How to choose the grinding equipment of a large mineral processing plant

Comparison of the advantages of grinding equipment in large mineral processing plants

Working principle and advantages of semi-autogenous grinder

Semi-autogenous grinding machine is a kind of equipment that uses the ore itself as the grinding medium to achieve crushing through mutual collision and grinding between the ores.Its working principle is to move the ore and a small amount of steel balls or steel rods together through a large rotating cylinder, resulting in an efficient grinding effect.

Advantages of semi-autogenous grinding machines

High production efficiency: The semi-autogenous mill has a large processing capacity and strong adaptability, especially suitable for processing ore with high hardness and large particle size.

Energy consumption is relatively low: compared with traditional ball mills, semi-autogenous mills have lower energy consumption in the grinding process, especially when processing harder ores.

Simplify the process: The semi-autogenous mill can omit part of the crushing process and simplify the entire mineral processing process.

Working principle and advantages of ball mill

A ball mill is a device that uses steel balls as a grinding medium to impact and grind ore in a cylinder.The working principle is that the ore is fed into the rotating cylinder. As the cylinder rotates, the steel ball is raised to a certain height and falls freely, impacting and grinding the ore.

Advantages of ball mill

Wide range of applications: Ball mills are suitable for ores of various hardness, especially for softer ores, and the grinding effect is more ideal.

Fine product particle size: A ball mill can grind finer product particle size, which helps to improve the flotation or chemical treatment effect of minerals.

Flexible operation: The operating parameters of the ball mill are easy to adjust and can be flexibly adjusted according to production needs.

Comparison of production efficiency of grinding equipment in large mineral processing plants

Production efficiency of semi-autogenous mill

Due to its design, the semi-autogenous mill can process a large amount of ore, and its single-series processing capacity can reach 50,000 t/D.This large-scale processing capacity makes semi-autogenous mills very popular in large mineral processing plants.Semi-autogenous mills are particularly suitable for processing higher hardness ores because they can use ore as a grinding medium and reduce dependence on steel balls.

Production efficiency of ball mill

The ball mill is known for its fine grinding ability and is suitable for mineral processing processes that require finer product particle sizes.The ball mill can adjust the filling rate of steel balls and the speed of the cylinder to adapt to ores of different hardness and particle sizes.However, the processing capacity of ball mills is usually lower than that of semi-autogenous mills, which are suitable for medium-scale mineral processing plants.

Comparison of energy consumption of grinding equipment in large mineral processing plants

Energy consumption of semi-autogenous mills

According to practical application cases, the unit installed power consumption of semi-autogenous mills (Kw.h/t) is usually between 7.25 and 10.05.This level of energy consumption is relatively low, especially when considering its processing power.

Energy consumption of ball mill

The energy consumption of ball mills is higher, especially when grinding harder ores.Unit installed power consumption (Kw.h/t) is usually between 9.30 and 12.18.For softer ores, ball mills can work more efficiently and consume relatively low energy.

Conclusion

When choosing grinding equipment for large-scale mineral processing plants, they should comprehensively consider the nature of the ore, production scale, energy consumption requirements and investment costs.Semi-autogenous mills are suitable for mineral processing plants with higher hardness and larger scale, while ball mills are suitable for occasions where product particle size requirements are finer.With the continuous optimization of SABC's crushing and grinding process, the combination of semi-autogenous mills and ball mills can further improve production efficiency and reduce energy consumption.Mineral processing plants should conduct detailed technical and economic analysis based on their own actual conditions and choose more suitable grinding equipment.