MechChem Africa August 2018

⎪ Materials handling, conveying, lifting and logistics ⎪

Vulco composite liner improves mill life and performance

It has become increasingly imperative that mills run continuously, reliably and efficiently, according to Kevin Sherwen-Slater ofWeir MineralsAfrica, who says that new liner technologies have stronger compounds and better designs, which contribute significantly to achieving this.

I n the latest addition to its Vulco ® com- posite range of mill lining systems, Weir Minerals Africa has introduced a new heavy-duty lifter bar to optimise service life and further contribute to lowering cus- tomers’ cost of mill ownership. “Thedesignandstrengthof this innovation makesusconfidentitwillcompetewellagainst steel liners,” saysKevinSherwen-Slater, Vulco product manager at Weir Minerals Africa. “It will also allowus to approach the biggermills, in the size range of 6.5 m diameter and up to even 10 to 11 m in diameter.” He notes that many process plants in the global mining sector are starting to ramp up production in response to higher commodity prices, putting them in a better position to benefit from more advanced liner technolo- gies that offer longer life and less downtime.

New mills being built tend to be larger, single-streamunits that run at high tonnages for better efficiencies and throughput. As a result, mill uptime and lifespan have become more important factors in mine profitability. “Itisthereforeincreasinglyimperativethat mills runcontinuously, reliablyandefficiently,” he says. “These new liner technologies –with stronger compounds and better designs – contribute significantly to mines’ efforts to achieve this.” Manufactured with the new R67 rubber compound, which boasts higher wear resis- tance than compound R63, the heavy-duty lifter also incorporates Hard ox 500 steel to resist wear. “Vulco composite liners havebecomepop- ular for several reasons,” says Sherwen-Slater. “These include: a power consumption saving

Weir Minerals’ custom designed Vulco composite mill liners offer exceptional wear life and reliability. of 25% to drive the mill compared to steel linedmills; throughput increases of some27% on grate discharge mills thanks to minimum blinding of the apertures on the grates; and service life improvements of 30% compared to steel-lined mills in certain applications. “There is also a mill noise reduction of about 9.0 dB, because of the sound deaden- ing from the rubber material, which is an important consideration for many mines as they work towards lower noise levels as part of improvingmine health and safety,” he adds. The reduction ofmaterial lockup between the liners and the mill body, due to compres- sion fit on installation, is a great benefit for low-grade plant operations and reduces the risk of theft during liner replacement. The liners – which are only two-thirds of the weight of steel liners – also allow for a reduced installation time due to ease of handling, thereby cutting downtime and sup- porting plant productivity efforts. An added advantage is that the bearing loads applied by the mill itself are substantially less with composite liners. “Because of the weight difference, a mill’s weight could be increased by 400 t with the addition of steel liners, whereas the equiva- lent weight with composites would be less than300 t,” he says. “This represents anotable reduction in the loads on the bearings, in turn improving their lifespan and reducing main- tenance costs,” Sherwen-Slater concludes. q

The liners – which are only two-thirds of the weight of steel liners – also allow for a reduced installation time due to ease of handling, thereby cutting downtime and supporting plant productivity efforts.

August 2018 • MechChem Africa ¦ 21