Main engineering and mining expertise firm The Weir Group PLC, and CiDRA Minerals
Processing Inc, a frontrunner in mineral processing applied sciences, have introduced that they’ve signed a
international collaboration settlement alongside a strategic funding by Weir in CiDRA’s mining enterprise.
This partnership will speed up the commercialisation and deployment of CiDRA’s P29 expertise, which introduces an progressive mineral separation answer and unlocks novel flowsheet designs. Underneath the phrases of the settlement, Weir and CiDRA will collaborate globally to leverage the advantages of the P29 expertise to develop and ship transformative flowsheet options to assist mining firms meet the challenges of lowered head grades, water restrictions, lowered carbon emissions, and tailings impound security.
CiDRA’s P29 utilises its proprietary engineered hydrophobic media
CiDRA’s P29 Know-how is a novel mineral separation platform relevant to a broad vary of minerals. Utilising CiDRA’s proprietary engineered hydrophobic media, the method decouples and independently optimises the important thing steps of particle selectivity and attachment, transport, and stripping/launch. This allows extremely selective restoration throughout a large particle dimension vary – from ultra-fine to coarse – whereas minimising hydraulic entrainment. P29 helps progressive flowsheet designs that cut back vitality and water use and unlock important enhancements in mineral restoration and operational effectivity.
Commenting on the settlement, Andrew Neilson, President of Weir’s Minerals division stated: “We’re excited to collaborate with CiDRA, whose monitor file of innovation aligns strongly with Weir’s mission to ship mining expertise for a sustainable future. CiDRA’s P29 expertise has the potential to unlock enhanced productiveness and sustainability for purchasers and we’re happy to assist deliver that affect to mines all over the world.”
Kevin Didden, CEO of CiDRA added: “This strategic partnership with Weir represents a transformative alternative for CiDRA to scale its progressive P29 expertise with a associate that has international attain, a customer-centric method and that’s deeply embedded within the mining worth chain. Collectively, we purpose to shift the paradigm in minerals processing by enabling mining firms to considerably cut back vitality and ESG associated impacts per tonne of metallic produced, whereas unlocking substantial worth from in-ground belongings.”
By this partnership, CiDRA and Weir will collectively develop and ship cutting-edge mineral processing flowsheets that mix elevated throughput with high-efficiency comminution and mineral separation options, with the purpose of lowering vitality and water utilization per tonne of metallic produced. The collaboration will mix CiDRA’s innovation engine with Weir’s in depth customer-centric international footprint, complementary product vary and vertically built-in working mannequin.
Collectively, the businesses say they are going to drive ahead a shared imaginative and prescient: to make mining smarter, extra environment friendly, and extra sustainable – delivering enhanced useful resource restoration with lowered environmental affect per tonne of metallic produced.
Out available in the market, BHP said in June 2024 in its Program for Setting Safety and Rehabilitation submitting for the Carrapateena copper operation in South Australia that the location is trialling the CiDRA P29 coarse particle separation course of with the purpose of accelerating the MPP throughput by enjoyable the first grind dimension.
BHP: “The CiDRA course of treats the entire MPP tails, together with each rougher and cleaner tails by way of a proprietary coarse particle restoration unit operation which is able to immediately dealing with the complete dimension distribution of the incoming tails stream. This restoration expertise has very excessive selectivity such that the resultant mass restoration is as little as 1% to three% with a focus grade equal or better than the rougher flotation focus grade. This coarse particle restoration stream is subsequently directed to the regrind circuit for additional processing as per the prevailing MPP flowsheet. The trial plant would course of as much as 5 t/day with the fabric subsequently returned to the prevailing MPP…topic to the outcomes of trials, BHP could implement the CiDRA course of inside the Carrapateena MPP course of flowsheet.”
