Fundamentally Transforming
Mining
Capturing Lost Energy in Mineral Processing:
Transforming Grinding in the Mining Industry
TOWARDS ZERO WASTE MINING
The Canadian mining industry is focused on transforming how it operates through
innovation. Right now, companies are working towards significant emissions
reductions and the eventual elimination of mine waste and tailings at their facilities at
home and abroad. The radical reduction in mining’s environmental footprint is at the
core of CMIC’s Towards Zero Waste Mining (TZWM) innovation strategy.
TZWM involves 40 mining companies and service providers that are investing in the
development and adoption of transformational technologies that will greatly reduce
waste and greenhouse gas emissions at all stages of the mining life cycle.
SPOTLIGHT ON MINERAL PROCESSING
Comminution, the fine grinding of solids, is employed by many industries to achieve
desired chemical and physical properties. It is estimated that 3% of the world’s
electricity is consumed in comminution processes.
The grinding process results in significant energy loss. Less than 5% of the energy
input is employed for the actual breaking of the particles. The remaining 95% is heat
loss at relatively low temperatures, otherwise known as low grade waste energy. This
is a common challenge in the mining industry with as much as 50% of energy used in
the mining process lost as low grade waste energy during a number of processes,
including as air is ventilated, as water is discharged from the mine, and even during
tailings discharge.
With energy accounting for an average of 15-22% of total mine operating costs,
significant innovation advances in comminution alone can yield major advances in
energy efficiency, cost reduction, and emissions reduction with the use of new
technologies.
TZWM AND MINERAL PROCESSING
Mineral processing offers one of the greatest opportunities for massively reducing
energy use in the mining industry. The development and deployment of new grinding
technologies could translate into a 50% or more reduction in energy use. This would
not only significantly reduce the industry’s GHG and CO2 emissions, but it will also
translate into game-changing impacts on the sector’s financial health.
Recapturing waste energy, typically in the form of heat, will also reduce the overall
energy footprint in mining. As little to no technologies exist in this exciting area, the
opportunity for capturing this untapped market is substantial.
Fundamentally Transforming
Mining
CMIC’S TZWM strategy employs an open innovation ecosystem business model that is
unique in the natural resources industry. The approach harnesses innovation and
leverages talent, knowledge, intellectual property and existing technology from
industries inside and outside of mining to create Canadian-based solutions. Technology
development, deployment and adoption is accelerated by taking advantage of global
assets in an open and shared intellectual property framework with an entire supply
chain. It also provides technology test beds, reduces barriers to the adoption of
technology and significantly reduces financial risk for all collaborators.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR INNOVATION
• Identify, develop and implement new and highly energy-efficient technologies for
grinding circuits.
• Identify low grade waste energy sources that provide the greatest potential for
technology development, energy capture and waste energy reduction.
• Identify and validate approaches and technologies for low grade waste energy
capture.
• Develop and deploy promising low grade waste energy capture technologies.
EXPECTED OUTCOMES
• New energy efficient grinding technology(ies) identified, prototyped, and put into
pilot and demonstration phases.
• Approaches to tackle low grade waste energy recovery identified.
• Low grade energy recovery technology developed, demonstrated and deployed.
BENEFITS
• Significant reduction in energy consumption.
• Significant reduction in GHG and CO2 emissions.
• A new Canadian-based technology platform for grinding created and
commercialized in a relatively short time frame.
• Reduction in energy costs at mine sites by as much as 25%.
PROGRESS TO DATE
• Completed a pilot project to identify, map and model the flow of energy in grinding
circuits to identify energy losses.
• An appraisal project identified a promising new technology that could significantly
reduce energy in grinding circuits by as much as 50%.
• Completed a technology roadmap for energy in the mining business.
• Completed and published a matrix for energy technology evaluation.
• Held a joint workshop with the Coalition for Energy Efficiency in Comminution
(CEEC) with over 70 attendees.