Siemens weighfeeders contribute to a positive bottom line for mining companies.
Backfill is widely used in mines to fill voids, improve structural support and prevent cave-ins and air blasts. Cement is commonly used as a binding agent but the cost can make up as much as 5% of a mining company’s operating costs. To help offset the cost, materials such as fly ash, slag, gypsum and lime are often added. These are mixed with water, sand, mine tailings and other aggregates.
To ensure safety it is important to optimise the strength and quality of the backfill. At the same time operating costs must be minimised. Low grade backfill can be used in noncritical applications while higher grades with more tensile strength are required in areas of high load. The recipe for the backfill differs depending on the specific purpose of each batch. Hence the ratio in which the ingredients are blended must be closely monitored to ensure that the correct specification is obtained.
This can be achieved with the Siemens Sitrans WW300 weighfeeder combined with the Milltronics BW500 integrator. Together they control the rate of flow of the binder materials into the mixing process by continuously weighing them on a conveyor belt and varying the belt speed. The system is rugged and low maintenance and allows cost effective, accurate weighing and feeding of materials.
The binder ingredients are stored in silos. Since the particles are very fine, there is normally a rotary airlock feeder at the bottom of the silo to control the flow of material from the silo to the weighfeeder below. The weighfeeder is usually enclosed in a housing with a dust collector port to handle the fine dust generated.
The rate of material flow is compared to a setpoint in a control loop, and the rotary valve and speed of the conveyor belt are varied in unison to deliver a controlled, accurate flow of material to the mixing process. The integrator provides dual loop PID control of the weighfeeder’s drive and can also be programmed for batch control. The weighfeeders and integrator accurately weigh and consistently control the flow of the expensive binder materials into the mixing process to maintain the backfill quality and plant efficiency while minimising the operating costs.
Optimising the product design process Siemens South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
OPmobility is partnering with Siemens to adopt its Teamcenter X Product Lifecycle Management software. OPmobility’s increasingly complex products now include electronics and software, to create energy storage systems, which include battery and hydrogen electrification solutions and fuel tanks.
Read more...Siemens automation portfolio, your bridge to the industrial metaverse Siemens South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
Step into the future with Siemens’ automation portfolio, your bridge to the industrial metaverse. Our cutting-edge solutions integrate AI, digital twins and real-time simulation, driving smarter, more efficient production.
Read more...Siemens elevates automotive and aerospace simulation Siemens South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
Siemens Digital Industries Software has announced the latest update to its Simcenter portfolio, delivering advancements in aerostructure analysis, electric motor design, gear optimisation and smart virtual sensing. These enhancements are designed to streamline workflows, accelerate certification and provide deeper insights into system performance.
Read more...Photorealism-enhanced digital twin with digital reality viewer Siemens South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
Siemens Digital Industries Software has announced its Teamcenter Digital Reality Viewer, a new software solution that brings the NVIDIA Omniverse platform and accelerated computing to Teamcenter, enabling high-quality, high-performance photorealistic visualisation of large, complex datasets common in engineering and manufacturing.
Read more...Immersive engineering for the industrial metaverse Siemens South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
Siemens Digital Industries Software has announced that it is delivering on its next-generation immersive engineering roadmap in collaboration with Sony Corporation. This brings together Siemens’ NX software for product engineering with Sony’s breakthrough head-mounted display (HMD) to enable the industrial metaverse.
Read more...Breakthrough innovations in industrial AI and digital twin technology Siemens South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
Siemens is showcasing its vision for the future where data, AI and software-defined automation will converge to enable unprecedented flexibility, optimisation and continuous improvement across the world’s industries, for companies of any size.
Read more...Next-generation AI-enhanced electronic systems design software Siemens South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
Siemens Digital Industries Software has launched the latest advancement in its electronic systems design portfolio. The next-generation release takes an integrated and multidisciplinary approach, bringing a unified user experience that delivers cloud connectivity and AI capabilities to push the boundaries of innovation in electronic systems design.
Read more...Development of motor control units for automotive industry Siemens South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
SEDEMAC has adopted the Siemens Xcelerator portfolio of industry software, which is used in the development of its motor control units and engine control units. The motor control units are used in EVs, hybrids, ebikes and power tools, while the engine control units are used for off-road and on-road engines.
printer friendly version