for domains.
In the example shown in Figure 1, there are three levels of strength and
three levels of structure for each ore type: or a possible total of nine
domains per type. If a domain does not occur significantly in the
orebody, it may be combined with a nearby domain so that the overall
number of domains is less. In Figure 1, there are a total of ten domains
defined for the two ore types shown.
Once the domains have been defined, different blasting practices,
crushing and milling operational strategies are established. Through
modelling and simulation studies, the impact of blending different
domains can be reviewed. Most importantly, as the rock properties have
now been well characterised and the processes modelled, the variable
nature of the material can now be compensated for.
For example, consider Domain 6 in Figure 1. This material is of Ore
Type 1 and both hard and coarse in structure. This indicates that it
would require higher energy blasting to overcome the difficult rock
properties. Otherwise, the resulting ROM fragmentation will be difficult
to crush and mill. On the other hand, Domain 1 is soft and fine in
structure (highly jointed). This material can be blasted will less energy
and achieve an adequate fragmentation size. In most cases, operations
use the same blast pattern (and hence powder factor or energy level)
for all material in one ore type (or even all ore types). The rock
characterisation method details how and where energy should be
usefully applied and not wasted.
In the example discussed, the quality parameter of interest is mill feed
size and the objective is to maximise mill production. By developing
customised blasting practices for each domain, the resulting ROM
fragmentation can be controlled much better. The result is more
consistent mill throughput by compensating for the different rock
properties.

Measurements

10

Another aspect of MMPT-APs methodology is the heavy reliance on

measurement. If material size is the quality parameter of interest, the
first site visit is used to collect measurements of size: ROM
fragmentation, primary crusher product and mill feed.

Ore Type 'N'

Figure 1: Rock Strength and Structure Domains

In addition, attempts are made to measure the reduction in material size

for different ore types or domains in order to calibrate the mathematical
models over a wider range of conditions.
Image analysis is used to measure blast fragmentation by collecting
numerous photographs of the muckpile as well as haul trucks dumping at
the primary crusher. For measurements of crushing and grinding circuit
performance, surveys are performed to collect data on all the process
streams. When concentrator recovery and/or final product quality are the
issues, surveys of the separation circuits are performed as well.
Modelling/Simulation
The measurements collected while at site are combined with the rock
characterisation domains to model the complete process chain. MMPTAP uses these data to develop site-specific models of blast
fragmentation, crushing, grinding and flotation. This allows customised
blast patterns to be developed that optimise both crushing and grinding
performance. For each domain, blast designs are recommended to
generate the optimal fragmentation size for downstream processes. This
may involve an increase or decrease in energy level (or powder factor)
depending on the rock characteristics of each domain.
The objective is to minimise the overall cost for the entire process by
distributing the energy required sensibly and effectively where it is best
applied. Near-field vibration measurements and models are used to
confirm that pit wall stability issues are considered in the blast designs.
In addition, the crushing and grinding models allow the impact of
operational and control strategies to be investigated. For example, what
is the best closed-side-setting to operate my primary crusher at in terms
of production and product size? What target load should I use in my SAG
mill when processing this domain? What is the tendency for this material
to be SAG mill, ball mill or recycle crusher limited?

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There are currently two methods to track material movements from the
mine to the concentrator: model-based and sacrificial instruments.
These are illustrated in Figures 2 and 3.
100
Stockpile

Ore Block #2
until shift change

Ore Block #1
Ore Block #2

80
Ore Block #1 for 4 hours
at start of shift

% of Mill Feed

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60
night shift shows large
swings between
Block #2 and Stockpile

Stockpile being
added as required

40
intermittent feed

20

0
03-Apr
07:00

03-Apr
09:00

03-Apr
11:00

03-Apr
13:00

03-Apr
15:00

03-Apr
17:00

03-Apr
19:00

03-Apr
21:00

04-Apr
01:00

04-Apr
03:00

04-Apr
05:00

04-Apr
07:00

Figure 2: Example of Modelled Mill Feed Sources

POST BLAST

[ID,x,y,z]

POST CRUSHER

All of these questions can be evaluated using the model of all the stages
of comminution (blasting, crushing and grinding).

DETECTOR

Material Tracking
RECEPTOR

[ID, time]

Using the MMPT-AP methodology of optimisation, it is very important to

understand what type of material is being processed at any point in time.
That is, which domain or domains is the material part of?
This is necessary in order to observe the effect of different ore sources
(and the blending of sources) on concentrator performance. By
monitoring concentrator KPIs with different material, the actual and
expected performance can be compared. This was discussed in detail in
an earlier paper (Dance, 2005).

03-Apr
23:00

DETECTOR

[ID, time)

SAG MILL FEED

Figure 3: Location of Ore Block Markers and Antennas

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The first method of tracking material involves the development of a
software program to record the movements of material from the open pit
or underground to the intermediate or long-term stockpiles, through the
crusher and coarse ore piles and into the concentrator. Each stockpile
can be represented by simple perfect mixing models or if necessary,
more sophisticated three-dimensional models. The models allow the
effect of material mixing and delays to be incorporated and provide a
reasonably accurate estimate of mill feed. In the trend shown in Figure 2,
the material transactions were updated every fifteen minutes combining
the different ore sources into packets that were tracked through the
inventories and into the concentrator. Such a system provides much
greater definition or detail on changes in concentrator feed. In Figure 2,
the twenty-four hour period shows episodes of stockpile versus muckpile
feed, intermittent feed when the primary crusher was not operating as
well as changes in the blend of different blocks of ore. A daily summary
will not provide such a degree of detail.
Another method for tracking material movements being employed by
MMPT-AP are Ore Block Markers or OBMs. MMPT-AP have developed
passive radio frequency (RF) transponders for use in blasted material
monitoring. These RF tags are small, robust and inexpensive and can be
dropped into the blasthole stemming column or placed on the muckpile
surface post-blast (see Figure 3).
The tags are not powered but are detected by antennas placed over
conveyor belts (see Figure 4). Each tag has a unique identifying number
that the antenna transmits to a remote computer for recording along with
the date/time. By noting the initial position of each tag (i.e. blasthole ID),
an estimate of the origin of the material being processed can be made.
By tracking the actual material itself, concerns about estimating stockpile
volumes, mixing and retention times can be avoided.

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APPLICATIONS OF PROCESS INTEGRATION
In this section, a number of case studies will be summarised illustrating
the MMPT-AP methodology in a variety of applications. All of these
cases are actual projects conducted by MMPT-AP in the past few years.
Case Study 1: Conventional Crushing Circuit
This site was operating three crushing circuits ahead of SAG and ball
mill circuits and was interested in ways to reduce operating costs and
increase crusher and mill throughput. Two of the crushing plants were
owned while a third plant was contracted out to provide additional
capacity.
MMPT-AP conducted a Process Integration and Optimisation program
in order to recommend changes in operating practices.
The initial phase of the PIO study was dedicated to benchmarking the
blasting performance in the pit. A typical production blast was chosen
for auditing and the implementation and performance of a blast was
monitored. Hole depth variance, drilling accuracy, explosive usage and
blast performance (with particular attention to fragmentation), were all
measured during the site visit.
Blast fragmentation modelling was then undertaken to determine new
blast designs that would decrease the ROM particle size and rehandle
costs. These blast designs were adopted by site and represented a
3.5% increase in total blasting costs. The results of the finer
fragmentation were quite dramatic with an increase in crushing plant
productivity of 21 to 32% and the cessation of the contract crushing
plant operation. In addition, excavator productivity increased and
primary crusher rock breaker usage decreased significantly. Overall, the
improvements in productivity more than accounted for the increase in
drill and blasting costs.
Case Study 2: SAG/Ball Mill Circuit
This operation was experiencing lower SAG mill throughput due to a
higher proportion of harder material. MMPT-AP deployed their PIO
methodology to characterise the range of rock properties expected to be
processed to the end of mine life and estimate their impact on mill
production.
As always, the PIO project commenced with an audit of the sites
current drill and blast, crushing and grinding practices. This included an
audit of a typical production blast along with the use of Ore Block
Markers to directly measure the concentrator performance on the
audited material.

Figure 4: Typical OBM Antenna Installations (Temporary)

Measurements taken while at site identified issues with blast design

implementation that would result in variable ROM fragmentation. In
addition, problems with the primary crusher operation and selection of
SAG mill grate size were affecting mill production.
MMPT-AP recommended blast designs for the different domains that
would compensate for the change in rock properties. In conditions where
wall stability was a concern, alternate designs were provided. The lack of
flexibility in the operations blast designs meant that harder and less
fractured material was being under-blasted while the softer and more
fractured material was being over-blasted. The recent drop in mill
production was due to an abundance of under-blasted material.
The definition of blast domains based on rock strength and structure
would allow the blast engineer to compensate for changing rock
characteristics and stabilise the ROM fragmentation size and result in
increased crusher and mill throughput.
Interestingly, the recommended blast designs were at energy levels or
powder factors lower than what the operation had recently trialled.
However, these trials were not considered a success due to their
unstructured nature and a lack of measurements. Plant trials are costly
and time-consuming and often produce unclear results. The blast audit
approach taken by MMPT-AP in their PIO projects involving material
tracking with OBMs and direct measurement of its performance has a
greater chance of producing a clear outcome of an operational change.
Following on from the blast recommendations, simulations of the grinding
circuit showed an expected increase in throughput of 15 to 20% with a
combination of finer fragmentation and crushing/grinding circuit changes.
Case Study 3: Greenfield/Brownfield Project
This study involved an operation that was surface mining using a
combination of ripping and low powder factors, but was aware that the
rock characteristics would change as the pit went deeper. The question
to be answered was: how would mill production be affected over time as
the material strength and structure changed?
The PIO project involved an audit and calibration of the blast
fragmentation model to the current operating practices. Based on PLI
and RQD measurements of drillcore, MMPT-AP estimated how
concentrator performance would change over time and whether
additional grinding power would be required to maintain design mill
throughput.

The drillcore results indicated that with depth, both the PLI and RQD
values would increase and then plateau (see Figure 5).

120

12
RQD
Is50

100

10

80

60

40

20

0
0

100

200

300

400
500
Mine Elevation (m)

600

700

800

Point Load Index, Is50 (MPa)

Rock characterisation based on PLI and RQD values showed that the
blast domains were relatively simple: all ore types showed strength
variations but were not significantly different. At the time of the site visit,
the operation was using the same blast pattern for all ore types.

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RQD(%)

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0
900

Figure 5: Change in Rock Properties with Depth

Blast designs were recommended for the changing rock conditions that
also considered the proximity of the nearby town. Models of airblast and
vibration were used to determine the maximum energy levels possible
without exceeding allowable limits.
The material was characterised into blast domains and simulations of
blast and grinding conditions were performed to identify circuit
restrictions as the material changed with depth. The availability of Work
Index (Wi) test results allowed a relationship between Point Load Index
(Is50) and Wi to be developed.
Based on the current mine plan, a plot of expected material strength
(UCS) and Work Index over the next twenty years was produced (see
Figure 6).
In addition, the minimum powder factor required to maintain design
concentrator throughput was estimated. It was concluded that the
current SAG mill circuit would not be able to operate at design tonnage
for the life of mine. Additional grinding capacity would be needed in
around seven years time to maintain or exceed design throughput.

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accurately predict concentrator throughput. Deviations from the

recommended blast designs would result in the model over or
underestimating mill production.

600

140
UCS
Wi*10

Ore Type

100
400
80
300
60
200
40
100

20
0
2000

Block Size (Rock Quality Designation)

500

min p.f.

Powder Factor (kg/t)

UCS (MPa), Wi*10 (kWh/t)

120

2005

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2010

2015

2020

2025

0
2030

PLI 0 - 3
RQD 0 - 30
RQD 30 - 60
RQD >60

Volcanic

Diorite

Intermediate
Tonalite
Young
Tonalite

RQD 0 - 30
RQD 30 - 60
RQD >60
RQD 0 - 30
RQD 30 - 60
RQD >60
RQD 0 - 30
RQD 30 - 60
RQD >60

PLI 3 - 6

PLI >6

V-MM
V-CM

V-CS

Hardness
(Point Load Index)

V-FH

V-FS

V-MH
V-CH
D-FM

D-FS
D-CS

D-CM
IT-MM

D-CH
IT-MH

IT-CH
YT-CH

Figure 7: Blast Domain Mapping (16 Domains)

Figure 6: Expected Rock Strength and Powder Factor by Year

Case Study 4: Throughput Forecasting
In this project, rock characterisation and blast domain definition was
used to improve on existing throughput forecasting models already
available to site personnel. The rock characterisation was based on
measurements of drillcore and the fragmentation and grinding models
calibrated to site conditions using measurements collected while at site.
This operation had collected a considerable amount of information on
their daily concentrator feed and this data was used to confirm the
accuracy of the throughput model.
Based on the drillcore data of PLI and RQD, the four lithological groups
(Volcanic, Diorite, Intermediate Tonalite and Young Tonalite) were
divided in sub-domains of similar properties (see Figure 7). Some of the
domains were combined with adjacent ones and the resulting rock
characterisation map produced 16 distinct domains.
For each of the 16 domains, a standard blast pattern was recommended
that the operation should implement. For flexibility, both high and low
powder factor designs were provided for each domain. The exclusive use
of these designs not only compensated for the different rock properties
and stabilised the ROM fragmentation, it resulted in crusher and mill
performance that was more predictable by the model. In other words, by
minimising changes in the ROM size, the throughput model could more

In addition to the blast fragmentation model, crushing and grinding

circuit models were produced with the output of one becoming the feed
to the next. The structure of the MMPT-AP throughput forecasting
model is shown in Figure 8.
Following the flow of data in Figure 8, ore characterisation and blast
domain information are combined with the blast design conditions into
the fragmentation model. The resulting ROM size distribution is then fed
to the primary crusher model along with the rock properties. The
primary crusher product size distribution is then input into the grinding
circuit model that can estimate throughput, specific energy requirements
and final product size. In the future, it is expected to include a sitedeveloped grind/recovery model of flotation.
The throughput forecasting model estimates the mill performance for
each of the domains in the daily blend of material. The overall mill
performance is then calculated based on the amount of each domain
sent to the concentrator.
A comparison of the model predicted daily production and the actual
recorded production for an eighteen month period is shown in Figure 9.
The model has been shown to be quite accurate and very useful in both
mine planning (until end of mine life) and interpreting daily concentrator
performance. The model estimates assume ideal blasting, crushing
and grinding performance based on the conditions entered.

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The predicted mill throughput then represents what is achievable by the
operation with good blast implementation as well as consistent crusher
and grinding circuit operation.
Blast Design

Ore Characterisation
Lithology zones
Rock Strength
- PLI
- DWi, A x b, ta
Rock Structure
- RQD, Mapping

MMPT Blast
Fragmentation
Model

ROM Ore size

Distribution
Primary Crusher
Model (MMPT
JKSimMet)

TPH

Final Product
Size Distribution

Figure 8: MMPT-AP Throughput Forecasting Model Structure

8,000

Metso Minerals Process Technology Asia-Pacific has over the past ten
years developed a proven methodology for optimising the mineconcentrator interface. This method involves characterisation of the rock
strength and structure using simple and effective measurements. These
measurements can be done by site personnel at little or no expense
and are calibrated to more comprehensive measurements like the
JKMRC Drop Weight test. The end result is a mapping of rock
characteristics into domains of similar properties.

Based on the rock domain definitions, blasting, crushing and grinding

models are used to determine specific operating and control strategies
that optimise the efficiency of processing each domain. This
methodology has been used in a wide range of applications from
conventional circuit optimisation, throughput forecasting and greenfield
operations. For existing operations, significant increases in performance
have been realised through the application of the MMPT-AP
methodology.
Where operations continue to work with the mine and concentrator in
isolation, hidden inefficiencies can be revealed through the
development a complete process model and considering the impact of
operational practices on the downstream process.

7,000

Concentrator Throughput (tph)

CONCLUSIONS

The methodology involves a number of steps: benchmarking, rock

characterisation, measurements, modelling/simulation and where
required, material tracking. A project is normally comprised of a number
of site visits spaced over a few months.

Grinding Circuit
Model
(MMPT/JKSimMet)

SAG Feed Size

Distribution

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6,000

REFERENCES

5,000

Dance A.D., 2005, Closing the Loop Using Actual Concentrator

Performance to Determine the True Value of Ore Sources, CIM
Bulletin Vol 98, No. 1086, March/April 2005.

4,000

3,000

Renner D., et. al., 2006, AngloGold Ashanti Iduapriem Mining and
Milling Process Integration and Optimisation, proceedings SAG 2006,
Sept 23 Sept 27, Vancouver, Canada.

Actual tph
Model tph

2,000
Dec-03

Feb-04

Apr-04

Jun-04

Aug-04

Oct-04

Dec-04

Feb-05

Figure 9: Throughput Model Predictions

Apr-05

Jun-05

Tondo L.A., et. al., 2006, Kinross Rio Paracatu Minerao (RPM)
Mining and Milling Optimisation of the Existing and New SAG Mill
Circuit, proceedings SAG 2006, Sept 23 Sept 27, Vancouver,
Canada.