I

N-PI
TCRUSHI
NGANDCONVEYI
NGTECHNOLOGY(
IPCC)

ABSTRACT

In-
pit crushi
ng and convey
ing (
IPCC) i
s gener
all
y appli
ed i
n t hr
ee
confi
gurati
ons:f
ull
ymobi
le,
semi-
mobil
e(i
ncl
udi
ngsemi-
fi
xed)
,andf
ixed.

I
nf ull
y mobile syst
ems,shov els/excavator
s,feed crushers,di
rect and
tr
ucks areconf
inedtoacl ean-
upf leet.Crusher
saremount edont racksand
movewi t
hshovels.Connecti
ngcr usherstoamai nconveyorrequi
resmobi l
e
bel
twagons,mobilebri
dgesorli
nkconv eyors.

Forsemi -mobileIPCC systems,thecr usherstati

onsar el ocated nearthe
workingf ace,requi
ri
ng small( i
n number )truck fl
eets shuttl
ing between
shovel/
excav at
orandcr usher.Crusherscanber el
ocatedr egular
lytokeep
pace wi th an advancing face ( v
erti
cal
ly or horizont
all
y ) or relocat
ed
str
ategicall
y(e.
g.onceevery3–10y ears)
.

I
nf i
xedI PCCsy st
ems,thecr
usherstati
onsar eawayf rom t
heactualmining
face,oftenplacedonornearthepitri
m,leavingthetr
uckscompleteflexi
bil
it
y
i
nsi dethepit.Semi -
mobil
eand fixed I
PCC sy st
emscoul dbeeasi lyretr
o-
fi
ttedintoex ist
ingopenpi
toperat
ionswithoutmajorredesi
gnorrescheduli
ng
ofthepi t.

In-pi
tcr ushingandconv eyi
ng(IPCC)couldgr adual
lysubst i
tutemostpi thaul
truckingoper at
ions,butmanymi nesdelayconv eyorinstal
lati
onbeyondt he
i
dealdat ef orchange.I n >85% ofst udies,compar i
ng IPCC witht r
uck-
opt i
mi sed pitdesi gns,conv eyi
ng sti
llgener at
es large operati
ng sav i
ngs.
Conv ey orsar emuchmor ecapi t
alandener gyef f
ici
entonl ar
geoper ati
ons,
cheapert ooper atepert onnemov ed,andrequi r
elowt echnicalmaint
enance.
In-pi
tcr ushi
ng al so reduces haulage r
oad dev el
opmentand mai ntenance
needs.

Thispaperdealsessent
iall
ywit haspect sofconveyi
nginIPCappli
cati
onsbut
theunderl
yingmessageist hatt helogic,r
eli
abil
i
tyandcapabil
i
tyofconvey
ing
tomov ev astvol
umesofmat erialcanbesuccessf ul
l
yappliedtofunct
ion
eff
ecti
vel
yinsidetheminingpits, notj
ustinprocessi
ngplant
s.

I
NTRODUCTI
ON

Insurfacemi ning, t
heoper ati
onalcost sf orhaulageal onemayaccountf orup
to50%oft otaloper ati
ngmi ningcosts( Opex) .Theper centageoft ot
alcapi t
al
i
nv estedforhaul agei sevenhi gher(roadmai ntenancegr aders,watertrucks,
dozers,etc.)andi ssaidt obeupt o60% ofal lmi ningcapi talexpenditure
(Capex).Thesef iguresv aryslightl
yf rom mi net omi neandcommodi tyt o
commodi ty,butonet hi
ngi scl ear
:transpor ti s a maj or cost factor i n
mining,andev eryef forthast obet akent oopt imisehaul age,especiall
yi n
moder n mining oper ati
onswher emi llionsoft onnesofdi f
ferentmaterials
hav etobemov edi nsev eraldir
ecti
onsusi ngmanymet hods.Table1showsa
textbookexampl eoft ypicalsurfacemi ningcosts.
ost
 CAPEX $ Opexsur
face
Dri
ll
ing/
Blast
ing 1,3 10,8% mine
Loading 3,6 30,0% 6%
Auxi
li
ary
Haulage 7,1 59,2
Sum 12,
0 100, Capi
talc
33%
OPEX $/t
on Loadi
ng/
Haul
age
Capitalcost 0,
6 33,3 44%
Dri
ll
ing/blast
ing 0,
3 16,7 Dr
il
li
ng/
blast
in
g 17%
Loading/Haulage 0,
8 44,4
Auxil
iary 0,
1 5,
6
Mini
ngcost s 1,
8 100,

1
Tabl
e1.
1988costest
imat
ionofa4,
5Mt
pasur
facemi
ne.Capi
tal
cost@10%di
scount
(
SMEMi
ningEngi
neer
ingHandbook)

Whyistr
anspor
tat
ionthatexpensiv
e,andi
sther
eawaytodecreasehaul
age
cost
s?Toanswert
his,
itisnecessaryt
ogobackt
obasi
cphy
sics.

E=mgh=1000kg*9,
8m/
s²*1m =9,
8kJ=2,
72Wh.

Itisnotpossi bl
et o usel essener gyt oli
ftsomet hingupont hispl anet .
Conv er
tedintomoneyandassumi ngt hatonekWhofel ectricalener gycost s
about0,07US$, thi
smeansl i
fti
ngonet onnecost sami ni
mum of0, 02$- cents
permet re,assumi ngthatanyot herlossesar eni l–whi cht heyar enot .To
mov ethismassbyconv eyorr equi
resknowl edgeofawhol ehostofdat a
(i
ncludi
ng,butnotl imitedt o,speed,bel ttype,l ength,gr adient
,i dlerand
pull
eyconf igurat
ions,mat eri
albul kdensi ty,et c.
),butatt heendoft heday
theonlyex t
rawei ghti
thast oli
ftispar t
soft hebel titsel
f.Compar ed t ot his,
minimum oper at
ingcost sofl ift
ing bya di eselengi nedr ivenmi ni ngtruck
(wit
hi t
sownempt yweightmass)ataf uelpriceof1, 1US$/ l
itr
ewi llbemor e
thandoublet hatofaconv eyor.

Ther
isi
ngoper
ati
ngcost
sanddecl
i
ningcommodi
typr
icesatmostpr
oper
ti
es
hav
efor
cedt
hemt
olookatv
ari
ousal
ter
nat
ivest
ocutcost
stost
ay
compet
it
ive.Haul
agecost
shav
ebeenanar
eat
hathav
eri
sensi
gni
fi
cant
lywi
th
t
hei
ncr
easeofdi
esel
pri
ces.Oneal
ter
nat
ivet
oreducehaul
agecost
sist
o
shor
tent
het
ruckhaul
dist
ancebybr
ingi
ngt
het
ruckdumppoi
nti
ntot
hepi
t.
Usi
ngani
n-pi
tmov
abl
ecr
usherorcr
usher
s,andconv
eyi
ngt
heor
eand/
or
wast
eoutoft
hepi
tcanr
educet
hehaul
cost
s.

Thepot
ent
ial
eff
ect
sofi
nst
all
i
ngi
n-pi
tcr
ushi
ngandconv
eyorhaul
ageonopen
pi
toper
ati
onsandonmi
nepl
anni
ngr
equi
rement
scanbesi
gni
fi
cant
.Thi
s
ar
ti
clewi
l
ldi
scusst
heef
fect
sonpi
tgeomet
ry,
oper
ati
ngst
ri
prat
io,
andmi
ne
accessr
equi
rement
swhenmov
abl
ecr
usher
sandconv
eyor
sar
ebr
oughti
nto
t
hepi
t.Mostoft
heexampl
esandex
per
iencesar
edr
awnf
rom l
argebase
met
al
pi
ts.Theconcept
sdi
scussedher
eal
soappl
ytocoal
,pr
eci
ousmet
als,
and
i
ndust
ri
almi
ner
als.Det
ail
sofmechani
cal
inst
all
ati
onsi
ncl
udi
ngbel
twi
dths,
t
ensi
ons,
andcr
ushersi
zeswi
l
lnotbedi
scussedbecauset
hatequi
pment
wi
l
lvar
ywi
thpr
oduct
ionr
equi
rement
sandmanyt
echni
cal
paper
shav
e
r
ecent
lydi
scussedmechani
cal
inst
all
ati
ons.

Gener
alt
hought
sregar
dingt
hemet
hodofev
aluat
ionofpot
ent
ial
in-
pit
cr
ushi
ngandconv
eyi
ngi
nst
all
ati
onswi
l
lal
sobeof
fer
ed.Asagener
alr
ule,
it
shoul
dber
emember
edt
hatconv
eyori
nst
all
ati
onswor
kespeci
all
ywel
lwhen
l
argev
olumesofmat
eri
alhav
etobemov
edf
rom onesi
ngl
esour
cet
oasi
ngl
e
dest
inat
ion,
par
ti
cul
arl
ywhent
hedest
inat
ioni
squi
teabi
thi
ghert
hant
he
sour
ce.Cont
inual
l
ymov
ingormul
ti
plesour
cescoupl
edwi
thcont
inual
l
y
mov
ingormul
ti
pledest
inat
ionsar
enotnecessar
il
ythemostnat
ural
oropt
imal
si
tuat
ionf
orconv
eyorhaul
age.

Thef
lowofmat
eri
alut
il
iz
ingani
n-pi
tmov
abl
ecr
usherandconv
eyorsy
stem
st
art
swi
tht
het
ruckedmat
eri
albei
ngdumpedi
ntot
hef
eederpocket
.The
mat
eri
ali
scr
ushedandf
edont
ohor
izont
alt
ransf
erbel
tsi
nthepi
tordi
rect
ly
ont
oamaj
orupsl
opebel
ttaki
ngt
hemat
eri
aloutoft
hepi
t.Ther
emaybe
mor
ethanoneofei
therbel
tty
pewi
tht
ransf
ersateachbel
tjunct
ion
dependi
ngont
hepi
tgeomet
ryanddept
h.Oncet
hemat
eri
alex
itst
hepi
t,i
t
mustbeconv
eyedt
othepl
antf
aci
l
iti
esordumps.Fi
gur
e1showsasi
mpl
i
fied
mov
abl
ecr
usherandconv
eyorsy
stemi
npl
anv
iew.

Cr
usherandConv
eyorGeomet
ri
csandSpeci
fi
cat
ions

Thef
ir
stst
epwhenev
aluat
ingt
hepot
ent
ial
inst
all
ati
onofmov
abl
econv
eyor
s
andcr
usher
sist
oest
abl
i
sht
hegeomet
ri
crequi
rement
soft
hei
nst
all
ati
on
bei
ngconsi
der
ed.Si
mpl
easi
tsounds,
est
abl
i
shi
nghowbi
g,howl
ong,
how
hi
gh,
andhowwi
de,
wil
ltakeatl
eastahal
fadayt
owor
koutwi
thamat
eri
als
handl
i
ngengi
neer
,pr
ovi
dinghehasbeenbr
ief
edont
heant
ici
pat
edhour
ly
t
onnager
ateandexpect
edbel
tpr
ofi
l
es.Themi
nepl
annerwi
thl
i
ttl
e
backgr
oundi
nconv
eyor
swi
l
lbesur
pri
sedj
usthowmuchr
oomt
hecr
usher
s,
conv
eyor
sand
t
ransf
ersoccupy
.Accesst
othebel
tsandt
ransf
ersmustbeassur
edf
or
mai
ntenanceaswel
lasf
orr
emov
aloft
hedr
ivest
ati
onswhent
hesy
stemi
s
mov
ed.Of
tenaser
iesofl
owt
ensi
onbel
tswi
l
lbeusedwi
thmi
nimal
li
ftt
o
del
i
vermat
eri
alf
rom t
hei
n-pi
tcr
usher
stohi
ght
ensi
on-
slopebel
tsf
ort
hel
i
ft
outoft
hepi
t.Thel
i
mit
ati
onsofbot
hty
pesofi
nst
all
ati
onsmustbewel
l
under
stood.

Mov
abl
ecr
usher
sandf
eederi
nst
all
ati
onsar
eof
fer
edbyawi
der
ange
ofmanuf
act
urer
sandengi
neer
inghouses.Eachhast
hei
rst
rengt
hs
andweaknessesf
rom amat
eri
alshandl
i
ngst
andpoi
nt.Themi
ne
pl
anni
ngengi
neermustunder
standt
hegeomet
ryoft
hesy
stemand
consi
dert
hef
lexi
bil
i
tyoft
hei
nst
all
ati
onsf
ormodi
fi
cat
ion.Some
i
nst
all
ati
onsr
equi
ret
hatt
hef
eederbepl
acedwi
thi
nthebenchabov
e
t
hecr
usher
;thecr
usherpr
oducti
sdel
i
ver
edt
otheconv
eyoronebench
bel
owt
hedumpi
ngel
evat
ion.Ot
hercr
usher
-f
eedersy
stemsar
e
f
lexi
blei
nthef
eedi
nggeomet
rysucht
hatt
hedumpi
ngel
evat
ionand
t
heconv
eyorel
evat
ioncanbet
hesame,
orsepar
atedbyabench.I
n
ei
thersy
stem,
iti
scr
it
ical
toknowt
her
angeofhor
izont
alangl
est
hat
t
hef
eedercandel
i
vert
othecr
usherandt
her
angeofangl
est
hatt
he
conv
eyorcanr
ecei
vemat
eri
alf
rom t
hecr
usher
.Rot
ati
onsassmal
las
10t
o30degr
eescanof
tengr
eat
lysi
mpl
i
fyi
nst
all
ati
ongeomet
ri
esand
t
hemat
eri
almov
ementr
equi
redf
ori
nst
all
ati
on.Thet
ruck
maneuv
eri
ngar
eaatt
hedumppocketwi
l
ldependont
hedumpi
ng
geomet
ryoft
hespeci
fi
cfeeder
,thet
rucksi
ze,
andmanuf
act
urer
.For
haul
trucksupt
o170t
onsanar
ea200f
tby200f
tmustgener
all
ybe
mai
ntai
nedf
ort
urn,
spot
,anddump.

Onef
inal
item shoul
dbeset
tl
edwi
tht
hemat
eri
alshandl
i
ngspeci
ali
stbef
ore
st
art
ingpl
anni
ng.Theoper
ati
ngschedul
eofcr
usher
sandbel
tsandt
hepeak
orsur
gecapaci
tyv
ersusav
eragecapaci
tywi
l
lbeofnecessi
tyt
ohi
m when
det
ail
i
ngt
hesy
stem.Mat
eri
alshandl
i
ngequi
pmentbynat
urear
emost
ef
fi
cientwi
thaconst
antmat
eri
almov
ementr
ate,
consequent
ly,
desi
gn
speci
fi
cat
ionsar
egener
all
ygi
veni
ntons/
hour
.Mi
ningequi
pmentcapaci
tyi
s
gener
all
ydi
scussedi
ntons/
dayort
ons/
shi
ft
.Forex
ampl
e,subst
ant
ial
v
ari
ati
onsi
nshov
elt
onnagemayoccuronanhour
lybasi
s,y
ett
heendofshi
ft
av
eragecanbev
eryconsi
stentf
rom shi
ftt
oshi
ft
.Thesef
luct
uat
ionsdo
occurwi
thami
l
lsi
tecr
usher
,howev
er,
ther
eisgener
all
yacour
seor
e
st
ockpi
l
eimmedi
atel
ydownst
reamt
osmoot
hfl
uct
uat
ionsi
ncr
usherout
put
.
Theshor
texi
tbel
tfr
om aper
manentcr
ushercanbeov
erdesi
gnedt
ohandl
e
t
hesur
gesf
rom t
hecr
usherwi
thoutmuchaddi
ti
onal
capi
tal
expense.
Mov
abl
ein-
pitcr
ushi
ngsy
stemsgener
all
ydel
i
verdi
rect
lyt
oacompl
etebel
t
sy
stemandsur
gesi
ncr
usherf
eedar
etr
ansf
err
eddi
rect
lyassur
gesi
nthe
ent
ir
econv
eyorsy
stem.At
radeof
fofdesi
gncapaci
tyi
ntheconv
eyorsy
stem
mustbewor
kedoutbet
weent
hemi
nerandt
hemat
eri
alshandl
i
ngengi
neer
.
Asast
art
er,
themi
ningengi
neershoul
dest
imat
ehowmanypi
ecesofl
oadi
ng
equi
pmentwi
l
ldel
i
vert
oagi
vencr
usherf
oll
owedbyacal
cul
ati
onof
maxi
mumhour
lypr
oduct
ionasi
ftheshov
elsar
etr
uckcov
ered.I
tmaynotbe
costef
fect
ivet
obui
l
dtheconv
eyorsy
stemt
ohandl
etheext
remepeak,
but
knowi
ngt
hef
luct
uat
ionsi
nmi
net
hroughputwi
l
lhel
pinset
ti
ngt
her
equi
red
oper
ati
ngr
angeoft
hemat
eri
alshandl
i
ngsy
stem.

TYPESOFI
PCC:

IPCCi ncludesl oadi ng,cr

ushing,convey i
nganddumpi ng.Loadingoft heI PCC
i
nstall
at i
on i s done by conv enti
onalshov els/excavators or by t rucks.
Crushing i n mostcases onl yhas t he purpose ofr educing t he feed to
convey ablesi ze,whi chmeansamaxi mum par ti
cl
esi zesmal lert han20% of
thebel twi dth andamaxi mum of350mm- sizedgr ai
nsduet othehi gh
i
mpactener gyofbi ggerparti
clesandt hei nterl
ockingofl ar
gerpar t
iclesat
convey ort ransf erpoi nts,leading to potentiall
y massi ve bl ockages and
associateddownt imei fl
argerthan350mm.Att heendoft heIPCCsy stem,a
spreaderdi stributest hemi nedmat er
ialtoadumpi ngsiteori tisdi r
ectlyfed
ontoast ockpi le.
Whendesi gninganI PCCsystem, oneoft heimpor t
antchoi cesliesi nselecti
ng
thefrontendoft heI PCCinstal
lati
on.Thr eeprimar ytypesofI PCCshoul dbe
l
ookedather e:

1.
Fix
edcr
usherwi
thi
ntheI
PCCsy
stem
2.Semi-
mobi
leorsemi-f
ixedcrusherwi
thi
ntheI
PCCsy
stem
3.Ful
l
ymobil
ecrusherwit
hintheIPCCsystem

Thecr ushi
ngst ati
onofaf i
xedI PCC sy stem i susual l
ysi tuat edatt hepi t
ri
m,al ocationnotaf fectedbymi ni
ng,orout si
det heper i
met erbutf airl
ycl ose
tothepi t
.Thi si sv ery differentt o hav ing a f i
x ed ore cr usher ,whi ch
acceptsr un-of-minemat eri
alatt hefrontendoft hepr ocessi ngpl ant.Itis
usuall
ydesi gnedt olastal i
fet i
mei naf ixedl ocati
onandi snev erbemov edt o
anothersite.Theov er l
andconv eyorlinewhi cht ransportscr ushedmat erial
fr
om af i
xed cr ushingst ationi saf i
x ed inst al
l
ationaswel l
.Bet weent he
crusherandt heov erlandconv eyorisaf av ourablepl acetoinst allashor tbel t
conveyor–cal l
edasacr i
fi
cialconv eyor–i nor dert opr ot
ectt hel ongov erl
and
conveyorf rom damagecaused bymet alpi ecest hatpassed t hrough t he
crushi
ngst ation.Mini ngtrucksusual l
yf eedt hecr usher.Figure1showsan
exampleofaf ixedcrushingst ation.
 Fi
gur
e1.Fi
xedcr
ushi
ngst
ati
on

Thei deaofsemi -mobi l

eI PCCsy stemsi stosituatet heprimarycr usheri nthe
pi
tas cl ose as possi blet ot he mi ning face.Thi s enables t he mi ning
operat orist or educet henumberoft r
uckst oami nimum,whi l
er et aini
ngt he
5
fl
eet’
s hi gh flexibil
it
yl evel.Behi nd t hi
sl i
es t he pr i
nciple of r educing
tr
anspor t
edwei ght.At ruckcar ri
esmor ethan35%ofi t
sownwei ght .Thisis
al
readyadi sadv antageonaf latplanebuti tbecomesacost lypr obl em when
tr
anspor t
ingupar amp.Wi thsemi -mobilestati
ons,t hiscan,t oal ar geex tent
,
beav oidedasl ongast hereisasui tablelocationi nthemi net opl acet he
crushingst ati
onf oratl eastsev eralmont hs,preferablylonger ,toaboutone
to thr ee y ears.Af tert hi
s per i
od t he entire st ati
on can be mov ed to
anotherl ocation.Thi sonl ytakesaf ew day susingacr awl er
,becauseoft he
modul arconst ructi
onandt hef actt hatusuallynoconcr etef oundat i
onsor
othersophi sti
cat edciv i
lconstructi
onwor ksareneeded6, 7
.

Ast hecr usherwoul dt henbesi tuatedi nthepi t

,conv eyingst rategi
eshav et o
bedev eloped t ot r
anspor tcr ushed mat eri
aloutoft he pi t.Semi -mobi l
e
crushingst ati
onscanbeequi ppedwi thv ar
iouscr ushers.Pr edomi nantl
y ,roll
er
crusher sandgy ratorycr usher sar eused.Jawori mpactcr usher smayal sobe
usedi nsmal l
ercapaci t
y( <1000t /
h)cr ushing-plants.Cur rently,themax imum
capacityofal lcrushingpl antsisdet ermi nedbyt hef eedr ate.Thel argest
primarycr ushers ar e desi gned fort hroughput s ex ceedi ng 10 000 met ri
c
tonnesperhour .Thest ation’shoppercanbef edbyt rucksf rom upt ot hree
sidessi mul taneously.Howev er,thebot tl
enecki sthephy sicaldumpi ngt i
meof
thet r
ucksaccor dingtot raf f
icflow rulesperanygi v
enhourandi spr esent l
y
l
imi t
edt oamax imum t hroughputof10000t /h.Ont heot herhand, iti
seasi l
y
possiblet ouseoneconv eyorl i
net ohandl etheout putofmor et hant wosemi -
mobi l
e cr ushing-stati
ons at once.Fi gure 2 shows t wo of f our semi -
mobi l
ewast ecrushingst ationsatal ignit
emi newhichpr ocess5500t /
heach.
 Fi
gur
e2.Semi
-mobi
l
ecrushersfeedi
ngoneov
erl
and
conveyor

Fullymobi leIPCC- systemsconsi stofacr awler-mount edcr ushi ngst ation,

usual l
yfedbyashov el
.Thesest ationscanbeequi ppedwi thar ollercrusher
oraj aw cr usher.Theuseofgy rat or
swasnotpossi bleunt i
lr ecent l
y,since
thehi ghhor i
zontalforcesneededt obeaddr essed.Thecr usherf ol l
owst he
shov elast hef aceadv ancesandt hereforeamov ableconv ey orsegment
connect i
ng t oat rack-shift
abl e bench conv eyor is needed. I n many
applicati
onsamov able,sel f
-l
ev ell
ingconv eyi
ngbr idgeisadv antageousasi t
i
sl ighterinwei ghtandt rackedateachend,gi v i
nggr eaterf l
exibilit
yt hana
beltwagon.A f ully mobi l
e sy st em compl etely eli
mi nates t he need f or
mi ning tr
ucks and t heref or
e has a much gr eaterpot ent i
alt ol owert he
oper at
ionalcost sov ert heot hert wot ypesofI PCC sy stems.Thekeyt o
successi nIPCCi sf oll
owi ngt hemi nepl an,andaccept i
ngt hatI PCCi snotas
fl
exibleast r
ucking,butt hatoper ationalcost scouldbehal ved.Thebot t
leneck
off ull
ymobi l
est ationsi st heshov el’
sper formance.Her et hemaxi mum
capaci t
yint henearf uturewi l
lbeanel ectri
cr ope shov elwi th a maxi mum
bucketv olumeof70, 3 m³and 120 tof
pay oad8.Thi
l sshov eli sexpect ed t or eali
seal ong-term av er agel oading
per f
ormance
ofabout9 000
t/h.

Full
ymobi l
e systems can be used i n di
fferentway s whi ch havet o be
deter mi nedi nadv ancebyt hemi ni
ngpl an.Whenusi ngaconv ey
ingbridge
toget herwi thaf ul
lymobi l
est at
ion,upt ot hreebenchescanbemi nedout
befor et he bench conv eyorhas t o be mov ed.Thi s abil
ity substanti
all
y
i
ncr eases ef f
ectiv
e oper at i
onalhour s ofuse si nce the bench conv eyor
requiresl esstrackshi ft
ing.Al lprimaryequipmentusedi naf ull
ymobi l
eIPCC
oper ationi selectri
callydr i
v en(crushers,convey or
sanddi schargingdevices),
thusr educi ngCO2 pr oduct ionandi ncreasi
ngt hepoweref f
iciency.Fi
gure3
showsaf ull
ymobi l
est ationequi ppedwi thar ollcrusherpr ocessingontoa
beltbr idget hatislinkedt oat r
ack-shif
tablebenchconv eyor.
 Fi
gur
e3.PF300f
ull
ymobi
lecrushingsy
stem consi
sti
ngofaloadi
ngshov
el,
the
mobil
ecr
usher
,abel
tbridgeandatrack-
shi
ftabl
ebenchconv
eyor

CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS I
N CONVEYI
NG – DI
RECT
GEARLESSDRI
VES

Int he past,high torquesatr elativel

yl ow speed forced mi ning systems
supplierstousegearbox est odr iveconv eyors.Gearlessdr iv
esar eanew
alt
ernat i
veandanat t
racti
ve sol ution for conv eyor
s wi th higher power
requirements.Due t oi ts“simpl e”construct
ion,agear lessdrivesy st
em has
veryhi ghavail
abil
i
ty ,robustness,r educedoper ati
ngandmai ntenancecosts
andr educednoise,whi l
ststi
llofferi
ngt hebenefitsofav ariabl
espeeddr iv
e.

Dir
ectgearlessdrivesconsi stofasl ow runni
ngsy nchronouselectr
icmot or
coupl
edont othedriveshaf toft heconv ey
orpull
ey,amechani calsafetybrake
and af r
equencyconv er
ter.Hencet here areno transmissi
on ratios,gear
beari
ngs,fl
uidcouplingsandot hermechani calpartsthatcanwearout .In
case ofdownwar dsconv ey i
ng,t heuseofdi r
ectdr ivetechnologyeasi ly
enabl
esoper at
orstor egenerateandpr ovi
deelectr
icalenergytothelocalgrid,
contr
ibut
ingtoev enl oweroper ationalcosts.Fi
gure7showst hepr i
ncipl
eof
dir
ectgearl
essdrivet echnology.
 Fi
gur
e7.Pr
inci
pleofdir
ectgear
lessdr
ive
technol
ogy
(
Cour
tesy
:ABB)

Curr
entlyther
ei sonlyonelar
gegearl
essdr i
veinthef
iel
dthathasbeen
operat
ingforlongerthanoneyear
.Thi
sisaconv ey
ordr
iveattheProsper
-
Hanielcoalmi neinGermanywhichwasi nstal
l
edin1985.Sever
almor e
proj
ectsarehowev er
,soontobecompl
eted.

Gearr educer st hathav et raditi

onal l
ybeenusedt odr iveconv eyorsar e
reachingt heirphy sicall i
mi tsfordemandi ngappl i
cations,suchasst eep
angleorhi ghcapaci tyinst all
ati
ons. At pr esent, a moder n conv ey or
system wi that ot aldr ive powerdemandof15000kW ormor ewoul d
requireov ersixtradi t
ionalgearr educerdr i
ves,eachequi ppedwi th>2000
kW mot ors.Thet raditionalgearr educersolut i
onhast hedi sadvantageof
reducedov eral
lavailabili
tyassoci at edwiththel ar
genumberofmechani cal
component s( bearingsf oreach oft hegearbox es),which resultina
smal l
erMean- Ti
me- Bet ween- Fail
ur es(MTBF) .Fur t
hermor e,gearl
essdr ives
reducemai ntenancecost sandr educeef f
iciencyl ossescausedbygear
boxes,maki ngthem
i
ntrinsical
ly mor er eliable10.The act uall i
mi tof gear l
ess dr i
ves ar e
definedbyt he
beltscur r
ent l
ybeingf abricatedatami ni
mum br eakingst r
ength( i
.e.
ST10000) .

The t urnoverpointf ort he economi cal

lyreasonablei mplement ati
on of
gearlessdr i
vesissaidt o beatabout3 000 kW.Mi ni
ng compani esar e
str
ivi
ngt oreduceenergyconsumpt ion,CO2 emissionsandi ncreasesy stem
rel
iabili
ty.Gear
lessdrivesmeett heser equi
rementsbysi gni
ficantl
yr educing
thenumberofmechani cal component s,suchasgears,beari
ngsandcoupl i
ngs.
Theenv i
ronmentalf
ootpr i
ntofagear lessdr i
veinstal
lat
ion i
sappr ox i
mately
onet hi
rdofaconv entionalgearedsy stem.
Twomainsour
cesofl
ossesi
nhaul
agecanbei
dent
if
ied:Her
etheyar
ecal
l
ed“
tar
e”
and“
drag”
.

Tarei st headdi ti
onalwei ghtoft heequipment /
machi neryrequi redtomov et he
metrict onnev erti
call
ybyonemet re.Dragi stheaddi
tionalforcet hatactsagainst
thi
st ransportati
on like f ricti
on,i ner
tia and counter-i
nduction.I n addit
ion,a
combust i
onengi necanonl yt r
ansfer<50%oft hechemicalpot ent i
alenergystoredin
fuelintomechani calener gy,wi t
hmi ni
ngtrucksaccount i
ngf oronl yanest i
mated
25–35%4.I nthecaseoft rucks,thissmal lamountofconv ertedener gyt henhas
to
bearf urtherdriv
et rai
nl ossesbef oremov i
ngtheactualt yr
ewhi cht henencounters
theroadsur f
acedr agitemsabov e.

Thet askinengineer
ingistofi
ndawayoft ranspor
tati
onasclosetothephysi
csli
mit
shownabov easpossi bl
e.Reducingtar
ecanbedonei ntwoway s.Oneist of
ind
str
uct ur
esormat er
ial
st hatarev er
ylight,theotherpossibi
l
ityisto ut
il
isethe
tr
anspor tvesselmoreeff
ici
ent
ly.
System Component s

All
crushi
ngandconvey
ingsy
stemsarecomposedofdi scr
etecomponentsconnect
edi
nseries.
Manyofthesecomponent
scomefrom bucket
wheelexcavatorsy
stemsusedinbrowncoal
mi ni
ngi
n
thr
oughoutt
heworl
d.Thekeysyst
em componentsare:

Crusher–Cr ushersmaybef ixed,semi-

mobileorful
lymobil
e.Fixedcrusherinstal
lat
ions
havelit
tl
eappl i
cati
onwithi
nthepi tsi
ncetheycannotfol
lowthemi ni
ngface.Semi -mobil
e
crushersareloadedbytrucksandgener al
l
yrequireadumppockett obedev eloped.
Relocati
onisgener al
l
yinsectionsusingacrawlertr
anspor
ter.Tomi ni
miset hecostof
earthworksconstruct
ionandmaxi mise
 pr
oducti
veti
me,thei nt
erv
albetweenrel
ocati
onsshouldbeasl ar
geaspossibl
e.Mobile
cr
usher
saregeneral
lymountedoncrawl
ersandcanrel
ocat
erapi
dlyenought
obefeddi
rect
ly
bythel
oadi
ngunit
,ther
ebynegat
ingt
heneedfortr
ucks.

Mobi l
ecr usherswer eorigi
nallydevelopedforquarri
es,wher etheproductrequi r
edcr ushing.
Throughput sweregener al
lyl
owert han1,000t phandthecr ushersemploy edwer ehammer ,
i
mpact , oroccasionallydoubler ol
l
s.Thepr opulsi
onmechani smswer erubbert yres,crawler
s,
orhydraul icwalkingfeetforlargercr
ushers.Forlargercrusher si
nharderr ock,gy r
atoryorjaw
crusherswer erequir
ed.Hi ghcapacitymobi l
ecrushers(upt o12,000tph)ar enowpossi bledue
tothedev elopmentofhi ghcapacitysizer
s,doublerol
lcrusher sandhybridcr ushers(Tutton
andSt reck, 2009).Thesehav elowervibr
ati
onandar eamenabl etouseinamobi lecrusher
mount edoncr awlers.

BeltwagonsandBr i
dgeConv ey
ors–Theseareusedtoprovi
deaflexi
bleconnecti
onbetween
thecrusherandthemov eabl
ecomponentsoft
heconveyorsyst
em.Theycanal lowagr eat
er
blockwidth,i
ncr
easedseparati
onbet
weenblast
ingandtheconvey
orline,
andadditional
benchesextract
edfrom theonemoveabl
econveyorl
ocati
on.

Thesecomei nv aryi
ngdesi gnsdependingont heappl icati
on.Belt
wagonsmaybedual orsi
nglebelt
,
l
uffabl eandsl ewablef ormaximumf l
exibi
l
ityinnegot i
at i
ngbenchchanges.Longerboom lengthsare
requiredforgr eaterelevat
ionchanges.Fi xedsinglebel tbelt
wagonsarel
essflexi
bleandallowan
i
ncr easedbl ockwi dth.Conv ey
orbridgesarelessmobi lethanbel
twagons,havi
ngtwoset sofcrawl
ers.
Theydo, howev er,comeatasi gni
fi
cantcostr educti
onFi gure3–Var i
ati
onsinBeltwagon/Conv eyor
BridgeWei ghtwi t
hBoom Lengt handCapaci ty.Abr idgeconv ey
orabletonegoti
ateagivenbench
heightcanbeaquar t
erthecostofanequi v al
entbeltwagon.

Rel
ocatableConv eyor
s–Rel ocatableconveyorsar
elessfl
ex i
bleandlesscostlyt
hanbridge
conveyor s.Theymaybecr awler,r
ubbertyr
eorskidmount ed,withanumberofunitsbeing
requir
edi nser i
estonegoti
atethedi st
ancefrom t
hebeltwagont othemainconveyor.
Relocationandsy stem del
ays,duet othenumberofconv eyort
ransfer
s,areakeydrawbackt o
thi
sequi pment( TuttonandSt r
eck,2009).Piggybackconveyorsaremor ecommoni nsmaller
capacitysy st
ems.

Shift
ableConveyors–Convey orsegmentsmountedonsl eepersconnect
edbyr ai
lcanbe
readi
lyshif
tedusingbul
l
dozerswi that
rackshi
ft
inghead.Thedr i
veheadismostcommonl y
mount edonpontoonsandrelocatedwit
htheassistanceofat r
ansport
er.Shi
ftabl
e
conveyorsareusedforl
ong,strai
ghtdi
gordumpf aces,r
elocat
edatregulari
nterv
als.

HopperCarandCableReeler–Isnecessaryi
nafull
ymobilecrushi
ngsyst
emtoal
lowf eedt
o
beplacedontheshif
tabl
econveyoratanypoi
ntal
ongitsl
ength.Thisuni
tcommonlycomes
wit
hacablereelcartohandl
epowercableandothersy
stems.

Over
landConveyor–Signi
fi
cantadvanceshavebeenmadei nover
landconveyordesi
gnint
he
ar
easofoptimi
sati
on,
implementati
onofcurvedconvey
ors,noi
sereduct
ionanddustreduct
ion.
Conveyor
srepr
esentt
heheartofthesystemandgivemajorimprovementsovertr
uck
 t
ranspor
tat
ionnecessar
yfort
hef
utur
eofdeepopencutmi
ningi
ntheHunt
er.

Tri
pper–At r
ipperi
snecessarytor
emovetheover
bur
denatanypoi
ntfrom ashif
tabledump
convey
or.Itmayber ai
lorcrawl
ermountedandcani
ncor
porat
eadischargeconveyortoal
l
ow
moreflex
ibi
l
ityfort
hespreader
.Thetr
ippercanal
soi
ncor
porat
eabelttake-
upanddump
convey
ordri
ve.

Spreader–Spreaderscomei nawidevari
etyofdesignsdependingonthenatur
eoftheoverburden
handled,
geot
echnicalrequi
rement
s,thr
oughputrateandthedesi r
edblockwi
dthbetweenmov es.
Fi
gure4–Var i
ationsinSpreaderWeightwithDischargeBoom LengthandCapacit
ygivesan
i
ndicati
onoft
hev ari
ati
onofspreaderweightswithboom lengt
h,capacit
yanddesi
gn.

Mai ntenanceRequirements
Plant smustbedesi gnedforeaseofaccessandmaintai
nabil
i
tyi
ftheyaret
omeetthei
rproduct
ion
goals.Keepingmai ntenancerequir
ementstoami ni
mum helpsachievehi
gherov
eral
l
oper ati
ngavai
labil
it
y.
Scheduled preventi
ve mai nt
enance at cr
ushi
ng plantsinvol
ves a number of
el
ement s,
incl
uding:

• Crusherwearpart
s • Screendecks
• Feederwearparts • Conv eyorskir
tingandadjustment
• Oilandlubr
icat
ion • Conveyorbeltrepai
r
• Visuali
nspecti
ons • Elect
ricalandinstr
umentationadj
ust
ment
s.

Prov i
sionsmustbemadef oroverheadcr anest oremov eandr eplacecr usherwear
parts.Suppor t
smustbepr ovidedforgy r
atoryandconv ey ormai nshaf tsandl aydown
spacef ort heconecr usherbowl sisessent ial
.Someoper atorscarryacompl etespar e
screenandchangeoutf ormaj orscreenmai ntenance.Tr oll
ey s,j
ibcranesandpul lpoints
shouldbedesi gnedt of acili
tateequi pmentmai ntenance.Oi landl ubr i
cat i
onsy stems
shouldbecent ralizedanddesi gnedforeasyaut omat icchanges,wi thpr ovisionsf orwel l-
ventil
atedcent ralizedlubr icati
onr oomswher epossi bl
e.( e.g., al
ineoff ineconecr ushers
shouldhav eacent r
aloi lrecei v
ingar ea,wi t
hpi pingt o andf rom eachcr usherl ube
packagef orquickandeasyoi lchanges. )
Conv eyorheadchut esshoul dbedesi gnedf oreasyaccess( notj ustt hroughan
i
nspect iondoor ,butt hroughamandoori nt hechut e).Conv eyorbel tchangear eas
shouldbepr ovided.Mai ntenance per sonnel shoul d hav e easy v isual and r apid
accesst o screendecksf orpanel repl acement .
Designer sshoul dwor kwitht hescr eenmanuf acturerst oensur et hatcov erspr ov i
de
good access f or wor king on scr eens.Scr eeni ng faci l
ities mustmeetr i
gid dust
emissionr equir
ement s,butmanyof f
-the-shelfscr eendustcov ershav enotkeptpace
witht heser equi rement s.I tmaybenecessar yt ocust om- designcov erst hatmi nimize
emissionsandpr ovideeasyaccesst ot hescr een.
Climat ic
Condi t
ions
Bui ldingf orcol d-
weatheroper at i
onsi sverychal lenging,asi sdesi gningapl antina
deser t
environment .Thisispar ti
cularlyt r
uewheny ear-roundoper ati
oni sr equired.Seasonal
variations can change or e moi stur
e cont ent, so t he cr ushing pl ant must be
adapt abl et o changes int hemat eri
alfl
ow char acter i
stics.Hi ghermoi sturer equi
res
great erangl esofwi t
hdrawal,andst one-boxesmustbedesi gnedt oav oidpl ugging.The
crushi ngpl antequipmenti tselfmustbeadj ustablet ocl i
mat icchanges;f orex ample,
screendecksmustbedesi gnedt omai nt
ainpr oduct i
on,possi blybyusi ngwi remesh
duringt hewetseasonandpl asticdur i
ngthedr y.( Varyscr eendeckt y
pesdependent
on seasonsand mat eri
alchar acteri
sti
csto achi evemax imum passi ngt hr oughdeck
openi ngs.
Cl i
mat eal sodi
ctatesthet ypeofpl antenclosuresr equi r
edasshowni nFigur es1and
2.Manycr usher sinmi l
derweat hercli
matesordeser tar easar einstalledwi t
hanopen
faceandhav enoenclosuresatal l.

Fi
gure 1 Teck Comi
nco,Red Dog Oper
ati
ons,
Al
aska

Fi
gur
e2 TeckComi
nco,Red Dog Oper
ati
ons,Al
aska-42”x65”
gy
rat
ory
 PROCESSDESI
GNCRI
TERI
A

Desi
gnCri
ter
iaI
nfor
mat i
on
Typi
cal
l
y,t
heinf
ormati
onrequi
redt
odev
elopcr
usherpr
ocessdesi
gncr
it
eri
aincl
udes:

• Geogr aphi cdata • Cl i

maticdata
• Ci vildesigncr i
ter
ia
• St ructuraldesigncrit
eri
a
• Pr
ocessdesigndat a(processdescript
ion,or
echar acter
isti
cs)
• Mechani caldesi
gncr i
ter
ia • El ect
rical
/i
nst
rument
ati
ondesi
gn
cri
ter
ia.

Flowsheet
Somesampl eflowsheetsareprov
idedinFigur
es3,4,and5showi
ngcrusherci
rcui
ts.Fi
gur
e6
showsat y
pical
threestagecl
osedcrushi
ngcir
cui
twi
thit
sanci
l
lar
yequi
pment.

PRI
MARY
CRUSHER

COARSEORE
STOCKPI
LE

DOUBLEDECKSCREEN
CLOSEDCI
RCUI
T

SECONDARY
CONECRUSHER

OPENCI
RCUI
T

PRODUCT

Fi
gur
e3Twost
ageopen/
closedci
rcui
t

PRI
MARY
CRUSHER

COARSEORESTOCKPI
LE

3STAGECLOSEDCI
RCUI
T

DOUBLEDECKSCREEN
DOUBLEDECKSCREEN
DOUBLEDECKSCREEN

SECONDARYCONECRUSHER
TERTI
ARYCONECRUSHER
TERTI
ARYCONECRUSHER

OPENCI
RCUI
T
OPENCI
RCUI
T

PRODUCT

Fi
gur
e4Thr
eest
ageopen/
closedci
rcui
t
 PRI
MARY
CRUSHER

COARSEORE
STOCKPI
LE

DOUBLEDECKSCREEN

DOUBLEDECKSCREENS
DOUBLEDECKSCREEN

SECONDARYCONECRUSHER

TERTI
ARYCONECRUSHERS
I
MPACTCRUSHER

PRI
MARY

SECONDARY

TERTI
ARY

QUATERNARY

PRODUCT
OPEN CLOSED

Fi
gure5 Four st
age cr
ushi
ng
ci
rcui
t

EQUI
PMENTSELECTI
ON

CrusherTypes
Thechoiceofcr usherdependsont het y
peandamountofmat er
ialt
obecr ushed.
Gyrator
yandj awcr ushersrepresentt hebulkofpr i
marycr ushersusedatmi ni
ng
operati
onstoday ,alt
houghsome
operati
onsuser ollimpactcr ushers,low-speedr ol
lsizersandf eederbreakers.Cone
crusher
sr emaint hemostpopul arf orfi
necr ushi
ngappl i
cat i
ons,alt
houghsomemi nes
usev er
ti
calimpactcr usher
sf orter
tiaryandquat er
narycrushing.

Maj orEquipment
Themaj orequi
pmentinapr i
marycr
ushi
ngcir
cuitusual
lyi
ncl
udesonl
yacr
usher
,
feederandconv ey
or.Secondaryandter
ti
arycr
ushingcir
cui
tshavet
hesamebasi
c
equipmenti t
ems,along
withscreensandsur gestorage
bins.

Addi
ti
onalandOpt
ional
Equi
pment
Otherequi
pmenti
temsi
ncr
ushi
ngci
rcui
tscan
i
nclude:

• Rockbr eaker • Apronf

eedert ot hepr
imarycrusher
• Ov erheadcrane • Dustcoll
ecti
on/ suppr
essionsystem
• Freightelev
ator • Eccent
ri
ctrol
leyr emovalcart
• Ser vi
ceaircompressor • Man- l
if
televator
• Sumppumps • Aircannons
• Airvacuumcl eanupsystems • Wat erboost erpumps
• Rockgr apple • Servi
cet roll
eys
• Conv eyorbel
tmagnets • Conv ey orgravit
ytake-upserv
icewi
nch
• Conv eyorbel
tmetaldetect
ors • Conv ey orbeltr
ipdetector
• Beltmoni t
ori
ngsystems • Conv eyorbeltweighscales
• Beltfeeders • Vibr
ator yfeeders
• Screwf eeder
s • Lime/ cementsi l
os
• Binvent i
l
ators • Samplingst ati
ons.
Fi
gur
e6Thr
eest
agecr
ushi
ngcl
osedci
rcui
t

FINECRUSHI NG( Secondar y, Terti

aryandQuat ernary)
Fine cr ushi ng ci rcuits can be mor e chal l
enging t o desi gn than pr i
mar y cr usher
i
nst al
lations.Ther e
are mor e equi pmentopt i
ons,and each has di f
ferenti nstall
ati
on and mai ntenance
requirement s.Thepr ocessf l
owsheetdi ctatest heex pectedper f
ormanceoft hei t
emsi n
the flow st r eam.Thedesi gnermustconf iguret he equipmentand st ructur esi ntoa
balanced,economi calpl antdesi gn.Screens,f eeders,st ockpi l
es,bins,conv ey orsand
crushersmustal lbei nterfacedwi ththemosteconomi calsuppor tingst ruct uresand
buildi
ngs.
Anopen- ci rcuitcr usheri seasi ertodesi gnandl ayoutt hanacl osed-circui tdesign,
sincei thasf ewerequi pmenti t
ems and st ructures.Fi gures 13,14,and 15 show
some t ypicalsecondar ycr usheropenci r
cui tlayouts.Fi gure16showssomet ypi
cal
openci rcuitsecondar yandt er
ti
arycrusher s.Pr ovi
sionsshoul dbemadef orpossi ble
futureconv er sionofanopen- cir
cuitpl
anttoacl osed-cir
cuitver si
on.
Cone cr usher sr emai nt he choice for mostsecondar yand t ert
iaryoper ati
ons,
withsomegy radi scandv erti
cal-i
mpactcr usher salsout i
li
zedoncer tainor ety pes.Wat er
-fl
ushconecr usher s
hav ebeeni nt roducedi nsecondar yandt ert
iaryinstall
ation,whi chrequi r
escar ef uldesi gn
oft hewat ersy st emst oandf romt hecrusher .
 Mostopen- circuitsecondar y and t ert
iary crusher sinclude scalping screens t o
remov ef i
nemat erialpr i
ort othesecondar ycr ushers.Closed-ci
rcuitcrushersuset erti
ary
screenst ocontrolt he
fi
nalpr oductsize.( SeeFi gure17and18f ort ypi
calclosedci r
cuitsecondar yandt er
t i
ary
crushers.)
Insomel argerinstal l
ati
ons,thesecondar yandt ert
iarycrushersar elocatedi nonepl ant
areaandt hescr eensi nanot her .(SeeFi gure18f .
)Cr usher
sandscr eensi nthesepl ants
havecommonbi nsf eedingtot hemul t
iplecrusher sorscr eens.Mostpl antsnowhav et he
screenf eedingthef inecr usher
, providi
ngf oreasi eraccesst oservicethescr eens.
Aswi t
hpr imar ycr ushers,f inecr ushersmustmeett hedesi gnpar amet erslisted
abov e.Desi gndet ailst hatarehel pfult of inecr usherpl antlayoutar eal ist
edi nt he
sectionsthatfoll
ow.
Scr
eens

• Screensar ebei ngmanuf acturedwi dersot hefeedmusthav emorehei ghtt o

all
owt hemat erialtospr eadoutacr osst hewi dthofthescr een.
• Thechut efeedi ngt hescr eenshoul dhav eeasyman- accessf orr
eplacementof
li
nersandeasyr emov alofmat er i
albui l
d-up.
• Mostscr een i nst allati
ons shoul d be t otallyenclosed.Scr een manuf acturers
havey ett odev elopacov ert hatallowsf oreaseofmai ntenanceandaccess.
• Adequat epl atfor msshoul dbepr ovidedf oraccessar oundt heent i
rescreen,t o
facil
i
tat erapidinspect i
onandchangi ngofscr eendecks.
• Thedi schar gechut ef rom t hescr eenshoul dsealagai nstt hescreen,andbe
designedasonepi ecef oreaseofr emov al.Whent hechut ei sremoved,t here
shouldbesuf fi
cientopeni ngint hef l
oort oliftoutthecr usherbowl andhead.
• Thedi schargechut eshoul dhav eaf ullman- door.
• Permanentf loodl i
ght ingshoul dbei nstall
edi nsidethechut eforeaseofinspect ion.

Cr
usher
s

• Someconecr ushersrequir
eser vicingand r emovalofcomponent sf r
om the
bottom.Thedesi gnandlayoutshoul dallowforsuchservi
cerequir
ement s.
• Therehav ebeenmanychangesr ecent l
yi nt
hemanuf act
ureofconecr usher
s.A
carefulassessmentofeachsuppl i
ers’requir
ementsforlubri
cati
on,wat erandair
servicestothecrusheri
smandat ory.
• Automat i
cbowladj ust
menti s now commonon mostconecr usher sand is
definit
elygoing to be used foron- stream el
ectr
onic contr
oladj ustmentt o
max imizeinputandproductsizecont rol
.

Ter
ti
aryFeedBi
ns

• Most manuf acturers ask f or cont r oll

ed or e f eed r at
e t o t heirt ertiary
crushers.Thesecondar ycrushedmat eri
al(andi nt hecaseofacl osedci r
cui t
,
therecirculatedmat erial)i
susual l
yst or edinabi n,andf edtothet erti
aryscr een
ordirectlytot hecrusherwi thav ari
ablespeedf eeder .(SeeFigure19.)
• Whent hef eedcomesf r
om abi nv i
aaf eederdirect l
ytoacr usher ,thef eeder
designshoul dber etractablesot hatt het erti
arycrusherheadandbowlmaybe
remov edbyaser vi
cecr ane.
• Feedt ot heter t
iar
yf eedbi nsisdependentont henumberofcr usher sbeingf ed.
A singlepoi ntdi schargewi l
lbeadequat ewitht hreecr ushers,althoughf eed
distr
ibuti
oni s notgood.Fi ve crusher s can be f ed withat wo poi ntf eed
dischargesy stem,wi tht hemai nfeedconv eyorf eedingdirectl
yt ot hebi nor
usingaf lopgat et oaf i
xedhor i
zontalconv eyortof eedtot heotherdi schar ge
point(orat ri
pperconv eyorcanbeut i
lized)SeeFi gur es18d,18eand18f .

Feeder
sfr
omaTer
ti
aryBi
n

• Abeltfeederwil
lmaxi
mizel
ivev
olumeinthebi
n
• Vi
bratoryfeeder
/magnet
ic/
mechani
calislessex
pensi
vebutpr
ovi
desl
essl
i
ve
st
oragei nthebi
n.
Lubr
icat
ion

• Somel ubr
icati
onsy stemsar emount edonski dswhichcanbeasl ar
geasl ar
geas
4x2. 4m (12x8f t
),theref
oresuff
ici
entaccessspacemustbeprovi
ded.
• Otherfi
necrusherl
ubricati
onconsi
derati
onsarethesameasforpri
marycrusher
s.

Mai
ntenanceI
tems

• Pull points shoul d be l ocat ed i n a manner t hat pr ov

ide max imum
assist
ance f orequipmentmai ntenance.
• Ifanov erheadcr aneisprovided,i tshoul
dbeabl etoserviceallmainequipmenti
tems.
Forcrusher swithoutbuil
dingencl osures,
amodi fi
edgantrycraneormobile
cranecanbeused.
• Aman- elevatorisal way
susef ulinl argecrushi
ngandscr eeningplant
s,andisa
necessityinverylargecapacit
ypl ants.

• Serviceairandwat erstati
onsshoul dbel ocat edthroughoutt hepl ant.Incl
ude
thehosesandnozzl esatpredet er
minedwash-downst ations.
• Adequat ewat erpressureshoul dbeprovidedf orwash- downandcl eaningofal l
areasoft hepl ant
.
• All
owance of adequat e wor ki
ng width on each si de of t he l ower-f
loor
conv eyor
s,andsuf fici
entcl
earanceunderconv ey or
sforeasycl eaning
• Man- doorsshoul dbepr ovi
dedonal lchutesf ormai ntenanceandr eplacement
ofwearpar ts.Inspecti
ondoor sshouldnotbeusedt opr ovideaccessf orwear
platereplacementandunpl uggingofchutes.
• Clean-up chut es should be pr ovi
ded at v ar i
ous lev el
s,t o enabl e spi
lled
mat eri
altobepassedt oar eceivi
ngconveyoratt helowerl evels.

Conv
eyor
s

• Convey
ordesi
gnconsi
der
ati
onsf
orf
inecr
ushi
ngci
rcui
tsar
ethesameasf
or
pri
marycr
usher
s.

El
ect
ri
cal

• Locat etheel
ectri
cal
/MCCr oomcentrall
ytomi ni
mi zelongcableruns.
• Electr
ical cable tr
ay routi
ng and or ientati
on i s criti
cal and should be
reviewed bymechani calprocess personnel.Ver ti
calt r
ays are pr
efer
red t
o
hor i
zontal(
verti
calt
ray
sall
ownocol lect
ionofspi l
ledmat eri
ali
ntray)
• Allowf orpl
entyofli
ght
ingi
nallareasofapl ant,
includinginsi
dechutesandbins.

Dustcol
lect
ion/
Suppr
essi
on

• Therear emanychoi cesf ordustcol l

ection/suppressi
onsystems,includi
ngbag
fi
lters,scr ubber s,car t
ri
dgecol lectors,sur f
actants,waterspraysandsoni cfog.
Whet heronesy stem oracombi nationissel ected,caremustbet akent oprov
ide
serviceaccess.
• Cont rol,l
ube, compr essorandelectricalroomsshoul dal
lbewell-
venti
lat
ed.
• Binai r/dustev acuat orsarerequired.
• Incol dcl i
mat es,deter minewhetherdust -coll
ectorairmustbepreheated.
• Acol lectorf ansi lencershouldbeconsi dered,asf annoisecanbedel eteri
ousin
closedar eas.
• I
fanai rsyst em i sselectedf orcr usher-oilcooling,i
twillrequir
ev enti
ngand
hot -
airev acuat i
on.
 Li
mit
ati
onsofCr
ushi
ngandConv
eyi
ngSy
stems

Thetwomainlimitat
ionsofthesesystemsarehi
ghi ni
ti
alcapit
alandreducedf
lexi
bil
i
tycomparedwit
h
tr
uckandshoveltechni
ques.Forlongl
ifemi
nes,however,thecapi
talr
equir
ementsaregener
all
yneut
ral
whentr
uckreplacementsaretakenint
oaccount(Oberr
isser,
2009).

Thef l
exibil
ityoffull
ymobi l
ein-pi
tcrushingandconveyingsystems( I
PCC)ismuchl owerthansemi-
mobi l
esy stems.FullymobileI
PCCsy stemsgeneral
lyrequireashif
tabl
efaceconveyor.Thi
slimi
tsthe
l
ay outtostr ai
ghtfacesthataregenerall
y1.5to2.5km l ongasacompr omisebetweenf r
equencyof
facemov esandconv ey
orcapit
al.Benchesneedtobeappr ox
imatel
yhori
zontalwi
thlitt
lefl
exi
bil
i
tyto
accommodat ecoalhori
zons.

Blasti
ngisal waysincloseproximityt othefaceconvey or ,wi
thmostbl astsneedi ngtobebuf f
ered(or
choke)bl astst o minimi
se f l
yrock damage.The Goony ell
aI PCC sy st
em r emov ed a 25m hi gh
overconsolidat
edhorizonthatdi dnotr equi
reblasti
ng,oronl yrequiredl i
ghtbl asti
ng.TheCl ermont
IPCCsy stem isdesi
gnedtor emov et hreebenches,wit
ht heassistanceofabel twagon, foramaxi mum
wast ethicknessof55m.Thi sr equiresav erysigni
ficantamountofshotgr oundi nvent
ory,ast he
bottom twobenchesar eblastedbef oretheconveyorisr elocat
edt othenewdi glocation(Atchi
sonand
Mor ri
son,2011).

Afull
ymobi leIPCCi salsoconstr
ainedtoannualpr
oducti
vit
iesofbet
ween15and25Mbcm, depending
ontheloadingshov elemployed.This,
combinedwiththel
imitat
ioni
nf aceheights,
blasti
ngconstrai
nts
anddiff
icul
tyinaccommodat i
ngcoalseams, makesaf ul
l
ymobi leI
PCCsy stem dif
ficul
ttoemployina
deepmul ti
-seam mi ne.Theuseofpi ggybackconveyor
smayi mproveflexibi
l
ityatt heexpenseof
complexit
yandt echnicalri
sk.

Theuseoff ull
ymobi leIPCC indeepopenpi t
sissomewhatcont ested.TuttonandSt r
eck( 2009)
di
smissthem asunv i
abl
eduet oinfl
exi
bil
i
tyleadi
ngtosub-opti
malminedev el
opment.Mor r
ison( 2009)
bel
iev
est hattheuseofpi ggybackconv ey
orsandext endablebenchconv eyorsmaybef easibl
e.
Regar
dlessoft hefeasi
bil
it
y,thetechni
calandpr oduct
ionrisksassoci
atedwi thappl
icat
ionoff ul
ly
mobil
eIPCCsy stemsindeepopencutmi nesmakest hem anunli
kel
yprospectforear
lyadoption.

Relocat
ionofsemi-mobil
ecrushersisthekeyi nfl
exi
bil
i
tyinherentint
hesesy st
ems.Therelati
vel
yrapid
advancerateofmi ni
ngf acesinopencutcoalmi nes,combi nedwiththeneedt oadvancemultipl
e
benches,l
eadtofrequentcrushermov es.Eachmov er equi
resupt ooneweekf orcompl
etionandmay
costupt o$1.5M inci v
ilconstruct
ion.Met all
if
err
ousoper ationsusi
ngsemi -mobi
leIPCC syst
ems
att
emptt oli
mitcr
ushermov estoevery6mont hsto10y ears(Chadwick,2010andTut t
onandSt reck,
2009).

Adv antagesofCr ushi ngandConv eyingSy st

ems
Fordeeperopencutmi nesI PCCsy stemsof f
erthepot ential t
o:reducecost s;reducedustandnoi se
emi ssions; andimpr ov evisualacuity.Af ul
lymobi leIPCCsy stem hasl owercost sthanasemi -
mobi l
e
system.
BasedonHunt erValleycondi ti
ons, afullymobileIPCCsy stem wi l
lgiveal owernetpr esentcost(NPC)
thanashov elsuppor tedbyf ourtosi xtrucks,dependi ngont heconf igurationoft heI PCCsy st
em.Asemi -
mobi leI PCCsy stem hasal owerNPCt hanashov elsuppor t
edbysev entrucks.Longerhaul saremor e
costef fectiveusinganI PCCBot hdustandnoi seemi ssionsar emor econt rol
lablewi thconveyorsthan
withmobi leequipment .Dustsuppr essioncanbebywat erspr ay
s, cov er
s/encl osures,effi
ci
entbelt
cleaner s,sucti
on/f ilt
er sorbyel ectrostati
cdustsuppr ession.Noi secanber educedbymor ethan
25dBA/ m byconv eyoropt i
mi sat
ion, i
mpr ovedidlers,variablespeeds, preventinghar moni csandspeciall
y
designedsoundpr oofencl osures.

Equipmentcontrols,
howev er
,ar
enott hewholestory
;caref
ulminedesignisessent
ial
.The
supplement
aryEI SforCler
montcoal mine(
RioTinto,2005)i
ndi
catedthattheIPCCsystem,wi
thnonoise
ordustsuppression,gav
enodet ect
ableimprovementindustornoiseemissi
onsovertheori
ginal
truck
andshovelminepl
an.Ont heotherhand,apr
oposedmi neplaninvol
vinganIPCCataHunt erVal
l
eymi ne,
wit
hsuit
ableemissionscontr
ols,gav
esigni
fi
cantl
yreducedlevelsofPM10dust .I
twastheonlymine
pl
anthatcoul
dmai ntai
nemissionswithi
ndepart
mentalguidel
inesatnearbyresi
dences.

Ther educedcostofhaulageusingconveyorsall
owsoutofpi tspoil
tobetranspor
tedfurthert
obeplaced
i
nlessv isibl
yint
rusiv
eareas.Theabil
i
tyofconv eyor
stocreateaf ul
lhei
ghtdump, r
atherthanbui
l
ding
fr
om t hebaseupaswi t
htrucks,
canassistwithmorerapi
dr ehabil
it
ati
on.Thisal
soappliesto
surchargingin-
pitdumpscreatedusi
ngot herequi
pment.

Concl
usi
ons

Changi ngcondit
ionsintheHunterVal
leyarefor
cingopencutmi ni
ngofdeeperresour
ces.Anewmi ni
ng
technologyisrequir
edtoensureconti
nuedeconomi coperat
ionsthataddr
esscommuni t
yconcer
nsof
environmentalimpact.Under
groundmi ni
ngisoneoption,
butleadstopoorresour
cerecover
yandisnot
universal
lyappli
cable.

Usingasemi-mobileIPCCsy stem teamedwi t

hconv ent
ionaltruckandshov eloper
ati
onspromisesto
provi
desuit
ablylowcost sindeepopencutmi nes.I
tcanal soallowbett
ermanagementofenv i
ronment
al
i
ssues.Theminingt echnologyisnotnovelandcar r
iesl
itt
letechnologi
calri
sk.Numerousexampl esof
successf
uloperati
onsusi ngIPCCexi stt
hroughoutthewor l
d.Themai ninnovati
onisinadapt
ingthemine
plantosui
tthelessf l
exi
bleconv ey
orhaulagesy st
ems.