DAVE OSBORNE, SOMERSET INTERNATIONAL AUSTRALIA PTY LTD,

AUSTRALIA, DISCUSSES HOW ULTRAFINE COAL CAN ELUDE PRODUCERS

AND OUTLINES HOW THIS CHALLENGE CAN BE OVERCOME.1

R elatively few new beneficiation technologies have emerged in recent

decades – just better designs from existing technology. These designs
have been much enhanced by the emergence of new materials, leading
to improved maintenance and longer component life. Implementation
of better process control and process design approaches has also contributed
significantly, leading to both improved operation and higher efficiency.

| World Coal | Reprinted from April 2015

Reprinted from April 2015 | World Coal |
  

Fig  
Figure 1. 1  Mechanical  
Mechanical (FLSmidth(Wemco
Wemco  
smart"Smart"   cell),  
cell)1, column (Eriez Column   (Microcell)  
Microcell)2 and pneumaticand   Pneumatic  
(Jameson) 3 cells. (Jameson)  cells  

1. Source: 3 4 5
http://www.flsmidth.com/enUS/Industries/Categories/Products/Flotation/WEMCOFlotation/WEMCOFlotation.
Courtesy  FL  Smidth ,  Eries  and  Glencore  Technology  
2. Source: http://www.eriezflotation.com/flotation.
  http://www.jamesoncell.com/EN/Pages/default.aspx.
3. Source:

MostExamples   of  three  of  the  mtechnology

of the more economically ost  common  
that canflotation  
be selectedptorocesses  
obtain ninn  Enhanced
use  are  coking
shown   in  the  from
properties above  Fig  1.  For  
viable coal has already been won. the required outcome for a particular the increased concentration of
the  traditional  mechanical  circuit,  4-­‐8  cells  are  usually  employed  with  no  re-­‐cleaning  of  the  
However, there has always been the source of coal. vitrinite in ultrafine coal.
desire toconcentrate,  
increase recoveryawhen nd  scavenging  of  the  tailings  would  be  regarded   as  unusual.  
nn Positive response R toeagents  
environmental are  not  
“conditioned”  in  the  slurry  Ultrafine
technically possible and cost-effective. and  only  m coal cleaning
inimal   pressures on the disposal of raw
control  of  feed  solids  content  is  applied.  For  the  more  
Power and water conservation concerns The most common types of wet coal coal tailings.
– drivenadvanced   cell  tinypes,  
by considerations regardsi.e.,  
to column  
cleaning a nd  pneumatic  
processes cells  casircuits,  
can be categorised the  feed  
nn Potential may  breduce
to further e  deslimed  
the at  100  –  15
the costmicrons,  
of carbon and legal pressure – either flotation separation or enhanced amount of solid waste
especially  for  thermal  coals,  and  screen-­‐bowl  centrifuges  are  often  selected  because  the   disposal.
offer additional incentive. gravity separation. These processes are
effluent  
Difficult to processwill   “remove”  more  
metallurgical ultrafine  
described below.clays,  etc.  whilst  also  increasing   the  potential  
Flotation is distinctly different from for  controlling  
coals are increasingly being gravity-based separation
the  moisture  content  of  the  flotation  concentrate.  Dosing  of  collector  is  carried  out  as  soon  as   processes
encountered, e.g. in Mozambique Flotation separation employed for coarser fractions. For
(highly practical   with  the  
laminated deposits), use  of  wash-­‐water  
India b eing   c ommon  
Flotation was not extensively practiced t o   m inimize  
this reason, entrainment.  
operating performance   can
(highly  mineralised maceral content) until the early 1970s, when it was often be disappointing. This is often
and Australia’s Bowen Basin usually adopted for higher-value due to a lack of understanding or
Most  seams
(multi‑banded of  the  
with column   and  pneumatic  
metallurgical metallurgicaltypes  
coals. Morehave   been  itihas
recently, n  commercial   operation  
training of operators and isfor   over  two  decades  
most
and  whilst  the  concepts  are  more  or  less  unchanged,  the  designs  have  evolved  to  provide  operators
coal content, such as the Fairhill and also been employed for higher-energy evident with column and pneumatic
Girrah coal deposits). thermal coals. Reluctance in adopting cells, which require added knowledge
Mostand   repairers  
of these emergingichallenges
ncreased  unit  thiscapacity,  
process wasimproved  
mainly due toaccess,  lower   and w ear  and  deterioration  and  as  a  resul
skill.
lower  greater
are demanding capital   and  operating  
liberation, costs.    problems
marketing Fig  2  provides  
caused byaextra
 good  example  
Two types of  tof
his   evolutionary  
flotation mechanismsprocess.    
resulting in finer particle size fines, the high dewatering cost of fines, are in use: mechanical and pneumatic.
distributions. For this reason, new an inability to effectively handle clays or Mechanical flotation is often performed
beneficiation solutions are required. At water quality problems. However, there in a series of agitated cells – or a bank
the top of this list is the need to is currently an increased emphasis on – that keep particles suspended in a
effectively win the ultrafine coal that the process, due to a combination of the turbulent environment needed to
results from increased degradation or following factors: disseminate and disperse air into
comminution by a combination of bubbles. With column and pneumatic
effective cleaning, dewatering and size nn Improved overall coal recovery, cells, the slurry flow is used to keep the
aggregation. This article will review the i.e. combustibles recovery, etc. particles agitated. Air is either sourced
coal cleaning options on offer before nn Consequent reduction in users’ costs, from a compressor (column) or drawn
considering other contributing arising from reduced ash, sulfur, etc. in from the atmosphere (pneumatic).

| World Coal | Reprinted from April 2015

                                                                                                                         
3
 http://www.flsmidth.com/enUS/Industries/Categories/Products/Flotation/WEMCOFlotation/WEMCOFlotation;    
  

Fig.  2  Development  path  for  the  Jameson  Cell  (Courtesy:  Glencore  Technology)  
 
Figure 2. Development path for the Jameson cell. There  are  other  innovations  on  the  horizon  including  the  Concorde  flotation  process6  offer
Source: Glencore Technology. Graeme  Jameson  and  a  Reflux  flotation  cell  shown  below  in  Fig  3  which  is  under  developm
Kevin  Galvin  and  his  team  at  Newcastle  Innovation  in  Research  and  Engineering  (NIER)  in  A
For either type, two phases occur. The only minimal control of feed
  solids
pulp phase is where bubble‑particle content is applied. For the more
contact occurs in both mechanical and advanced cell types – column and
column flotation. However, in pneumatic pneumatic cell circuits – the feed may be
flotation the pulp phase is a quiescent deslimed at 100 – 150 µm, especially for
zone, facilitating separation of the thermal coals. Screen‑bowl centrifuges
collected coal from the tailings with are often selected because the effluent
contacting of bubbles and particles. In all will remove more ultrafine clays, while
cell types, the froth phase is used to also increasing the potential for
separate bubble-particle aggregates from controlling the moisture content of the
the pulp. Water in the froth that reports flotation concentrate. Dosing of collector
to clean coal can entrain fine clay and is carried out as soon as practical. Wash
reduce coal quality. Entrainment can be water is commonly used to minimise
reduced by increasing froth depth, by entrainment.
use of wash water or by reducing the Most of the column and pneumatic
amount of reagents; however, this may types have been in commercial  
also reduce coal recovery. Caution and operation for over two decades and, Fig  3  Reflux  Flotation  Cell  
Figure 3. Reflux flotation cell.
good testing protocols are therefore while the concepts are more or less
essential. Entrainment is most effectively unchanged, the designs have                      evolved                            and
                                     to                    his
              team at Newcastle Innovation in
6
 Jameson,  G.J.  2010,  "New  directions  in  flotation  machine  design."  Minerals  Engineering,  V  23,  pp  835-­‐841.  
overcome by froth washing or, in some provide operators and repairers
7
 Dickinson  J.  E.,  Jiang  K.  and  Galvin  K.  P.  “Fast  Fine  Coal  Flotation  using  a  Reflux  Flotation  Cell”    
Research and Engineering (NIER) in
instances, via desliming occurring in a increased unit capacity, improved
  access, Australia.3,4
separate vessel or chamber.2 lower wear and deterioration. This
Examples of three of the most results in lower capital and
  operating Enhanced gravity separators
common flotation processes in use are costs. Figure 2 provides an example of Originally developed for minerals
shown in Figure 1. For the traditional this process. processing applications, this category is
mechanical circuit, 4 – 8 cells are usually There are other innovations on the capable of upgrading ultrafine particles.
employed with no re-cleaning of the horizon including the Concorde flotation Efficient separations down to below
concentrate. Scavenging of the tailings process offered by Graeme Jameson and 325 mesh (38 µm) can be achieved for
would be regarded as unusual. Reagents a Reflux flotation cell (Figure 3), which is most coals. They are particularly
are not conditioned in the slurry and under development by Kevin Galvin well-suited to the removal of pyritic

Reprinted from April 2015 | World Coal |

 sulfur and other dense minerals.
Commercially available units include:

nn Falcon concentrator.
nn Mozley multi-gravity separator.
nn Knelson concentrator.
nn In-line pressure jig and Kelsey jig.
nn Galvin’s Graviton – suggests strong
potential.

R&D in the past decade suggests that

  there could be a steady adoption of some
he  conundrum  of  selecting  the  most  “cost-­‐effective”  solution  for  treating  the  barren  tailings  
of thesefrom  
units because they offer a small
footprint solution and ability to treat
otation  is  still  the  subject  of  much  conjecture.  This  is  made  more  challenging  by  the  need  to  move  
quite a wide range of coal feed types as
way  from  the  impoundment  “solution”,  undoubtedly  the  cheapest  one,  towards  a  more   effectively as spirals and teetered bed
Figure 4. High-g decanter centrifuge for ultrafine coal dewatering.
esponsible  one  incorporating  “cost-­‐effective”  disposal  of  a  handle-­‐able  paste  or  semi-­‐solid   material.    
separators.

Dewatering solutions
Examples of screens include various
types of static sieves, several of them
variants of the DSM sieve bend. The
flowsheets adopted often incorporate the
classifying hydrocyclone. There are also
several examples of specifically
developed fines screens including the
Derrick Stack Sizer, Bivitec screen and the
Hein Lehmann Liwell screen. Dewatering
of ultrafine coal is perhaps the most
significant development and includes a
wide variety of equipment – most of
which is still evolving in terms of
lowering achievable moisture levels and
increasing particulates recovery. This
includes:
 
Fig  4Figure
 Example   o f   t ailings   d ewatering   a nd   d isposal   o ptions  
5. Example of tailings dewatering and disposal options (after Honaker, et al).
( After   H onaker,  
5 e t   anl)n8   Centrifuges of various types,
including screen-bowl and
 
solid‑bowl decanters.
g.  4  illustrates  two  common  options  for  treating  coal  flotation  tailings,  but  geotextile  bn ags   into   and pressure filters: rotary
n Vacuum
hich  the  tailings  sludge  is  pumped  after  “deep”  flocculation  is  another.   drum and disc types, including
n  optimized  solution  for  producing  an  acceptable  product  component  and  satisfactory  tailings   hyperbaric, horizontal belt filters,
recessed plate and membrane filter
isposal  is  that  shown  in  Fig  5.  The  question  marks  are  added  to  highlight  the  fact  that  other   options  
presses, belt press units, etc.
xist  and  each  flowsheet  must  be  a  bespoke  design.     nn Thermal drying, including
fluidised‑bed and flash-type driers,
and microwave treatment.

Most recently, ultrafine coal

dewatering development has been
directed towards higher-g centrifugation
and large diameter hyperbaric filters
(Figure 4).
The conundrum of selecting the most
cost‑effective solution for treating the
barren tailings from flotation is still the
subject of much conjecture. This is made
Figure 6. Emerging fines treatment circuit: an optimised beneficiation approach. more challenging by the need to move

| World Coal | Reprinted from April 2015

Figure 7. Concomitant emergence of supporting technologies.

away from the impoundment solution in addition to unacceptably high Engineers in the coal preparation
– the cheapest – towards a more moisture content. The briquetting option business may not be rocket scientists,
responsible solution incorporating provides a range of advantages but they can make use of some rocket
cost‑effective disposal of a handleable including improved handling, low dust science deliverables, such as advanced
paste or semi-solid material. potential, reduced volume (for materials technology, or high technology
Figure 5 illustrates two common transportation and storage) and a higher outcomes from other industries and
options for treating coal flotation tailings. bulk density for the coal charge to coke other fields, such as chemical reagent
An optimised solution for producing ovens. development, process control and
an acceptable product component and Unit capacities of over 50 tph are now automation.
satisfactory tailings disposal is shown in available. The agglomerating option, Figure 7 shows a timeline with some
Figure 6. The question marks are added usually targeting lower rank coals (with examples of new dewatering
to highlight the fact that other options high inherent moisture) can also equipment, introduction of new
exist and each flowsheet must be a improve combustion performance. materials and process control
bespoke design. Oil-based options have been tried but techniques and adoption of related
Many challenges still exist in are often very cost sensitive. Both innovations that have driven improved
achieving this combined outcome in a briquetting and agglomeration processes utilisation and availability.
cost‑effective way, but the combination are regarded as proven technology in
shown in Figure 6 is gaining acceptance coal applications, but need appropriate Computers and process
in both Australia and the US. The most testing and design to fully justify specific control
desirable outcomes are those offering the commercial adoption on a wider scale. R&D is steadily progressing towards a
overall lowest cost solutions. However, increasing environmental and vision known as the Intelligent Plant – as
transportation cost pressures are first projected by Firth and others from
Briquetting and mounting and creating growing interest. CSIRO more than a decade ago.6 Much
agglomeration of this has already progressed well
Fine coal can present storage, handling Contributing technologies beyond the R&D and incubation stages
and transportation challenges, including The evolution of a true solution follows via an operating plant and is now
fugitive dust and self‑combustion issues a long and steady learning curve. commercially available. A lot of this

Reprinted from April 2015 | World Coal |

work has been focused on improving specialists7 the following collective evolved to meet identified needs because
fines treatment and examples include: thinking was offered as a pathway for of breakthrough technologies emerging
required innovation: in several fields. These include material
nn Plant control and monitoring science, chemical/reagent development,
systems. nn Initial stages of project development instrumentation and control, information
nn Improved flotation performance. demands that so-called front-end and data processing, computer
nn Sensors and circuit control systems. project needs must be met, i.e. simulation and modelling, and sampling
nn Coal quality analysis and no shortcuts for cost savings that and analysis, including robotics. Such
interpretation, i.e. online analysis ultimately jeopardises the project technologies have rarely emerged
with control potential. feasibility. specifically for coal applications, but most
nn Diagnostic wear and maintenance nn Effective gravity-based cleaning have emerged from chemical engineering
protection. processes for fine coal down to and mineral processing innovations that
50 µm, e.g. dense medium options have proved adaptable. These, and many
Process and plant modelling remains are still tempting despite many failed other areas of innovation hold great
a very active research area, applied to attempts. potential for meeting the future needs of
both advanced process control and nn Significant improvements to fine ultrafine coal beneficiation in a changing
process simulation, as well as to aspects coal classification, whether it be world where greater challenges are
of plant design. However, robotics for approximately 0.1 mm or 0.25 mm: emerging, threatening the future of coal
routine tasks, such as sampling and i.e. better hydrocyclones, sieve bends utilisation .
preparation and analysis, currently in use or something new.
in iron ore and other minerals processing nn More predictable and controllable Acknowledgements
applications, have not yet been adopted froth flotation: specific reagent The author would like to acknowledge the
in coal preparation applications. assessment process/procedures and Coal Preparation Society of America for the
opportunity to present these concepts at the
bubble size control, and enhanced Coal Prep International 2014 in Lexington;
Materials science and dosing control and response. and also to his former employer, Glencore,
engineering nn Full suite of online sensing and for supporting attendance at this conference
and for permission to include content as
New materials have played an important control devices that enable optimised noted in the article. Finally, the contributions
part in improving adoption, acceptance operation. made by Australian peers Andrew Swanson,
and performance of equipment in coal nn Centrifuge technology – screen‑bowl Andrew Vince, Bruce Firth, Kevin Galvin,
Frank Mercuri, and Jeff Euston is gratefully
preparation. An insight is provided in the and especially solid‑bowl – that will recognised.
pathway diagram in Figure 1 and get closer to effective dewatering by
includes wear resistant lining materials, zero. References
flow improvement materials and nn High‑pressure filters or high-g 1. Article derived in part from a keynote
lightweight materials replacing steel and solid‑bowl centrifuges for tailings that presentation made at Coal Prep
International 2014, Lexington, Kentucky,
concrete. offer much higher unit capacity and US, on 29 April 2014.
operate reliably and at lower cost. 2. OSBORNE, D.G., HUYNH, L., KOHLI, I.,
Chemicals and reagents YOUNG, M. and MERCURI, F., ‘Two
A plethora of chemicals and reagents In the longer term, a step-change Decades of Jameson Cell Installations
in Coal’, presentation given at the XVII
have been introduced to create improved towards improved liberation and International Coal Processing Congress,
operating conditions and a variety of recovery will need the following:8 Istanbul, Turkey (2013).
health and safety applications. These 3. JAMESON, G.J. ‘New Directions in
include flotation reagents, flocculants and nn Efficient grinding/pulverising Flotation Machine Design’, Minerals
Engineering, vol. 23 (2010), pp. 835 – 841.
coagulants, fugitive dust suppressants systems to get to a size that
4. DICKINSON, J.E., JIANG, K. and
and collection aids, binding and cost‑effectively liberates coal grains GALVIN, K.P., ‘Fast Fine Coal Flotation
agglomeration aids, lubrication and from most of the impurities. using a Reflux Flotation Cell’.
surface protection. nn Range of physical, surface, chemical 5. HONAKER, R.Q., LUTTRELL, G.H.
and MOHANTY, M., ‘Coal Preparation
and other techniques to beneficiate
Research in the USA’, in HONAKER, R.Q.
Plant design and engineering the pulverised coal. (Ed.), Proceedings of the XVI International
The development of advanced computer nn Techniques to agglomerate, store, Coal Preparation Congress (Society of
Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration; 2010)
software and process modelling software handle, transport and dewater the
pp. 345 – 351.
has contributed enormously to plant upgraded pulverised coal.
6. FIRTH, B. A., ‘The Intelligent Plant –
design and engineering improvements, nn Robotic and auto-control solutions Measurement Requirements in Fine Coal
safety enhancement and significant cost for tedious tasks and safety risk Cleaning and Dewatering Circuits’, ACARP
Project Report C11069 (2008), p. 93.
saving. applications.
7. Andrew Swanson (QCC), Andrew Vince
(Elsa Consulting), Bruce Firth (CSIRO),
Future direction Conclusion Kevin Galvin (NIER) and Frank Mercuri
In response to a request made to several There are many success stories where (Anglo American).
prominent Australian coal preparation processes, designs and equipment have 8. Andrew Swanson (QCC), April 2014.

| World Coal | Reprinted from April 2015