Mining
Mining ore slurries, pneumatic transport systems, ore processing. leeching systems and other systems are subject to an array of extreme abrasion & erosion issues. Material & coating selections, as well as designs that minimize turbulence and “solids proofing” are key. 1. DESIGN Cornerstone trunnion mounted ball designs offer the advantage of always rotating –within their own geometry on a fixed ball-stem axis. This means that there is no lateral ball displacement required to move a ball into a fixed seat. Resulting upstream sealing seats allow valve ball/body cavities to be isolated from the particulates in ore slurries – so continuous cavity packing does not occur. (It’s like rotating a broomstick in a pail of sand – easy to rotate about its own axis but harder to displace laterally!) Live loaded scraper seats, smooth full bore flow passages and careful material selections allow Cornerstone valves to operate with minimal flow disruption. 2. Durability Piles of discarded valves, destroyed by severe abrasive/erosive scouring and ball/seat failures are all too common sites at ore processing facilities. Cornerstone trunnion designs offer a far more durable solution. Thru bores that exactly match HDPE liners in adjacent piping and the elimination of turbulence causing diameter changes along a valve’s flow path assist in longevity. Coupled with an attention to solids proofing and material selections, robust solutions are achieved. 3. Reliability All elements in an ore processing facility present valving challenges – whether in transporting slurries, pressure letdown station isolation, dewatering, pneumatic transport or autoclave recovery processes for selected alloys. Downtime costs far more than differential “cost savings” realized by ‘buying cheap’ instead of ‘buying best’ – it’s a process industry. |
CASE STUDY
An iron ore processing facility in the northern USA approached Cornerstone to assist in producing longer lasting valves to control levels in iron ore slurry tanks. Typically, valves were being replaced weekly! Cornerstone’s careful selection of wear materials, coupled with our solids proof trunnion mounted design. Extended service life 20X. Application Areas:
•Slurry Valves •Lock Hopper Valves •Level control valves •Letdown orifice isolation valves •Pipeline transport valves •Dewatering systems •High Pressure water pumping & control systems •Autoclave vent isolation and shutdown •Ore transport systems Cornerstone Products for Mining Industry
•Top Entry Ball Valves •End Entry Ball Valves •Split Body Ball Valves (SB-2) |