APSC 150

Engineering Case Studies

Case Study 3
Part 3
Lecture 3.6 - Process Control in Mining
John A. Meech
Professor and Director of CERM3
Centre for Environmental Research in
Minerals, Metals, and Materials

To Be Ore, or Not to Be?

An ore is a mixture of minerals, one or more of
which has value, that can be mined:
At some time
At some place
For a profit
What is not ore today, may become ore in the future
What is ore in one place, may not be in another

Mineral Processing Stages

Liberation (comminution or breaking of rock)

Blasting
Crushing
Grinding

Separation (valuable minerals from waste)

Gravity
Magnetic
Electrostatic
Flotation

Extraction of values from mineral concentrate

Operating Plant Targets

Maximize Product Quantity (Production)
Tonnage rate of ore (say 100,000 tpd)
%Recovery of Valuable Component (say 92%)

Maximize Product Quality (customer needs)

Concentrate grade (say 28 %Cu or 54 %Zn)

Impurity component levels (Bi, Sb, Pb in ppm)
%H2O (both minimum and maximum)
Particle size constraints (top size and ultra-fines)

Grade vs. Recovery

Often, there is a quality/quantity trade-off
One goes up, the other goes down

Process & Instrumentation Diagrams

Process diagrams depict a network of stages or
events through which materials flow
Process flowsheets represent unit operations
through which solids, liquids, or gasses flow and
are transformed
Control system diagrams (or programs) represent
stages in a system through which signals,
information, or data flow

What is a Process?
A Process takes inputs and
combines them in a way to
produce one or more outputs

Input

Process

Output

In process control, only a single

input is involved in each block

What is a Process?
Process
Continuous

Start
Up

Non- Shut
stop Down

Batch
Discrete Discrete
Event
State

after: John Sowa, 2001. Processes and Causality, <www.jfsowa.com/ontology/causal.htm>

Batch or Discrete Process

Bus
Arriving

Person
Waiting

Bus stops (an Event)

(an Event)

Bus
waiting

Person gets
on bus

Bus starts (an Event)

Bus
leaving

Person
on bus

Execution of a Bus Stop Petri Net model (cumulative)

- works well with discrete agents/products represented as tokens

after John Sowa, 2001. http://www.jfsowa.com/ontology/causal.htm

Batch Processes in Mining

Drilling

Loading
Explosives

Blasting

Digging

Loading
Ore/Waste

Maintenance

Hauling
Ore/Waste
Returning
Empty

Dumping
Ore/Waste

What is a Control System?

A control system tries to keep an important
process output variable as close to a target
level (or set point
point) for as much of the time
as possible
The system responds rapidly and stably to
compensate for changes in other variable
that affect the output or to desired changes
in the target level of the output

Elements of a Control System

System Load
Variable

System
Set Point

Error

Controller
Controller

Measured
Variable

Control
Signal

Final
Final
Control
Element

Measuring
Measuring
Device

Control
Variable

Load
Block

Process
Process

System
Output

Elements of a PID Control System

Regulator
Control

One or the Other

1.0

System Load

Servo
Control

t=0

1.0

Variable

Load
Block

Proportional
Proportional
Kc

t=0

System
Set Point

Error

Integral
Integral

1
(t )dt
TI

?
Control
Signal

Final
Final
Control
Element

Derivative
Derivative
TD

Measured
Variable

d (t )
dt

Measuring
Measuring
Device

Control
Variable

Process
Process

System
Output

Response to a Set Point Step Change

Response to a Set Point Step Change

Response to a Set Point Step Change

Response to a Set Point Step Change

Response to a Set Point Step Change

Response to a Set Point Step Change

Response to a Load Step Change

Response to a Load Step Change

Response to a Load Step Change

Response to a Load Step Change

Response to a Load Step Change

Response to a Load Step Change

Unit Operation grinding

Ball-mill
rotating drum with steel balls cascading onto the
rocks to break them into finer particles

Grate-Discharge
Typical Installation showing Covered
Trunnion and associated Electric Motor

Unit Operation size separation

Hydrocyclone separation by size

Unit Operation slurry pump

Variable Frequency Drive Slurry Pump

Unit Operation conveyor belt

Conveyor belt feeding a stacker/reclaimer

From
crushers

Building a Flowsheet - 1

Crushed
Ore Bin

From
crushers

Building a Flowsheet - 2

Crushed
Ore Bin

d
Fee

yor
e
v
Con

From
crushers

Building a Flowsheet - 3

Crushed
Ore Bin

d
Fee

yor
e
v
Con

Ball Mill

From
crushers

Building a Flowsheet - 4
from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

d
Fee

yor
e
v
Con

Ball Mill

From
crushers

Building a Flowsheet - 5
from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

d
Fee

from
Mill Water
Supply

yor
e
v
Con

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Pump

From
crushers

Building a Flowsheet - 6
from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

d
Fee

from
Mill Water
Supply

yor
e
v
Con

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Pump

From
crushers

Building a Flowsheet - 7
from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

d
Fee

Hydro
cyclone

yor
e
v
Con

from
Mill Water
Supply

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Pump

From
crushers

Building a Flowsheet - 8
To Flotation Separation

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

d
Fee

Hydro
cyclone

yor
e
v
Con

from
Mill Water
Supply

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Pump

From
crushers

Adding Actuators and

Final Control Elements - 1
To Flotation Separation

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

d
Fee

Hydro
cyclone

yor
e
v
Con

from
Mill Water
Supply

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Pump

Electric
Motor

From
crushers

Adding Actuators and

Final Control Elements - 2
To Flotation Separation

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

VS Drive
Motor

d
Fee

Hydro
cyclone

yor
e
v
Con

from
Mill Water
Supply

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Pump

VS = Variable Speed

Electric
Motor

From
crushers

Adding Actuators and

Final Control Elements - 3
To Flotation Separation

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

VS Drive
Motor

d
Fee

Hydro
cyclone

from
Mill Water
Supply

yor
e
v
Con
CS Drive
Motor

pulp

Ball Mill
CS Drive
Motor

VS = Variable Speed

H2O
SUMP

Pump

Electric
Motor

CS = Constant Speed (to be ignored for this exercise)

From
crushers

Adding Actuators and

Final Control Elements - 4
To Flotation Separation

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

Hydro
cyclone

H2O

from
Mill Water
Supply

valve

VS Drive
Motor

d
Fee

yor
e
v
Con

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Pump

VS = Variable Speed

Electric
Motor

From
crushers

Adding Actuators and

Final Control Elements - 5
To Flotation Separation

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

Hydro
cyclone

H2O

from
Mill Water
Supply

H2O
valve

valve

VS Drive
Motor

d
Fee

yor
e
v
Con

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Pump

VS = Variable Speed

Electric
Motor

Adding Instrumentation - 1
From
crushers

To Flotation Separation

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

Hydro
cyclone

H2O

from
Mill Water
Supply

H2O
valve

valve

VS Drive
Motor

yor
e
v
Con

d
FeeWeigh Scale

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Pump

VS = Variable Speed

Electric
Motor

Adding Instrumentation - 2
From
crushers

To Flotation Separation

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

Hydro
cyclone

H2O

from
Mill Water
Supply

H2O
valve

valve

VS Drive
Motor

yor
e
v
Con

d
FeeWeigh Scale

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Sump
Level

DP ll
Ce

VS = Variable Speed

DP = Direct Pressure

Pump

Electric
Motor

Adding Instrumentation - 3
From
crushers

To Flotation Separation

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

Hydro
cyclone

H2O

Pulp Density
Meter

from
Mill Water
Supply

H2O
valve

valve

VS Drive
Motor

yor
e
v
Con

d
FeeWeigh Scale

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Sump
Level

DP ll
Ce

VS = Variable Speed

DP = Direct Pressure

Pump

Electric
Motor

Adding Instrumentation - 4
From
crushers

Particle Size
Monitor

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

Hydro
cyclone

H2O

To Flotation Separation

Pulp Density
Meter

from
Mill Water
Supply

H2O
valve

valve

VS Drive
Motor

yor
e
v
Con

d
FeeWeigh Scale

pulp

Ball Mill

H2O
SUMP

Sump
Level

DP ll
Ce

VS = Variable Speed

DP = Direct Pressure

Pump

Electric
Motor

Adding Control - 1
From
crushers

Particle Size
Monitor

To Flotation Separation
Pulp Density
Set Point

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

Hydro
cyclone

H2O

Pulp Density
Meter

from
Mill Water
Supply

H2O
valve

valve

VS Drive
Motor

yor
e
v
Con

d
FeeWeigh Scale

pulp

Ball Mill

Pulp
Density
Controller

H2O
SUMP

Sump
Level

DP ll
Ce

VS = Variable Speed

DP = Direct Pressure

Pump

Electric
Motor

Adding Control - 2
From
crushers

Particle Size
Monitor

To Flotation Separation
Pulp Density
Set Point

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

Hydro
cyclone

H2O

Pulp Density
Meter

from
Mill Water
Supply

H2O
valve

valve

VS Drive
Motor

yor
e
v
Con

d
FeeWeigh Scale

pulp

Ball Mill

Pulp
Density
Controller

H2O
SUMP

Sump
Level

DP ll
Ce

VS = Variable Speed

DP = Direct Pressure

Sump Level
Set Point

Pump

Electric
Motor

Motor
Controller

Adding Control - 3
From
crushers

Particle Size
Monitor

To Flotation Separation
Pulp Density
Set Point

from
Mill Water
Supply

Crushed
Ore Bin

Hydro
cyclone

H2O

Pulp Density
Meter

from
Mill Water
Supply

H2O
valve

valve

VS Drive
Motor

yor
e
v
Con

d
FeeWeigh Scale

Motor
Controller

VS = Variable Speed

pulp

Ball Mill
Tonnage
Set Point

DP = Direct Pressure

Pulp
Density
Controller

H2O
SUMP

Sump
Level

DP ll
Ce

Sump Level
Set Point

Pump

Electric
Motor

Motor
Controller

Adding Control - 3
From
crushers

Particle Size
Monitor

To Flotation Separation
Pulp Density
Set Point

Crushed
Ore Bin

VS Drive
Motor

Ratio
Set Point

from
Mill Water
Supply

Ratio
Control

H2O

VS = Variable Speed

Meter

pulp

Ball Mill
Tonnage
Set Point

DP = Direct Pressure

from
Mill Water
Supply

H2O
valve

yor
e
v
Con

Pulp Density

valve

d
FeeWeigh Scale

Motor
Controller

Hydro
cyclone

Pulp
Density
Controller

H2O
SUMP

Sump
Level

DP ll
Ce

Sump Level
Set Point

Pump

Electric
Motor

Motor
Controller

Supervisory Control
Set Point (tonnage)

Tonnage rate (tph)

Sump Level (%)
CF Pulp Density (%solids)
Ball Mill Power Draw (kW)

Supervisory
Computer Control

COF Particle Size (%- 150 m)

Set Point (pulp density)

Set Point (water ratio)
Set Point (particle size)

Control Goal: Either: 1. Maximize Tonnage Rate

Constraints:

Set Point (sump level)

Coarsest grind
Pulp density (min & max)
Sump level (min & max)

or

2. Particle Size Control

Minimum tonnage rate
Pulp density (min & max)
Sump level (min & max)

In some types of grinding circuits, ball mill power draw may be an important constraint
and may require consideration in control of tonnage rate, but in this case, power draw
is dominated by the charge of steel balls in the mill.

System Responses
Regulatory Loads

Ore Feed Hardness changes

Ore Feed Particle Size Distribution changes
Water flowrate upsets
Ball charge wear rate changes (small effect)

Servo Requirements
Flotation Circuit constraint changes
Ore Availability changes
Maintenance (scheduled/unplanned)

Example Strategy maximize tonnage

Maintain particle size (grind) by changing pulp
density of cyclone feed (CF)
If grind is too fine, then use tonnage rate
changes to control grind and set CF pulp density
to maximum
If grind is too coarse, then use CF pulp density
changes to control grind and set tonnage rate to
minimum

Example Strategy control Grind

Adjust particle size set point to suit ore needs
Control grind using CF pulp density changes
Maintain constant tonnage until grind
reaches maximum, then reduce tonnage rate
If grind becomes too fine, then increase
tonnage rate to suit ore conditions

Control of tonnage and water addition

Max GR

s
de
r
Ha

d
Ad

coarser

Grind of the Ore

GR = Grind

Min GR

PD = Pulp Density
tO

re

Reduce T
W
d
d
A

Min PD

rm
o
N

d
Ad

re
O
l
a

Add
W
d
Ad

fte
o
S

O
st

re

Max PD

%solids in CF
T = tonnage

W = Water

Programmable Logic Control

Grind
Set Point

Error

Tonnage
Tonnage
Control
Control

Hardness

Hardness
Block

Coarseness

Coarseness
Block

V.S. Drive
Processes

Logic Switch

CF
CF Density
Density
Control
Control

Measured
Variable

H
H22O Valve
Valve

Particle Size
Monitor
Monitor

Grind
Output

Benefits of Optimizing Tonnage Control

%Recovery drops at high tonnage rates because:

Ore Grind is too coarse unliberated values are lost to tailings
Residence time in Separation Circuit is too short

Advantage of Grind Control

Steps in Designing for Control

Identify and categorize all variables

Design variables that will not change

Variables that can be measured and changed
Variables that can be measured, but not changed
Variables that cannot be measured, but inferred
Variables that cannot be measured or inferred

Which are Inputs, Outputs, and Loads

Choose a goal for the system
Select targets or set points for the outputs
Decide what is to be maximized or minimized

Steps in Designing for Control

Perform system identification testwork
Study the open-loop system response between one
input variable and one output
Characterize process delays (Td) and lags (Tp)
Characterize process gains (Kp)
Output

Kp
0.632Kp

1.0
0.0

Td

Tp

Input

time

Steps in Designing for Control

Choose type of controller

Proportional (P)
Proportional-Integral (PI)
Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID)
Do not use Derivative with noisy signals

Select controller constants (tuning) to provide

slightly underdamped response
Kc
Ti
TD

Study effects of interacting control systems

Steps in Designing for Control

Examine advanced control techniques

Cascade control (fast inner loop)

Feed-forward control (fast and predictive)
Adaptive Control (lags, delays, and gains are not constant)
Model-based Control (updating & comparing with process)
Advanced Signal Filters (Kalman, Smith predictor, etc.)
Intelligent Control (fuzzy, neuro-fuzzy, expert systems, etc.)

Ensure system is stable under all conditions

Set-up Alarms to detect non-standard states

Questions ?

Extra Slides

Outotecs PSI 500 Analyser

Particle Size Analysis based
on laser diffractometry
Outputs both PSA and
%solids data
Accuracy = 2%
Can handle particle size
distributions as low as 500
mesh (~20 microns)
Accurate samples are diluted
by 10 to 100:1 so laser can
penetrate the slurry for
measurement

NLA launder primary

sampler with
mechanical cutter
cleaner

PSI 500 System with

primary sampler
Easy to use and maintain

Secondary
sampling
system
Probe control
setup
with local user
interface

Diluter
Unit

Optical
sensor
head

Principles of Laser Diffractometry

Small particles diffract laser beam light more than coarse particles.
Diffraction pattern measured by sensor array
Resulting signals used to calculate particle size distribution.
A beam power detector measures non-diffracted laser light for dilution
control (%solids).
LorenzMie theory, is an
analytical solution of
Maxwell's equations for
scattering of EM radiation
by spherical particles

Example of Zn Flotation Fuzzy Control

Sets up rule maps as below

Control of OK Flotation Cells