If the product size is less than 70mm max particle size, a pipe cpnveyor could travel half the circumference (628 m =400/2xPi) or less to meet your 500m spec.

The pipe would be 330mm diameter and transport at your 5.2 m/s iron ore with 2600 kg/cm. You would need to crush it to 70 mm screen size before loading into pipe. ■

I think the professor wants YOU to rationalize his needs. Not an expert. How will you learn if you don't try.

I already feel guilty. Disregard the earlier post. ■

I am bound to start a brush war here but:

Is the 3,000 ton per hour figure for a shift period or for continuos crushing and loading around the clock? A figure like that will need a wide belt 60 inch or more depending on final ore size and belt type, angle of idlers, etc.

If you make your lake only a foot deep fill it and make a causeway but I am sure your "Professore' Tutore' " will not appreciate my sense of humor or suggestion as apparently he is insistant on an over water route.

Is the crusher a belt feeder breaker such as WR Stamler or a Roscoe belt feeder breaker or others such as a mcclanahan?

If the ore is that size a surface mounted gyratory feeder comes to mind if a conveyor belt feeder breaker is not used.

Has he mentioned if the mine is underground or not etc.

The finer the ore is crushed the easier it is to melt.

It does not have to be specific lump size to transport it!

A possibility is an over water cable gondola delivery system but it will require huge amounts of loading plant equipment and a circular tower path with proper foundations for the towers in the water and a large unloading station for the discharge end.

The more you crush the ore the heavier the load it will be and the more economical a "capsule pipeline" will become as the iron ore load will certainly weigh more than the capsule train of five cars that is transporting it.

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line,

by installing a 24-36 inch inch diameter "capsule pipeline" on a floating bridge of pontoons ment for a "cutter head dredge discharge pipeline" you will have the best of both worlds; a straight line for your conveyance method-which is the least costly, a very heavy ore to move from a to b-the finer you crush it(the ore) the more the payload weight will be available per capsule train load the less effort you need to move the train from a to b due to inertia.

The same capsule pipeline can be used to stock pile your iron ore eliminating the need for a stacking conveyor.

Additional benefits:

Any waste slag can be returned via the capsule pipeline to the loading point for unloading using the capsule pipeline and be

buried at the convenience of the mine operator.

If you generate your own power onsite the power returned by the snynchronus electric motor used in a circular layout around the lake with one drive blower, or two drive motor blowers used in a single pipe sytem across the lake will reduce your fuel bill and you will not be at the mercy of a utility at peak KW hours rate useage.

The single pipe system (Linear path) is the least costly as it uses the least amount of pipe.

The efficiency of using air to move the capsule trains from a to b,

the added plus of suction to increase train speed and return, the ability to generate electricity with a synchronus electric motor with the waste air leaving the capsule pipeline.

The elimination of a belt conveyor of any kind a allows a reduction of labor needs to a part time laborer, round the clock operation with out the need of human assistance or oversight except for cleaning the exhaust air filters and checking the capsule trains when needed for maintenance and for trouble calls generated by the computer program operating the system.

A low pressure high volume blower air system-3 -25 PSI to push the trains from a to b and back a speeds up to 25 miles per hour.

The steel pipe will not require welding as "Victaulic" Fittings and pipe joint gaskets and a pipe groover will be all that is needed to assemble the pipe.

The pipe and pontoons can be assembled and floated on the water as it is assembled with smaller equipment and a very small temporary labor pool and allowed to float from point a to b to be secured to the other mainland pipe connection and loading point.

When the iron ore is exhausted the capsule pipeline can be sold for scrap easily or sold to another user if desired.

No need for guarding of drive units, belt route, or high voltage switches, no guarding of tail pulleys, no walkways along the conveyor, no need for a water rescue system in the event of a man in the water from a possible electricution etc

With a capsule pipeline there are no worries about the conveyor being affected by weather-ice, snow, rain, high winds to blow iron ore dust.

An over water system on a pontoon bridge or floats needs no surveying or special grades for cable or steel supported belts.

The system can be installed under water as well as the pipe is the only thing underwater!!!

No drive units with twin drive pulleys and a take up for belt tension, no tail pulleys, no pulley lagging needed to improve belt traction on the head pulley and drive pulleys, no reduction gear boxes driven by an electric motor, no rubber coupler to tear up, no belt splices, no conveyor belt, no belt stands, no troughing idlers, no return idlers, no spillage, no emergency stops over the water, no speed switches, no electricity over the water, no need for belt covers to reduce water on the belt from rain, no need to grease idlers, no need to train a conveyor belt, no need to adjust idlers, no need for belt skirting at the tail pulley, no need to build chutes for the conveyor head pulley transfer point as there is none etc.

With electricity costs and labor costs ever growing it will cost less to own and operate IN MY OPINION AS A LAYPERSON.

A capsule pipeline has fewer working parts and fewer controls

and less to go wrong IN MY OPINION.

Just a method of conveying that has been in use every day for over a century now and used in concert with victaulic pipe and couplings which have been proven the world over for many years.

Permanent pontoon bridges have been in use for many years as well.

Just my two cents.

A lttle backround:

I am a former hard rock mine mechanic that worked on belt conveyors as part of my job for 22 years.

Conveyors 500 meters or more in distance "in my opinion and my opinion only" are a poor way to deliver material over long distances "IN MY OPINION" from my work experience.

The air to move the capsules is free and the exhaust air can make electricity too and it is much quieter than a belt conveyor.

I have always looked at it this way; liquid and gas pipelines have been in use for a very long time and they work very well and with a little care they work and work...........

Same as above for pnuematic tubes!

Google (Karasawa mine) first- an existing capsule pipeline that has been moving limestone ore for many years- it replaced a rail road operating from a mitsubishi quarry to a mitsubishi cement plant.

Google (capsu.org) second a capsule pipeline history and links.

Goodle(pnuetrans.net) a canadian manufacturer of capsule pipelines. ■

For what it is worth..

We have done many many many many iron ore conveyors here is South Africa.

None of them however go at the high speed you mentioned, as the lumps are extremely heavy and they are horribly abrasive.

Primary crused ore is around minus 250mm with slabs up to 750mm long. It is not until you have been through the tertiary crusher can you think of such high speeds, but then only for longer conveyors.

As for the lake...make a berm through it with landfill, and stick your conveyor on top of that.

Regards

LSL Tekpro ■

Stick with the 24-36 inch capsule pipeline and you will not have any problems.

A sub surface hopper with an air cannon or two using five knife gate slides with measured hopper volume chutes fed from a draw down surge pile to batch load the five unit capsule trains all at once will work nicely and reduce the workload even more.

A single tube in a circular loop pipe set up would work well as only one blower is needed for the work. As many trains as desired can be continously loaded at the same time in a batch loading sequence just as is done on flood loaders at coal mines.

The capsule trains can dump at the stockpile using a tripper belt eliminating a circular stacking conveyor or wheeldozer or tracked dozer. ■

You also had the option of measuring the depth of the lake.

What's the point of examining shoreline topography if the straight line is not known.

As you & Graham say, the belt is far too fast.

Why is the stockpile at one side of the lake & the crusher at the other in the first place? It seems like a frustrated golf course designer has just heard about plant layout.

If you have got to the point where you design an iron ore mine & then find a lake in your path.. you're in the wrong business. ■

I do not understand the criteria of "too fast" with 250mm lump and 5.2 m/s.

There are many conveyors that run faster than 6 m/s with lumps exceeding 400 mm. I have a photo of an iron ore lump >1000mm moving on a conveyor running faster than your criteria.

We have many in copper ore with primary crusher lump > 400mm running at > 6m/s. Examples are Los Pelambres, Collahuasi, and El Abra in Chile.

I can share the concern of moving fast on a 500m short belt, which is more a problem of poor chute design and high cycle rates at the loading station.

Tarbela dam, in Pakistan, had up to 1500mm lumps and ran in the questionable range. ■

Larry

Sishen Iron Ore mine is where I learnt all about the horrors of iron ore from a primary and other crushers. This is about as arduous as it gets

With this under my belt, not even Meg Ryan could convince me that fast is good on primary crushed iron ore. (Although I am prepared to let her try)

I too have seen big lumps on conveyors (see photo in my paper about conveying primary crushed ore in Beltcon 13) this does not mean that it is OK.

Cheers

Graham ■

Graham,

Please share/inform what horrors you have seen or are aware/produced by higher belt speeds and 300-400mm lump outside of the obvious chute loading dynamics and misapplied idler specifications.

We are preparing to increase tonnage and speed of a major hard rock belt to +11000 t/h, at +7.5 m/s, while maintaining its +300 mm large lump transport. There are multiple transfers.

In the iron ore range, in Australia, these speeds are already in practice. I will post the lump size noted earlier. ■

Here comes the largest lump on 1600mm belt.

Attachments

picture2s (JPG)

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Here it goes through the chute onto a 1200mm belt with greater than 5 m/s.

Attachments

picture1s (JPG)

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Larry..

I once saw a young Arabian artisan on a phosphate conveyor in the Negev desert resting on the return strand of a conveyor.

I told him in English and in French that if the conveyor starts up he could get killed until tres mort!

Seemingly he didn't speak either English or French and didn't move.

When I returned he was minced pulp around the tail pulley.

The aftermath of this dreadful event I saw with my own eyes.

I have also seen huge lumps being conveyed with my own eyes.

In my opinion, neither of these things I have seen are OK

Cheers

LSL Tekpro ■

Dear Graham,

I believe you believe. The question is why. I can point out a large number of belts with +6m/s and >300mm lump. Until they where installed, people had doubts of the unknown. Now we know. No more doubts to >7.5m/s.

The photos only show that it can happen without drama. Conveyor is running for many years now without incident.

Why do you have doubts? ■

What sort of charmed life did that specimen big lump have?

It started off amongst some seemingly graded rockery which still didn't help it to fill the belt respectably. Next it appears rather lonesome on a smaller belt, with a few bits chopped off, being chased by a few shovelfulls of fines. While the conveyor might be up to the job the separating equipment, dare I say screens, seem to leave a bit to be desired. There is a bit too much undersize in the oversize.

Then again; if its a combined spoils disposal conveyor the ore deposit is much better than anticipated. That's mining. ■

Big Lump stuffed the chute, which cause the upstream conveyor to shut down. Many were watching and reacted quickly.

Big Lump was shaved to pass the chute bottom and skirts. The downstream conveyor was not immdiately shutdown and is the reason for a bare receiving belt.

The truly big worry is what Big Lump would do to the downstream stockpile feeders. The potential was that it might sterilize one feeder. However, this is outside of the discussion on the ability for belts to transport big lumps. Many large lumps were ejected from the jaw crusher and easily were handled by the overland without incident. It has been running for many years now.

Big Lump is a product of the jaw crusher. Clay lenses and moisture can lead to a mastication of clay that would not otherwise materialize. ■

Greetings and salutations from my corner of the soon to be frozen eastern wilderness @ 1140 feet above mean sea level.

You must have a tenured professor that is bored out of his mind!, anyway a capsule pipeline can be used for this very easily as thier is much less set up time and round the clock operation with out spills or belt conveyor breakdowns and no special foundation work etc. as it can be set on railroad ties on the ground.

The around the lake route can be done with the capsule pipeline but as I have stated earlier the floating pontoons carrying the pipe or installing a submerged capsule pipeline will be much simpler and less costly with almost zero pollution problems. as previously stated.

The circular route allows you to use one continuos pipe and one blower to deliver the capsule trains and return them in the same tube but the installation cost is larger due to the extra pipe required. The route also allows you to dump at the stock pile site eliminating a stacking conveyor.

Have you looked at the sites I recommended as your first step?

Any questions please email me off the board lzaharis@lightlink.com ■

Put in a horizontally curved conveyor then.

Try for at least 2000m radius to be comfortable.

Regards

LSL Tekrpo ■