by Alex von Muralt, Callidan Instruments, Mackay, Queensland, Australia
Goonyella Riverside is one of the world’s largest operations, producing 13 million tones of hard coking coal per year. It’s based some 200km from Mackay and the Whitsunday Coast. Goonyella Riverside mine is operated by the BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance in the Bowen Basin. In 1989, Goonyella merged operationally with the adjoining Riverside mine, the combined operation is known as Goonyella Riverside mine.
Coal is processed in two coal preparation plants with feed capacities of 2000tph (Goonyella) and 1500 TpH (Riverside), and loaded by two train load out systems of 4000 TpH and 3000 TpH capacity.
Moisture content of the washed coal has to be monitored and controlled for many reasons, maintaining desired specification, handle-ability, dust suppression, product reconciliation, and in some cases spontaneous combustion prevention.
Traditionally this task was carried out via a mechanical sampling plant, which composites a fixed number samples collected randomly within a 2 hour period. This sample is collected and analysed in a lab, giving a moisture result in 2-4 hours, some 4-6 hours after the coal has left the plant. Therefore at least 6,000T of potentially uncompliant or variable coal has passed through the wash plant before any feed back control could be effected.
Recent developments in microwave instrumentation have allowed processing facilities to reliably measure moisture content on-line, which allows control loops to be closed, plant efficiencies improved and output specifications to be maintained. This paper discusses the accuracy of a microwave moisture analyser, which has been supplied to the Goonyella Riverside coal preparation plant.
The analyser was installed initially as a process indicator which would indicate process faults if the moisture went too high. However if the analyser was accurate enough it would be used for coal reconciliation. The analyser was installed on the outlet conveyor from the preparation plant and verified against an automatic sample station on the same conveyor line. All samples collected were analysed by the onsite laboratory and also by SGS.
This paper discusses the method, results and conclusions drawn from the data collected during this trial.
The performance of the analyser was verified against the 12 hour shift samples taken using the sample plant over a 3 month period. The combined error between the analyser and laboratory was found to be 0.44% moisture (at 1 standard deviation).
In conclusion this paper identifies that use of online moisture analysis is as effective as a sample plant and laboratory configuration. However the moisture analyser provides a continuous real time result making it much more effective as a process indicator.
Moisture Analysis at Goonyella Mine
ON-LINE MOISTURE ANALYSIS
AT THE
GOONYELLA COAL MINE,
QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA
by Alex von Muralt, Callidan Instruments, Mackay, Queensland, Australia
Goonyella Riverside is one of the world’s largest operations, producing 13 million tones of hard coking coal per year. It’s based some 200km from Mackay and the Whitsunday Coast. Goonyella Riverside mine is operated by the BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance in the Bowen Basin. In 1989, Goonyella merged operationally with the adjoining Riverside mine, the combined operation is known as Goonyella Riverside mine.
Coal is processed in two coal preparation plants with feed capacities of 2000tph (Goonyella) and 1500 TpH (Riverside), and loaded by two train load out systems of 4000 TpH and 3000 TpH capacity.
Moisture content of the washed coal has to be monitored and controlled for many reasons, maintaining desired specification, handle-ability, dust suppression, product reconciliation, and in some cases spontaneous combustion prevention.
Traditionally this task was carried out via a mechanical sampling plant, which composites a fixed number samples collected randomly within a 2 hour period. This sample is collected and analysed in a lab, giving a moisture result in 2-4 hours, some 4-6 hours after the coal has left the plant. Therefore at least 6,000T of potentially uncompliant or variable coal has passed through the wash plant before any feed back control could be effected.
Recent developments in microwave instrumentation have allowed processing facilities to reliably measure moisture content on-line, which allows control loops to be closed, plant efficiencies improved and output specifications to be maintained. This paper discusses the accuracy of a microwave moisture analyser, which has been supplied to the Goonyella Riverside coal preparation plant.
The analyser was installed initially as a process indicator which would indicate process faults if the moisture went too high. However if the analyser was accurate enough it would be used for coal reconciliation. The analyser was installed on the outlet conveyor from the preparation plant and verified against an automatic sample station on the same conveyor line. All samples collected were analysed by the onsite laboratory and also by SGS.
This paper discusses the method, results and conclusions drawn from the data collected during this trial.
The performance of the analyser was verified against the 12 hour shift samples taken using the sample plant over a 3 month period. The combined error between the analyser and laboratory was found to be 0.44% moisture (at 1 standard deviation).
In conclusion this paper identifies that use of online moisture analysis is as effective as a sample plant and laboratory configuration. However the moisture analyser provides a continuous real time result making it much more effective as a process indicator.
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Fig. 1: Installed Moisture Analyser
Attachments
callidan_goonyella (JPG)
goonyella_graph (JPG)
moistscan-logo1_1 (JPG)
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