About the Media Charge_Linear Wear_Ball Mills Spreadsheet ...

Scope :

The Media Charge_Linear Wear_Ball Mills spreadsheet was designed to estimate the Linear Wear Rate Constants for
a ball charge in a Conventional Ball Mill, as a function of its known dimensions and basic operating conditions. Also, the
spreadsheet allows for the calculation of the typical Grinding Media Consumption Rate indicators; that is, gr/ton,
gr/kWh, kg/hr or tons/month.

Theoretical Framework :

The most widely accepted mathematical description of the gradual consumption process experienced by a grinding ball
inside a tumbling mill is known as the Linear Wear Theory, by which the mass rate of consumption of a grinding ball is
described as directly proportional to the surface area exposed by such ball to the various wear mechanisms (abrasion
and/or corrosion) active in the mill charge environment :

W t = d(mb)/d(t) = - km Ab

where :

Wt = mass wear rate, kg/hr

mb = ball weight, kg; after t hours of being charged into the mill.
Ab = exposed ball area, m2
km = mass wear rate constant, kg/hr/m2.

Equivalently, taking into account the geometry of the grinding body (sphere or cylinder), one obtains :

d(d)/d(t) = - 2 km / r b = - kd

where :

d = size (diameter) of the grinding ball, mm; after t hours of being charged into the mill.
rb = grinding ball density, ton/m 3
kd = wear rate constant, mm/hr.

If kd is to remain unaffected by the extent of wear; that is, k d is not a function of the current ball size d - a condition
satisfied by most grinding media varieties and normally referred to as Linear Wear Kinetics - the above expression may
be simply integrated to obtain :

d = dR - kd t

where dR represents the initial size of the balls.

For any given grinding media variety, the constant k d becomes an indicator of its relative quality, as compared to other
alternative products.

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By direct analogy to mineral particle breakage kinetics, it is postulated that an even more representative and scaleable
quality indicator is the Energy Specific Wear Rate Constant [kdE, mm/(kWh/ton)], defined through the expression :

kd = kdE (Pb/Wb) / 1000

where the ratio (Pb/Wb) corresponds to the contribution (Pb) of every ton of balls in the charge (Wb) to the total power draw
(Pnet) of the mill. The underlying theoretical claim is that grinding balls will wear faster in a more energy intensive
environment. Therefore, kdE is expected to be more insensitive than k d to variations in mill operating conditions (that may
affect Pb and/or Wb). As a practical evaluation criterion, it should be then accepted that the top quality grinding
media, in any given application, will be the one that exhibits the lowest value of the wear rate constant k dE.

The above expression creates the need for a theoretical representation of the Mill Power Draw and how each
component of the mill charge (balls, rocks and slurry) contribute to this power demand. The simple Hogg and
Fuerstenau model serves such purpose well (see Spreadsheet Mill Power_Ball Mills).

Then the traditional Grinding Media Consumption Indicators may be obtained from the expressions :

[4000 k W ]d b
Wt = ________________________

dR [ 1 – (dS/dR)4]

where dS represents the average size of the metal scrap being rejected by the mill. Also :

WE = 1000 W t /Pgross , in gr/kWh

WM = WE E , in gr/ton

where E represents the Specific Energy Consumption of the operation, normally expressed in kWh per ton of ore
ground.

Data Input :

All data required by the model must be defined in each corresponding unprotected white background cell of the here
attached Data File worksheet. Gray background cells contain the results of the corresponding formulas there defined
and are protected to avoid any accidental editing.

The spreadsheet may be used in two different modes :

Parameter Estimation Mode : When at least one of the consumption indicators (Cells G26:K26) is known, the user may
"tune" the model to predict that particular value, using the function Tools / Goal Seek, by changing the Wear Rate
Constant (Cell K29).

Simulation Mode : Knowing the value of the Wear Rate Constant (Cell K29) the user may predict Consumption Rates
under different sets of mill operating conditions.

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 Moly-Cop Tools TM

DETERMINATION OF WEAR RATE CONSTANTS

Special Case : BALL MILLS

Remarks Base Case Example

Power, kW
Mill Dimensions and Operating Conditions 3,348 Balls
Diameter Length Mill Speed Charge Balls Interstitial Lift 0 Overfilling
ft ft % Critical Filling,% Filling,% Slurry Filling,% Angle, (°) 536 Slurry
18.50 22.00 72.00 38.00 38.00 100.00 35.00 3,885 Net Total
rpm 12.82 10.00 % Losses
% Utilization hr/month 4,316 Gross Total
% Solids in the Mill 72.00 97.00 698 3,014 MWh/month
Ore Density, ton/m3 2.80
Slurry Density, ton/m3 1.86 Charge Mill Charge Weight, tons Apparent
Balls Density, ton/m3 7.75 Volume, Ball Slurry Density
m3 Charge Interstitial above Balls ton/m3
Ore Feedrate, ton/hr 400.0 63.76 296.48 47.48 0.00 5.395
ton/day 9,312
Energy, kWh/ton (ore) 10.79
Ball Recharge Rate
Make-up Ball Size, mm 75.0 gr/ton gr/kWh (gross) gr/kWh (balls) Kg/hr tons/month
Scrap Size, mm 12.0 625.4 57.96 74.72 250.2 175

Spec. Area, m2/m3 (app) 63.78 Wear Rate Constants,

Total Charge Area, m2 4067 m m/[kWh(balls)/ton(balls)] 1.400
mm/hr 0.0158
Purge Time, hrs 3,985

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