Project Info
APR
20
MRA IRON ORE RAIL TRIAL
April 20, 2009
Iron Ore Mine
Sept-Îles, Quebec
CANADA
MRA used to reduce
iron ore carryback
in rail cars
During cold periods, the concentrated ore tends to freeze and stick to the inside walls of the cars. This causes
several problems at different stages of transporting ore from Labrador City to Sept-Iles. Always seeking to
improve the operational efficiency of rail, operators have applied to the engineering department of SeptIles to arrange a test and validate the effectiveness of the product MRA™, a biodegradable, safe for the
environment product, which prevents the ore concentrate from sticking.
When the temperature is freezing cold, ore concentrate sticks to the walls and the bottom of rail cars.
Currently, the company uses liquid calcium to control and reduce this problem. However, this product
is not very effective and it causes various problems:
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There is still a certain amount of ore inside the cars (“carry back”);
The concentrate that remains stuck in boxes contaminates other products when these cars are loaded;
The liquid calcium is a corrosive agent that damages cars and locomotives;
This product is not safe for the environment;
To be effective, a large amount of calcium is needed and it affects the cost of operations.
The test took place in January and late March 2010 for a total of two (2) trips. We have seen a positive
effect in conditions encountered during the two (2) tests. The dumping of cars treated with it has
been easier and the amount of ore concentrate pasted on the walls of the wagons was significantly
reduced compared to cars sprayed with liquid calcium.
Regarding the first visit, on January 14, 2010, there was a reduction of
return of 5.6 tons of ore per car. In the second test, there was virtually no
ore pasted on the walls of seven (7) cars in testing.
w 1.855.815.4385 e [email protected] t nunainnovations.com
Treated car (left)
compared with an
untreated car (right)
after two trips
DETAILED PROBLEM ANALYSIS
1. Evaluation of the amount of “carryback”
3. Calcium liquid corrodes equipment
A comparison was made using existing data for the
average amount of ore that remained inside the car.
Most cars are showing obvious signs of corrosion
which requires crews to disassemble and clean
several pieces. This results in significant additional
costs for car maintenance.
The months of January, February, June and July 2009
were used for this analysis.
Winter Months Car weight (tons)
January 26.12
February 26.06
Average 26.09
Summer Car weight (tons)
June 25.07
July 25.15
Average 25.11
Difference 0.98 tons
Analysis of these data showed a higher weight of
0.98 tons per car during the coldest period of winter.
This weight is an average obtained on all the train cars. It is certain that
the cars that have received the concentrate are actually much heavier.
2. Contamination of the load
If electrical components come into contact with
liquid calcium, this creates significant electrical
problems since calcium is highly electrically
conductive.
4. Calcium was not safe for the environment
The liquid calcium has the effect of sterilizing the
soil.
5. Amount of calcium needed
To be effective, it is necessary to apply a large
amount of liquid calcium. According to the
vaporization rate and speed of the train, this
quantity represents approximately fortyeight (48)
gallons, which is sprayed into the bottom of the car
before loading and another 48 gallons after loading.
When a car is loaded pellets and there is ore
concentrate stuck to the bottom of the box, some
of it will come off during the spill. The addition of
fine material in the pellets is not appreciated by
the mine’s customers. This reduces the efficiency of
furnaces.
w 1.855.815.4385 e [email protected] t nunainnovations.com