MEASURING, PREDICTING AND MANAGING GRINDING MEDIA WEAR

A.Giblett* and J.Seidel

Newmont Mining Corporation

10101 East Dry Creek Road
Englewood, Colorado 80112
(*Corresponding author: aidan.giblett@newmont.com)

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 MEASURING, PREDICTING AND MANAGING GRINDING MEDIA WEAR

ABSTRACT

In 2009 Newmont Mining Corporation’s annual global spend on grinding media reached $94M
USD, having doubled in the five years since 2004. The major contributing factor to the spend escalation
during this period was unit consumable price, with total media consumption also rising as a function of
annual ore tonnes milled. In an effort to better understand and manage the growth of this expenditure a
significant supply chain management program was implemented. This was complemented by a series of
technical initiatives focussed on grinding media specifications, quality management and the prediction of
grinding media wear rate as a function of physical ore characteristics. This paper discusses the
methodology and outcomes of these activities.

KEY WORDS

Newmont, Bond abrasion index, grinding media, wear, consumption,.

INTRODUCTION

Newmont Mining Corporation is a global mining company with active operations in Australia,
Ghana, Indonesia, New Zealand, Peru and the USA. In 2009 Newmont’s global metal sales were 5.3
million ounces of gold at costs applicable to sales of $417/oz, and 226 million pounds of copper (Newmont
Mining Corporation, 2009). A total of 12 processing operations incorporating 15 grinding circuits operated
under Newmont ownership in 2009, including the KCGM operation where ownership is shared with
Barrick Gold. A total of 90,620 tonnes of grinding media were consumed milling 93 Mt of ores at these
operations in 2009 at a total cost of $US94M. This placed grinding media second behind diesel fuel in
Newmont’s major operating consumables spend for 2009.
In 2005 significant increases to Newmont’s total grinding media spend were projected as a result
of advanced development projects nearing transition into operations, combined with market risks
associated with a consolidated supply market and steel shortages. This led to global strategies for
management of major consumables, including grinding media, being developed and implemented from
2006 onwards.
In the five years since 2004 Newmont’s grinding media usage increased by 29%, while over the
same period the company’s global grinding media spend increased by 112%. This reflects a significant
increase in the unit cost of grinding media supply to the operations, with escalation in physical media
consumption rates having had a less pronounced impact on the total cost. The increases in the unit cost of
grinding media can be attributed to a number of influences, including raw materials costs, exchange rates,
manufacturing inputs and transport costs.

OVERVIEW OF GRINDING OPERATIONS

At these operations the comminution circuit design basis includes single stage SAG milling, SAB
and SABC circuits in addition to crush/ball mill configurations. A variety of ores are processed ranging in
ore competency, abrasiveness and ball mill power requirements. The milling circuit configurations are
summarized in Table 1 with reference to mill shell dimensions. This data represents a broad range of
comminution circuits that process from just over 30t/h at the high-grade gold-silver Midas operation in
Nevada to greater than 5000t/h at the porphyry copper concentrator at Batu Hijau in Indonesia.

2
 Table1. Grinding circuit configurations
Operation Location Circuit SAG Mill(s) Ball Mill(s)
(3) 14.5’x29’
Mill 5 Nevada SABC 28’x10’
(2) 13’x18’
1
Mill 6 Nevada Crush/Ball 19.7’x52.5’
20’x30’
Sage Nevada SAB 28’x10’
(2) 16.5’x29’
Juniper Nevada SAB 18’x6.5’ 11.5’x16.5’
Midas Nevada Crush/Ball 10.5’x16’
Phoenix Nevada SABC 36’x18’ (2) 21’x33’
Batu Hijau2 Indonesia SABC 36’x19’ (2) (4) 20’x33.5’
Boddington Australia HPGR/Ball - (4) 26’x44’
Jundee Australia SABC 18’x28.5’ 14’x22’
Tanami Australia Crush/Ball - 18’x30’
Fimiston3 Australia SABC 36’x16’ (2) 18’x25’
Mt. Charlotte3 Australia SABC 24’x10’ 15’x23’
Waihi New Zealand SAB/C 16’x20’ 12’x19’
Ahafo Ghana SABC 34’x18’ 24’x39’
Yanacocha Yanacocha SAG 32’x34’ -
1
Airswept two chamber double rotator mill
2
Operated by PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara
3
Operated by Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines

The distribution of grinding media consumptions at these operations by milling stage are shown
graphically in Figure 1. It can be observed that grinding media consumption is distributed between SAG
mill media (64%) and Ball mill media (33%), with the remainder being distributed between regrind mill
media (1-1.5” balls) and ultrafine grinding media (sand). The Batu Hijau operation in Indonesia is
Newmont’s largest grinding media consumer based on 2009 data comprising 28% of Newmont’s total
media consumption, followed by Yanacocha, Peru (19%) and Phoenix, Nevada (15%).

Tw in Creeks Ball KCGM SAG's

Mills
Ahafo SAG
Phoenix Ball Mill

Mill 6 Ball Mills Batu Hijau SAG's

Mill 5 Ball Mills

Batu Hijau Ball Mills

Mill 5 SAG

Jundee SAG
Ahafo Ball Mills

Phoenix SAG
KCGM Ball Mills

Tw in Creeks SAG's

Yanacocha SAG Waihi SAG

Figure 1 - 2009 Grinding media usage by type and operation (tonnage basis)

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 This distribution of grinding media consumption is generally consistent with the scale of the
operation and the required grinding energy input, however variations are observed as a function of ore
characteristics and circuit operating conditions and will be discussed further in this paper. As a result of
these various influences, the contribution of grinding media to total operating cost is observed to range
from $US 0.5/t to $US 4.0/t for these operations.

SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

In 2005/06 Newmont’s supply chain management group developed a strategy to manage grinding
media purchase and use at Newmont’s global operations. The motivations for the development of this
strategy were projected grinding media usage increases as a function of scheduled major project start-ups
and pricing pressures related to steel availability and a consolidated supplier base. The major components
of the global grinding media strategy were as follows:

Strategic Sourcing in support of supplier selection to deliver the lowest total cost of ownership to
Newmont. Developed through detailed assessment of business requirements, and local, regional and global
supply markets.

Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) including definition of roles, responsibilities and

interactions, formal performance monitoring and continuous improvement processes.

This initiative had a number of significant influences on grinding media management from an
operational and technical oversight perspective. A major grinding media supply alliance contract was
signed that saw OneSteel positioned as the primary source of grinding media for Newmont’s operations
from the 1st of January 2006. By the end of 2006 OneSteel was supplying 83% of the grinding media used
in Newmont’s operations. Regionally this allowed focussed relationships to be developed with supply
representatives and facilitated a shared objective of continuous improvement.

The grinding media alliance defined a process of frequent, routine supplier performance
evaluation through scorecards and review meetings. Grinding media quality was closely monitored as was
site data on media consumption and supply issues such as site stocks and regional inventories. Continuous
improvement initiatives with respect to grinding media quality were high on the agenda.

From a technical perspective the SCM initiative was beneficial as it facilitated a higher level of
communication and collaboration between operations, regions, suppliers and corporate technical support
that were beneficial in developing and sharing continuous improvement efforts.

TECHNICAL MANAGEMENT OF GRINDING MEDIA CONSUMPTION

The focus on supplier and technical management in relation to grinding media spend was
managed at a global level by a category council comprised of technical and supply chain representatives
from each region (North America, South America, Africa, Indonesia and Australia), where regional
initiatives were communicated and the group objectives and practices were formulated. On a regional basis
review meetings were held quarterly to discuss supplier performance, SCM issues, plant usage data and
review continuous improvement initiatives from both technical and SCM perspectives. What follows is a
recount of technical continuous improvement activities conducted by Onesteel’s Australian based business
unit, Comsteel, in collaboration with Newmont’s operations and regional technical support staff.

Quality Management

A monthly quality report for each grinding media product supplied is generated by Comsteel,
presenting a summary of key ball quality parameters. Averages and variance data are provided for
chemical composition, surface hardness, average volumetric hardness and average ball weight. This data
allows ongoing tracking of product quality control and the identification of any variations from defined

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specifications. Routine monitoring of the Comsteel quality control data forms the first level of grinding
media quality assurance at the mill.

Frequent third party product quality checks are initiated by site personnel through Materials
Insight in Perth, Western Australia to confirm the chemical composition, average volumetric hardness,
surface hardness, size, shape and perform analysis of microstructure for grinding media products delivered
to site. These checks provide a confirmatory check that material received on site is consistent with
Comsteel’s product specifications, and as such represent a secondary stage of product quality assurance.

Quarterly reviews of grinding media related key performance indicators (KPI’s) were further
conducted at regional review meetings between operations, supply chain, technical support staff and
Comsteel representatives to allow discussion of supplier and product performance in line with any relevant
operational or supply chain issues. Technical KPI’s reviewed included grinding media wear rates on the
basis of mass per unit time, per unit power and per unit of ore milled, and grinding media quality assurance
specifications such as chemistry, hardness and weight.

Continuous Improvement

Since 2007 a number of grinding ball trials have been conducted at Newmont operations to
evaluate the impact of improvements in ball quality on grinding media consumption rates. Specifically at
KCGM and Waihi trials of higher carbon 5” SAG balls were initiated in 2007 & 2008 targeting improved
grinding performance in the SAG mills. The intent in both instances was to increase average volumetric
ball hardness to the point where the discharge scat ball maintained a more spherical shape at the time of
discharge from the mill. This was a particular concern at the Waihi operation where the low aspect SAG
mill operates in closed circuit producing a fine product (p80 ~90 microns) for fine grinding in the ball mill.

Following these trials the Jundee operation commenced further evaluation of 0.6% carbon balls in
late 2008 with the objective to realise a reduction in SAG grinding media usage as a function of increased
hardness profiles. Over the same period the Tanami operation in the North Territory progressed from a
0.5% carbon 3¾” ball to a blend of 0.8% carbon 3¾” and 2½” diameter balls. These trials aimed to
capitalise on a number of technological advancements made by Comsteel with respect to grinding media
chemistry (additional to increased carbon content), steelmaking practices and heat treatment processes.

Table 2 - Current ball sizes as at June 2010

SAG Mills Ball Mills
Media Size Operation Media Size Operation
5½” Phoenix 3¾” Tanami1
5¼” Batu Hijau 3½” Midas1, Mill 62
Sage, KCGM, Jundee, Waihi, Batu Hijau1, Boddington, Mill 5 1,
5” 3”
Ahafo, Mill 5 Phoenix, Midas1
Jundee, KCGM, Tanami1, Batu
4¾” Juniper 2½”
Hijau1, Mill 51, Sage1, Mill 63
1
4” Yanacocha 2” Juniper1, Sage1, Ahafo 1
1
3½” Yanacocha 1½” Juniper1, Sage1, Mill 63, Waihi1
1” Juniper1, Waihi1, Sage4
1
Used as part of a blended ball charge
2
Used in coarse chamber of double rotator mill
3
Used in fine chamber of double rotator mill, blended ball charge
4
Used in secondary ball milling stage

Table 2 above summarises the grinding media ball diameters used in these grinding operations,
with SAG mill media sizes ranging from 3½” to 5½”, and ball mill media sizes ranging from 1” to 3¾”.
Some variance in ball chemistry and hardness is observed with the SAG media ranging from 0.6% to

5
0.75% carbon content and surface hardness’s of 58-63 Rockwell C. Similarly ball mill media types are
observed to range from 63-64 Rockwell C and 0.75%-0.9% carbon content.

Figure 2 shows monthly SAG mill grinding media consumption rates for Newmont’s Asia Pacific
operations from 2007 through 2009. In general a decrease in SAG mill grinding media consumption on a
kg/t basis is observed since 2007, which can be attributed generally to a significant focus by the operations
to manage grinding media consumptions. A number of operational initiatives including ball load, total mill
charge, mill feed quality and discharge grate aperture optimisation have undoubtedly contributed to this
trend. Subsequently attempts to assign incremental improvement values to any one initiative are prone to
inaccuracy and have not been attempted in this assessment. In the absence of negative indicators (reduced
grinding efficiency, ball breakage, increased consumption rates, increased liner breakage), the ball trials
are considered to have had a positive influence on process economics.

Figure 2 also shows the higher and more variable grinding media wear rate experienced at the
Waihi operation. This extreme variability is a function of campaign milling two ore types with significant
differences in rock competency, ball mill hardness and mineralogy. This level of variability in feed
composition further complicates attempts to identify the magnitude of any change in grinding media wear
rate.

Figure 2 - SAG mill grinding media consumption data (Newmont Asia Pacific)

SITE GRINDING MEDIA CONSUMPTION

Summary statistics relating to grinding media consumption for Newmont’s operations are shown
in Table 3 below. Media consumption clearly varies significantly by operation, over the range of 0.02 to
0.15 kg/kWh for SAG mills, and 0.02 to 0.09 kg/kWh for ball mills. This clearly has a significant influence
on operating costs as discussed earlier in this paper. Appropriately defining expectations for grinding
media wear can as a result have a significant bearing on process economics for new project evaluations and
for the profitability of existing operations. Given the range of variance in plant consumption rates the
ability to reliably define grinding media usage targets for the purpose of operating budget development and
cost management is an objective not without its challenges.

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 Table 3 – Actual grinding media wear rates
SAG Media Ball Ball Media Total Media Total
SAG Mill
Operation Consumption Mill Consumption Consumption Circuit
kWh/t
kg/kWh kWh/t kg/kWh kg/kWh kWh/t
Phoenix 10.5 0.059 11.0 0.058 0.059 21.5
KCGM 9.8 0.051 7.1 0.031 0.043 16.9
Waihi 18.3 0.100 6.79 0.078 0.094 25.1
Yanacocha 23.0 0.126 - - 0.126 23.0
Ahafo 9.8 0.059 11.4 0.040 0.049 21.1
Tanami - - 14.2 0.032 0.032 14.2
Boddington - - 17.1 0.044 0.045 16.6
Lone Tree 12.7 0.102 20.0 0.086 0.092 32.7
Batu Hijau 4.2 0.093 4.7 0.052 0.072 8.8
Jundee 18.3 0.020 7.1 0.027 0.021 25.4
Carlin Mill 5 3.7 0.149 - - - -
Sage Mill 4.5 0.082 - - - -
Juniper Mill 6.1 0.047 - - - -

The conventional methodology for predicting grinding media wear rate is that developed by Bond
(1963), although it has been reported by others (Radziszewski, 2002) that the Bond methodology
frequently shows high variability against actual performance. Additional limitations on this approach are
the difficulties defining an appropriate abrasion index benchmark for design given the variability in this
measurement typically observed for a given project, and the relative scarcity of abrasion index data as a
part of ongoing ore characterisation programs for mines already in operation. The Bond method does not
guide the operator on the distribution of wear between primary and secondary grinding, with the data from
Table 3 indicating that assuming a constant wear rate for a given ore through multiple grinding stages will
frequently be inaccurate. In these examples the Bond methodology is observed to overstate the total circuit
grinding media wear rate by 100-200%.

Subsequently over time varying empirical methodologies have been developed to estimate
grinding media wear for SAG and ball mills by consultants and design engineers. Methodologies
considering combinations of ball charge, specific power consumption, Bond work index and Bond abrasion
index as input variables have been observed. Figure 3 presents grinding media wear predictions against
actual data for recent Newmont projects. The general conclusion from this analysis is that while the Bond
methodology frequently shows high variability against actual plant performance, the alternatives used in
design for these recent examples can rarely be considered an improvement.

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 Figure 3 – Total circuit grinding media consumptions

SAG Mill Media Wear Rates

A number of variables influencing SAG mill media wear rate were considered in an analysis of
production data from Newmont’s 11 operating SAG mills plus historical data from the Lone Tree operation
in Nevada. Steel charge, rock charge, specific energy consumption, mill feed size (F 80), ore impact
resistance, Bond work index, Bond abrasion index, grate size and ball size were all considered to be input
variables with the potential to influence grinding media rate or to approximate the influence of other
conditions on the grinding environment present in the SAG mill. Useful references for design and
operating conditions likely to contribute to or influence grinding media wear has been published
(Meulendyke and Purdue, 1989) and was used as a guide to this exercise.

A relationship is readily observed between the portion of the mill load occupied by steel, or
alternatively by rocks, and the grinding media wear rate in kg/kWh. It is reasonably intuitive that as the
rock to steel ratio influences grinding efficiency (Lane, 2007) it also influences media wear rate. The
relationship for Newmont data is presented in the Figure 4. Note the low aspect Jundee mill which operates
at high total charge levels seemingly does not conform to this relationship, and this is an indicator that mill
design and operating conditions can also be expected to have an impact on SAG mill grinding media wear
rates. Correlations are also observed between the ore competency, represented by the JK Tech Axb value
(Napier -Munn, Morrell, Morrison & Kojovic, 1996), the SAG mill feed size distribution, generalised by
the F 80 value, and the grinding media wear rate. The rock to steel ratio and the feed size F80 value can be
considered functions of the ore competency, and a simple relationship between ore competency and SAG
mill grinding media wear generated as shown in Figure 5. The practicality of the Axb measure as a
predictor of grinding media consumption is valid as the ores resistance to impact (and to some degree
attrition) would have a strong influence on the volume of grinding media required for breakage, and on the
rock charge level in the mill which will influence both grinding efficiency and media consumption by the
relative portion of rock to steel in the mill.

It must be accepted that ore competency alone does not completely define the characteristics of
the ore feeding the SAG mill nor the conditions present within the mill that affect the grinding media wear
rate. Specifically feed particle size distribution (F80, fines content) and operating variables (crusher gaps,

8
mill charge levels, grate size, grinding media size) can be expected to be significant influences. Where
such information is available, the influence on the wear prediction calculated from the Axb may be
practically estimated. Subject to these operational influences, the methodology proposed here to estimate
SAG mill media consumption can generally be considered to be accurate within ±30% of the actual value,
as shown in Table 4 and illustrated in Figure 5.

0.14
y = 0.1654x - 0.0299
SAG Mill Grinding Media Consumption (kg/kWh)

R² = 0.8509 Yanacocha
0.12

0.10
Waihi
Batu Hijau
0.08
Sage
Ahafo
0.06 Phoenix

0.04
KCGM
Jundee
0.02

0.00
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
Steel Fraction in Mill Charge

Figure 4 - Relationship of steel ratio in mill charge to grinding media consumption rate

Note the statistical robustness of the relationships presented in this report are subject to the
inaccuracies associated with the quality and frequency of measurements of steel charge, total mill charge,
Axb and to a lesser extent mill feed size. Mill charge levels requiring crash stops in combination with grind
outs are time consuming and consequently such data may be sparse. Similarly the availability of ore
characterisation data can range from minimal to substantial depending on the focus of the operation. While
the data considered in this report is useful in identifying broad relationships the precision of the resulting
predictive models is broad and subsequently not all data points fit neatly to simplistic, single variable
models.

Table 4 – Actual and predicted SAG mill grinding media wear rates
Operation F80 (mm) Axb Predicted Actual Variance
kg/kWh kg/kWh (%)
Jundee 111 20 0.027 0.028 5.0%
Ahafo 108 31 0.045 0.055 -17.6%
Batu 63 49 0.076 0.092 -17.5%
Phoenix 145 50 0.078 0.055 41.1%
Yanacocha 76 71 0.113 0.126 -10.1%
KCGM 126 36 0.054 0.038 41.6%
Waihi 50 59 0.093 0.096 -3.2%
Sage 58 65 0.103 0.082 25.7%

The model to predict SAG mill media wear as presented in Table 4 can be observed to over
predict media wear significantly at the KCGM and Phoenix operations, where the mill feed size is at the
coarse end of the spectrum and would be expected to result in comparatively lower consumption rates.

9
 0.16
y = 0.0017x - 0.0074
R² = 0.7913 Mill 5
0.14
SAG Grinding Media Consumption (kg/kWh)

Yanacocha
0.12

Lone Tree
0.10
Waihi
Batu Hijau
0.08 Sage

0.06 Phoenix
Ahafo
Juniper
0.04 KCGM
Jundee
0.02

0.00
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
JK Axb Value

Figure 5 - Prediction of SAG grinding media wear rate by Axb value

It should be noted that this relationship is based only on those sites where sufficient ore
characterisation or media consumption data exists for validation purposes. Operations where such data was
not able to be sourced are also shown on the chart but have not been considered in the development of this
model. This additional data for the Lone Tree, Mill 5 and Juniper SAG mills indicates that other variables
beyond rock strength, such in-situ structure, fragmentation and crushing conditions that may influence mill
feed size can also be expected to influence SAG mill grinding media wear rates. The data available for this
study is insufficient to reliably define the influence of these variables however it is clear that they are
variables that must be considered when developing initial grinding media consumption rate estimates.

Ball Mill Media Wear Rates

Ball mill grinding media consumption rates for the Newmont operations considered in this report
show a correlation to the Bond abrasion index (Ai), however the observed consumption rates are not
accurately described by the Bond wear formula [1], and are observed to vary from 0.3 to 0.7 times the
consumption rate calculated by Bond. The Bond formula for calculating grinding media wear is:

Wear Rate (kg/kWh) = 0.159x(Ai – 0.015)0.33 (1)

Where Ai is the Bond abrasion index (Bond, 1963). The observed wear rates are clearly
influenced by factors other than the abrasion index. Actual values vary as a function of corrosion (process
water quality), ball size (charge surface area) and the recycling of scat SAG mill balls to the ball mill as
grinding media. The data set used in this analysis is not of sufficient size to allow these effects to be
reliably quantified, however such influences should be noted and considered at the design stage.

The correlation to Bond’s formula is low (<0.40) for operations where scat balls are recycled to
the ball mill (KCGM, Ahafo). For example at Ahafo the scat SAG ball addition rate to the ball mill has
been reported as 14% of total ball additions, and represents a significant portion of the grinding media used
in the ball mill. Scat ball recycle rates will vary by operation as a function of SAG ball hardness profile and
grate size. This component of grinding media wear is not normally accounted for in site grinding media
consumption data as it is effectively free grinding media for the ball mill. Where the ball top size is larger
than typical, for example in this data set Boddington, the ball mill charge surface area can be expected to

10
be lower as will the resulting wear rate. A similar effect may be expected as a function of ball charge
volume, however this effect cannot be quantified from the data available. As is the case with SAG mill
measurements, ball charge measurements are infrequently conducted, prone to error based on variations in
methodology and are influenced by operating practices such as the quality of grind out.

Table 5 – Ball mill grinding media wear data

Operation Bond Abrasion Actual Wear Rate Calculated Wear Ratio
Index (kg/kWh) Rate (kg/kWh) (Actual/Bond)
Jundee 0.24 0.027 0.097 0.28
KCGM 0.20 0.031 0.091 0.34
Ahafo 0.38 0.040 0.114 0.35
Boddington 0.45 0.044 0.120 0.37
Tanami 0.11 0.032 0.073 0.44
Phoenix 0.42 0.058 0.118 0.49
Lone Tree 0.93 0.086 0.154 0.56
Batu Hijau 0.21 0.052 0.092 0.56
Waihi 0.44 0.078 0.120 0.65

In certain instances the correlation of actual wear rate to calculated wear rate can be expected to
be higher due to other influences increasing the actual wear rate. The ball mill at Waihi operates with a
small ball charge size (1”) and subsequently has a significantly higher charge surface area than the other
operations. At Batu Hijau higher grinding media wear rates will be expected as a function of process water
quality, where the presence of soluble copper, the use of acidic mine water and sea water combine to create
a corrosive process environment.

It is therefore difficult in the absence of a large and varied data set to develop a predictive model
for ball mill grinding media wear rates that considers all of these influences. The grinding media wear rates
reported here fit a moderate correlation to a power function based on regression as shown in Figure 6,
although alternatively a reasonable approximation for actual media wear rate is achieved by de-rating the
Bond model prediction by 50%, chosen arbitrarily as an approximate median value from Table 5.

Figure 6 – Comparison of ball mill grinding media wear rate predictions

11
 TOTAL CIRCUIT GRINDING MEDIA WEAR

Using the two relationships proposed in this paper the total circuit grinding media wear rate can
be calculated for comparison to the actual plant data. The methodology is as follows:

SAG Mill Media (kg/kWh) = 0.0017x(Axb) – 0.0074 (2)

Ball Mill Media (kg/kWh) = 0.0817x(Ai)0.498 (3)

Where Axb is determined by the JK Drop Weight test, and Ai is the Bond abrasion index. The
resulting grinding media wear rate prediction is shown in Table 6 and compared against the actual data.

Table 6 – Total circuit grinding media wear predictions

Operation Predicted Consumption (kg/kWh) Actual Bond Variance to Actual
Usage Calculation
SAG Ball Total Bond Newmont
(kg/kWh) (kg/kWh)
Phoenix 0.078 0.053 0.065 0.059 0.118 100.6% 10.2%
KCGM 0.054 0.037 0.047 0.043 0.091 111.9% 8.7%
Waihi 0.093 0.054 0.082 0.094 0.120 27.5% -12.4%
Yanacocha 0.113 0.113 0.126 0.123 -2.0% -10.1%
Ahafo 0.045 0.050 0.048 0.049 0.114 132.7% -2.4%
Tanami 0.027 0.027 0.032 0.073 128.5% -15.6%
Boddington 0.055 0.055 0.045 0.121 168.5% 22.2%
Lone Tree 0.062 0.079 0.073 0.092 0.154 67.8% -21.2%
Batu Hijau 0.076 0.038 0.056 0.072 0.093 28.8% -22.4%
Jundee 0.027 0.040 0.030 0.021 0.097 362.8% 44.5%

The typical variance of model prediction against actual plant consumption rates for the
methodology presented in this paper is shown to be frequently within ±15% and predominantly within
±25% with the exception of the Jundee data set. This represents a significant improvement over the Bond
methodology which typically estimates 100-150% above the actual plant wear rates.

CONCLUSION

Two methods have been demonstrated to more reliably estimate grinding media wear rates in
typical SAG and ball mill environments based on commonly available ore characterisation data. This
methodology is based on the fundamental differences in grinding conditions and wear mechanisms in two
commonly used milling devices.

The correlation observed between predicted and actual grinding media wear rates supports the
influence of a number of variables on plant scale wear rates, such as process water quality, ore particle size
distribution, mill dimensions, media size and charge levels. At this time all variables cannot be reliably
incorporated in the media wear models developed in this work due to the limited nature of the data set,
however such influences must be considered when estimating grinding media consumption rates for plant
operations.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors are grateful for the assistance of the numerous metallurgists and production staff at
the operations used as the basis for this work for providing plant data and their own valuable observations.
We also thank Newmont Mining Corporation for permission to publish this paper.

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 REFERENCES

Bond, F.C. (1963). Metal wear in crushing and grinding. 54th Annual Meeting of American Institute of
Chemical Engineers.

Lane, G. (2007). Some observations regarding SAG milling. Ninth Mill Operators Conference, Fremantle.

Meulendyke, M.J.and Purdue, J.D. (1989). Wear of grinding media in the mineral processing industry: an
overview. SME Annual Meeting, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Napier-Munn, T.J., Morrell, S., Morrison, R.D. and Kojovic, T. (1996) Mineral comminution circuits, their
operation and optimisation. Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre, The University of Queensland.

Newmont Mining Corporation (2009). Annual Report.

Radziszewski, P. (2002). Exploring total media wear. Minerals Engineering Volume 15, Issue 12 (1073-
1087).

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