Increasing efficiency by selective comminution

Lower ore grades and rising competition require new, more efficient approaches in ore processing. Instead of blending different ore varieties into a homogeneous feed for processing plants, selective comminution may be a solution for certain mining operations to increase recovery at lower costs. Selective comminution exploits selected ore characteristics to achieve an enrichment of valuable minerals in certain fractions. A simple classification step will already produce a pre-concentrate in this case, while other fractions can be discarded or processed separately. Quantitative Microstructural Analysis (QMA) provides valuable information on the behaviour of an ore in the comminution process. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.