Coal Preparation Priorities
The coal industry faces a range of high level sustainable development issues which, in the context of coal preparation research, translate to:
- Occupational health, safety and environmental improvements.
- Energy and water efficiency and usage improvements.
- Optimal resource/reserve recovery.
- Maximise the opportunities or survivability of the coal industry to market conditions.
Occupational health and safety is paramount and all efforts must be made to ensure continued improvement. Rejects disposal and tailings dams are of particular interest, from both environmental and water loss perspectives, noting that proposals for final rehabilitation of tailings dams should be directed to the open cut committee.
Proposals offering practical and commercially viable outcomes that can be implemented relatively quickly to provide ongoing benefits are especially encouraged. Topics of specific interest are listed below in four broad themes. Consideration will also be given to projects addressing the traditional areas of coal preparation improvement, such as efficiency optimisation, moisture reduction and cost reduction.
GROWTH/SURVIVAL
- Reduce capital costs and construction times for new plants/expansions and simplify the circuits at the same /improved efficiency.
- Increase yield and tonnage throughput potential for existing plants; understand tipping points as feed rates are increased.
- Reduction of unit costs through economy of scale, improved throughput rates, increased availability and/or improved efficiency.
- Lower cost alternatives to flotation for fines circuits.
- Better correlations to obtain plant design parameters from bore cores, especially slim cores, to improve the envelope for design.
METALLURGICAL EFFICIENCY
- Improved fines size separation efficiency.
- Improved circuit design; optimising cut-points to individual unit operations.
- Improved and comprehensive product accounting and reconciliation.
- Process efficiency improvements and measuring capability.
A project titled The Intelligent Plant (C11069) has developed a range of recommendations for improvements in this area. These are outlined in the project report which is available on request. Those considering proposals in this area are advised to obtain a copy from anne@acarp.com.au.
OPERATOR ASSIST
Plant simplification and automation will reduce the amount of human operator time spent on routine tasks, allowing the limited skilled workforce to spend maximum time on value added activities. Suggested topics include:
- More and better sensors for critical plant performance parameters.
- Remote monitoring and process control capability.
- Autonomous equipment.
SUSTAINABILITY
- Improved health and safety; improved procedures for, or elimination of, heavy organic liquids for float/sink testing and radioactive sources in plants.
- Remote monitoring and process control capability.
- Energy efficiency to reduce plant CO2 footprint.
- Reduce environmental impacts:
- improved reject and tailings management,
- alternatives to belt-press filters and tailings dams,
- stabilising tailings dams with a high proportion of clay minerals,
- reduce water consumption and increase water recycling,
- effect of dissolved salt build up on plant, product quality and separation processes.
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