A Unique System to Assay Raw Materials Installed at Donskoy Ore Mining and Processing Plant

A modern flow analysis system for element composition was installed at Crushing and Concentration Plant No.1. From now on, the quality of ore mined here can be recognized as soon as it is lifted to the surface, in a matter of seconds. It is the first innovative installation of such capacity in the mining and metallurgical industry of Kazakhstan.

As a rule, to define the element composition of raw materials, samples are taken from the conveyor belt and chemically analyzed. This takes several hours. The process has been automated as much as possible at Donskoy Ore Mining and Processing Plant. Late last year, the “Sample Tower” system of sampling and sample preparation was installed on the conveyor of the Crushing and Concentration Plant No.1, which made it possible to abandon manual sampling. This saved specialists from having to carry heavy samples and increased the productivity of the conveyor, as it no longer needs to be stopped.

Geoscan-M, flow analysis system, further simplifies the raw material processing stage by determining ore composition and moisture content while still on the conveyor belt.

- The system is automated and all data is immediately transferred to the company's information system. Process engineers, miners and other specialists can get a quick overview of chromium content in the ore and adjust the ore beneficiation processes. Besides minimizing process errors, the system will also contribute to improving the accuracy of warehouse accounting,” says Alexey Ganyushkin, project manager.

The new analysis system allows real-time determination of the content of five chemical elements and moisture in ore, (chromium, iron, calcium, silicon and aluminum). The measurement error does not exceed 1%. The analyzer is capable of processing up to 1,200 tons of ore per hour at conveyor belt speeds of up to 2 meters per second.