ME Elecmetal combines a deep understanding of the processes and equipment we commit to optimizing. Our hybrid liners and grinding media are designed to add value to ball mill operations.
ME Elecmetal works to offer the widest range of complementary products and services, tailored to the operational scenario and priorities of each client.
Through the liners and grinding media we manufacture, we aim to generate benefits for our clients based on the metallurgical, technological, and design knowledge that ME Elecmetal’s experience allows us to offer.
ME Elecmetal’s Quality department focuses on the analysis of alloys and material compositions, both cast and rubber, to calibrate the best possible performance of the parts we manufacture for secondary grinding.
Among the recent developments in the final phase, soon to be added to our solution mix is a new liner design with an internal mesh incorporated into the steel (to prevent detachment in case of fracture) and liners made with combinations of different steels (for “intelligent” or differentiated wear).
Likewise, other important areas such as Digital Business Development and Early Alert contribute to our secondary grinding solutions, with technological services that help better monitoring and forecasting of their performance.
ME PolyFIT®
Due to its composite material, the hybrid liner tends to be more expensive to manufacture than the traditional liner made entirely of steel. However, because of its lighter weight and by reducing the total number of parts, they can immediately impact the maintainability of ball mills and the safety of the responsible personnel.
ME Elecmetal, with over a century of experience in casting parts, uses its own steel to manufacture the hybrid products it currently offers in the secondary grinding market. This traceability of origin allows better control over the final quality of the products, opening a horizon of optimization and improvement opportunities that an expert perspective can translate into concrete operational benefits.
For these reasons, in recent years the hybrid liner has positioned itself as a highly reliable option, which our technical-commercial team incorporates into technical solutions impacting the relevant KPIs of a plant.
Although campaigns tend to be extensive, secondary grinding presents a suitable scenario for prospecting opportunities. ME Elecmetal generates protocolized validation tests for new options in liners and grinding media, aiming to improve ball mill performance.
Depending on their operating parameters, these benefits may present themselves in terms of particle size distribution, lower circulating load, reduction of unplanned stoppages, or other relevant process variables such as greater mineral liberation or better power utilization.
In this context, ME PolyFIT® hybrid products have demonstrated their effectiveness and lower effective cost in secondary grinding processes: availability, maintainability, reliability, and safety are some of the KPIs that can be improved.
In the case of ME PolyFIT® hybrid liners, these simulations allow the necessary adjustments for a harmonious integration into the ball mill.
Grinding balls
The quality and performance of ME Elecmetal grinding media has been widely validated in mining operations worldwide and is based on two fundamental pillars: quality and performance.
The first is determined by the raw material used. Thanks to our company’s joint venture with Longteng Special Steel Co., the steels used in our manufacturing process guarantee a quality compatible with the most demanding requirements of our clients.
The second pillar, performance, comes from a thorough understanding of the comminution process and its stages. This know-how allows us to respond with specific solutions for all types of operational strategies and mill brands.
The commitment to the quality and performance of our grinding media translates into concrete benefits, protocolized in the form of a campaign test aimed at validating the theoretical performance achieved by the balls in preliminary simulations and modeling.
Every test begins by determining the baseline, which sets the initial reference to surpass in terms of performance. At this point, the relevant KPI or consumption variable to prioritize is defined, without prejudice to the complementary benefits that ME Elecmetal includes in its proposal as part of its optimization services portfolio.
The second stage begins with the purge of the mill where the new grinding media will be tested. This corresponds to the transition between the gradual emptying of the previously charged balls in the mill and the new ones to be tested. As can be expected, the results produced during this period are not part of the final report.
Finally, once the purge is completed, the effective test begins, during which the performance of ME Elecmetal grinding media is compared with the baseline period and partial reports are generated that will form the final report.
The main operational variables associated with mill ball consumption are as follows:
– Grams of steel consumed per kilowatt hour
– Grams of steel consumed per ton processed
– Kilograms of balls added per hour of mill operation.
From these three indicators, the client can estimate how much grinding media their equipment is consuming, which is projected based on cost to establish the effective cost of the ball per ton processed.
Workshop in Peru
To showcase the advantages of our hybrid liners and secondary grinding media, within the framework of our participation in Perumin 2022, we want to invite superintendents, plant managers, and other professionals in the field to an exclusive event for mining clients, consisting of a workshop and subsequent cocktail to be held in the city of Arequipa on Tuesday, September 27 at 7 p.m. (Casa Andina Select hotel).
Registration is free and interested parties can sign up via the online form provided on our website for this purpose. Registered persons will receive an official invitation by email or phone.
Ultra Grind II
Ultra Grind II is a patented design ball prepared to better withstand wear. In the numerous tests it has undergone, it has demonstrated a performance between 8 and 15 percent superior to its predecessor, the successful Ultra Grind I.
Single size vs. mix
As in Chile and other major mining centers worldwide, Peru is already adopting the trend to optimize secondary grinding performance by combining two different ball sizes. The analysis of operational data and a thorough knowledge of all mill brands allow ME Elecmetal to recommend the ideal equation according to the characteristics and operational strategy of its clients.
At Perumin 2022
“The organization of this workshop within the framework of Perumin 2022 seeks to inform decision-makers in Peruvian mining that in secondary grinding ME Elecmetal offers the same technical and service capabilities that have cemented our reputation in SAG grinding worldwide.” (Percy Jiménez, product manager Grinding Media ME Elecmetal)
