P1087 - Integrated Tailings Management
Value
AUD $2,580,000
Commencement Date
October 2012
Duration
3 years
Program Manager
Gray Bailey
Research Providers
ATC Williams Pty Ltd; Mr Keith Seddon; CSIRO Minerals Down Under; Mr Andreas Monch and Dr Andrew Chryss; Monash University; Professor Murray Rudman; University of Western Australia; Winthrop Professor Andy (Andries) Fourie
Sponsors
Anglo American Plc; BASF Construction Polymers Gmbh; Freeport-McMoRan Mining Company; Gold Fields Australasia Pty Ltd; Nalco Australia Pty Ltd; Newmont Mining Corporation; Outotec SEAP; Shell Canada Energy; Total E&P Canada
PROJECT SUMMARY
The use of paste and thickened tailing technologies (P&TT) is receiving more consideration by mine operators as traditional hydraulic tailings storage facilities, with their large footprint and high water usage, become increasingly challenging and difficult to rationalise from a ‘social licence to operate’ standpoint. Use of P&TT offers a way for mine operators to address the economic, water resource and social licence issues associated with their solid residues. The aim of this project is to integrate the knowledge of tailings processes to allow the prediction of downstream outcomes resulting from changes to upstream conditions. Rather than considering the processes in isolation, better design decisions will be possible by linking tailings processes and material characteristics with P&TT to allow predictions of dewatering and disposal performance at the tailings storage facility (TSF).
HIGHLIGHTS/DELIVERABLES/ADDITIONS
The key deliverables will be:
- Increased water recovery options from different mixing conditions and polymers
- Enhanced capability to assess how the various components of the tailings circuit (e.g thickeners, pipeline flow, end-of-pipe dewatering, etc) impact on a TSF, both in the short and long term.
- Outcomes from investigations of how best to link the different options for tailings dewatering based upon the characteristics of the tailings, the local topography and climatic conditions.
- Robust tools for prediction of thickened tailings transport in pipelines and channels.
- A prototype in-line rheometer for characterising thickener underflow or discharged tailings.
- Predictability of seepage in non-homogenous TSFs profiles, validated against real mine operations.
- The ability to predict the beach slope and stack growth of a TSF using validated models incorporating the complex rheology of tailings suspensions.
- A techno-economic model to evaluate different options for tailings circuits and TSFs, from a performance and economic (capital and operating cost) perspective.