PROCESSING SOLUTIONS
Metso Unveils Plant Predictive
Maintenance Solution
The latest version of Metso’s expanded Metrics service covers its primary gyratory crushers, cone crushers and
vibration screens, with other types of equipment to be included in future releases.
Metso has expanded its digital Metso
Metrics offering with the launch of a new
predictive maintenance solution for min-
ing equipment, aimed to help maximize
the uptime and performance of comminu-
tion circuits. The service was introduced
at the recent Automation Fair conference
hosted by Rockwell Automation in Phila-
delphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Metso said its Metrics solution is de-
signed to provide global mining custom-
ers improved visibility and new insights
into their equipment and processes with
analytics, condition monitoring and pre-
dictive maintenance, backed by expert
support from Metso. The company said
the combination of advanced technology
and expertise will bring Metso services
closer to customers by improving collabo-
ration, asset reliability and optimization.
“Optimization of existing assets and
processes is now the key to drive pro-
100 E&MJ • DECEMBER 2018
ductivity at mine sites. This is where
digitalization coupled with expert sup-
port really comes into play — connect-
ing the right data with the right people,”
said Jani Puroranta, chief digital officer,
Metso. “With innovative digital tools
like Metso Metrics, minerals process-
ing plants can shift from reactive-mode
to being proactive and focused on con-
tinuous improvement.”
The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)
solution is built on the Rockwell Automa-
tion FactoryTalk Cloud platform, powered
by Microsoft Azure. It securely collects
data from hundreds of sensors within
Metso equipment to assess process per-
formance, as well as predict component
wear and failure. Metso performance
teams analyze the data with the support
of advanced machine learning algorithms,
to help customers optimize equipment
operations and processes.
“Mining companies need more visi-
bility to their processes, equipment
performance, and supply chain to im-
prove safety and efficiency, reduce ener-
gy usage, and, ultimately, inform better
business decisions,” said Blake Moret,
chairman and CEO, Rockwell Automa-
tion. “This connected mine solution al-
lows mining companies to derive measur-
able business value from their operations,
allowing for better collaboration and in-
creased productivity.”
The new offering covers Metso’s pri-
mary gyratory crushers, cone crushers
and vibrating screens. In the future, other
types of minerals processing equipment,
such as mills, will be addressed, accord-
ing to the company. The first generation
of Metso Metrics tools, focused on help-
ing aggregate and quarry producers, were
introduced in 2017.
Modular Trommel Line Offers
Long Life, Easier Maintenance
FLSmidth recently introduced a com-
pletely re-engineered trommel chassis
and associated screen media package.
The new trommel designs, said the com-
pany, have been developed using Finite
Element Analysis (FEA) design calcula-
tions to ensure they are structurally sound
and can offer excellent service life.
The re-engineered trommel frames
utilize modular design and standardized
construction principles that provides a
frame with less mass while maintaining
maximum structural integrity. The new
design employs screen media that is cus-
tom designed to be easy and safe to in-
stall and service.
The screening media weigh less than
25 kg each and are fitted to the trommel
using friction grip rails that don’t require
bolts or pins. Panel fitting and main-
tenance activities can be carried out
quickly and safely using simple tools,
reducing the time it takes to perform
routine maintenance activities, according
to the company.
Discrete Element Analysis (DEM) soft-
ware, available to customers through FLS-
midth, simulates trommel operation and
www.e-mj.com

Designed by FLSmidth with the aid of Finite Element Analysis techiques, the company’s new trommels are said to offer superior service life coupled with maintenance features
that enable quicker, easier service and media replacement.
allows an analysis of pulp flow through
the unit. The company said its engineers
can advise on how to optimize pulp flow
through the trommel to improve both
throughput and wear life of the screens.
The trommel chassis can be custom
made to suit specific requirements. The
company said global sourcing plans are
already in place and, in combination with
the modular features incorporated in the
new designs, that allows trommel chas-
sis to be fabricated closer to customers’
sites, providing faster delivery.
“We are excited to deliver this inno-
vative solution to the market because we
believe it will be a key component for in-
creased capacity for our customers. We
recognized the customer’s need for a sim-
ple to use and dependable trommel solu-
tion and we responded. These are suit-
able to any mining operation across the
globe and will deliver on our promise of
sustainable productivity enhancement,”
said Brent Stokes, head of Wear Parts &
Consumables, FLSmidth.
Coatings Cater to Bearings’
Special Needs
Heavy industry demands stronger bear-
ings that can withstand greater loads,
faster speeds, higher temperatures and
the constant threat of contamination.
Bearings in critical equipment are of-
ten pushed to the limits of reliable
www.e-mj.com
performance. The Timken Co. recently
noted that even though it uses special
heat-treating processes to produce highly
durable bearings, some applications re-
quire a superior degree of wear resistance
and corrosion protection.
Timken said it has more than 20 years
applied surface engineering technologies
to bearing rolling elements (balls and roll-
ers) to limit component damage in harsh
operating conditions where standard bear-
ings tend to fall short of customer expec-
tations for long, trouble-free life.
When rolling elements with specific
coatings and engineered surfaces are in-
corporated into a bearing, the assembly
may be described as a “wear-resistant
bearing” by Timken. Decades of intensive
research and development have resulted
in a range of coating options that enhance
the performance of bearings in mining and
many other types of industrial equipment.
Timken said it solves complex friction-
management problems in a variety of ways,
including fundamental innovations in tri-
bology, lubrication, surface engineering and
materials science. Understanding friction
and wear at the atomic level helps Timken
engineer custom coatings for bearing com-
ponents that greatly improve the bearing’s
ability to resist corrosion and wear.
The Timken coatings portfolio includes:
PVD Coatings: Physical vapor deposi-
tion (PVD) describes a vacuum-deposition
PROCESSING SOLUTIONS
method in which a solid is vaporized pro-
ducing atoms or molecules that are trans-
ported in a vacuum to be deposited on
the object as a thin film. These coatings
typically provide the highest level of wear
resistance and friction reduction. Timken
has validated bearing-life improvements
up to six times over the standard where
PVD coatings are used in laboratory studies
while in oil-out conditions. These bearings
have been observed to last approximately
10 times longer than those with uncoated
rollers. Timken said PVD is a rigorous coat-
ing process that must be controlled within
world-class production facilities and with
stringent design and quality specifications.
Electrodeposited Coatings: Electrode-
posited coatings provide outstanding cor-
rosion-resistance protection for a wide
range of applications. This type of coat-
ing is typically applied on bearings expe-
riencing lighter loads and nonacidic solu-
tions. The degree of corrosion protection
depends on the type of coating and the
application. Some coatings also increase
bearing wear life because they harden the
contact surfaces.
Surface Conversions: Conversion coat-
ings combine excellent wear and corrosion
resistance with an ability to withstand false
brinelling (fretting wear caused by oscilla-
tions or vibrations). While not as durable
as PVD coatings, they offer another way
to improve bearing performance and tend
DECEMBER 2018 • E&MJ 101
 PROCESSING SOLUTIONS
to cost less than premium options. Black
oxide coatings, for instance, are processed
in an alkaline bath to convert the bearing
surface to an oxide layer. This helps retain
lubricant on the steel surfaces and mini-
mize wear in applications where bearing
rollers are prone to slip or skid on the rings.
Spray Coatings: Spray coatings such as
powder coat and dielectric coat are main-
ly applied to housed bearings, ancillary
components and backing rings to resist
corrosion. Dielectric coatings also inhib-
it electric arcing by providing insulation
where current passage through the bear-
ing is a damage risk. The housed bearing
units commonly found on conveyors and
other material-handling applications are
good candidates for spray coatings that
can deliver excellent corrosion resistance.
The company warned that coatings
cannot improve the performance of bear-
ings made of substandard steel or having
poor dimensional control. An effective
bearing solution starts with properly de-
signed component geometry and met-
allurgy for meeting clear application re-
quirements, and it must be manufactured
using appropriate methods and quality
processes. Only then will advanced treat-
ments on functional surfaces deliver the
specific benefits a customer is looking for.
Coatings, according to Timken, can
deliver benefits anywhere load, speed and
temperature requirements tax the capa-
bilities of conventional bearings. For ex-
ample, a customer will change from one
type of lubricant to another and discover
they’ve become susceptible to new sur-
face wear as a result. Or a customer may
want to run with a lower-viscosity lubri-
cant to improve the energy efficiency of
their equipment, but this can damage the
bearing. In such cases, a special coating
can be a cost-effective solution. Ulti-
mately, the goal for all customers is to ex-
tend the life of the bearing and eliminate
maintenance intervals.
More advice for extending bearing life
and reducing equipment downtime is
available online at timken.com/coatings.
Outotec to Design a Copper
Smelter in Indonesia
Outotec has signed a contract for the
Front-End Engineering Design (FEED)
of a new copper smelter to be located at
Benete Bay in Sumbawa, Indonesia. The
contract partner is PT Amman Mineral
Industri, a subsidiary of copper and gold
102 E&MJ • DECEMBER 2018
producer PT Amman Mineral Nusa Teng-
gara. The contract, valued at approximate-
ly €10 million, has been booked in Ou-
totec’s 2018 fourth-quarter order intake.
Outotec’s scope of engineering covers
the design of the entire copper smelter. The
engineering will be based on Outotec Flash
Smelting and Flash Converting technology,
and the facility includes an electrolytic re-
finery, slag concentrator, precious metals
refinery, wet gas cleaning, and Lurec sulfu-
ric acid plant as well as effluent treatment
plant and its associated infrastructure.
Outotec’s design work will take place
in the next nine months and is a continu-
ation of the feasibility study conducted in
2017. Once completed, the new smelter
is planned to primarily process Indone-
sian copper concentrate.
ABB Updates Plant Power
Control Software Library
ABB has modified its ABB Ability System
800xA Power Control Library (formerly
MIDAS Library) software to include more
options to communicate with and control
electrical devices throughout the power
infrastructure for mining and mineral pro-
cessing operations. The digital solution
now supports the PLC (Programmable
Logical Controller) Connect functionality
to extend power automation beyond IEC
61850 devices and infrastructure.
Martin Knabenhans, head of product
management for ABB’s Process Indus-
tries business unit, said, “With the addi-
tion of PLC Connect support, this Power
Control release also enables digitalization
for substations that were built without
ABB’s Power Control Library software now offers a wider range of communication options for plant and mine
electrical systems, allowing them to be monitored and managed remotely.
61850, making it possible to digitalize
existing brownfield sites.”
The Power Control Library is part of
the ABB Ability MineOptimize digital
portfolio. It works with ABB Ability Sys-
tem 800xA, which is a platform for moni-
toring and controlling a wide range of au-
tomated industrial processes. The library
is based on the International Electrotech-
nical Commission’s (IEC) 61850 stan-
dard, which creates a common language
for automated substations and power dis-
tribution systems so that technologically
advanced mines around the world are
able to take advantage of its capabilities.
The updated version supports non-IEC
61850 substations through the PLC Con-
nect functionality of System 800xA, to com-
municate with and control a broader range
of intelligent electronic devices (IEDs).
The Power Control Library provides en-
gineers that operate automated mines with
the ability to rapidly troubleshoot electri-
cal system issues through an enhanced
substation control and monitoring envi-
ronment in one control room. It allows a
broader range of electrical and substation
equipment to be monitored and managed
remotely, so that potential issues can be
resolved quickly and safely. This remote
monitoring allows the plant team to solve
problems safely, away from the electrical
substation, thus reducing the time for elec-
trical fault diagnosis and problem solving.
ABB said that since its introduction in
2014, the Power Control Library has been
implemented in more than 20 projects
worldwide and has integrated more than
4,000 IEDs.
www.e-mj.com
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