Pertti Lamberg - Profile on Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Pertti Lamberg

Geometallurgy is a growing area within a mineral processing industry. It brings together tasks of... more Geometallurgy is a growing area within a mineral processing industry. It brings together tasks of geologists and mineral processing engineers to do short and medium term production planning. However, it is also striving to deal with long term tasks such as changes in either production flow sheet or considering different scenarios.
This paper demonstrates capabilities of geometallurgy through two case studies from perspective of Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering division Lulea University of Technology. A classification system of geometallurgical usages and approaches was developed in order to describe a working framework.
A practical meaning of classification system was proved in two case studies: Mikheevskoye (Russia) and Malmberget (Sweden) projects. These case studies, where geometallurgy was applied in a rather systematic way, have shown the amount of work required for moving the project within the geometallurgical framework, which corresponds to shift of the projects location within the geometallurgical classification system.

Comminution test method using small drill core samples

Minerals Engineering

Comminution tests aim to measure the comminution properties of ore samples to be used in designin... more Comminution tests aim to measure the comminution properties of ore samples to be used in designing and sizing the grinding circuit and to study the variation within an ore body. In the geometallurgy context this information is essential for creating a proper resource model for production planning and management and process control of the resource’s exploitation before and during production.

Standard grindability tests require at least 10 kg of ore sample, which is quite a lot at early project stages. This paper deals with the development of a method for mapping the variability of comminution properties with very small sample amounts. The method uses a lab-scale jaw crusher, standard laboratory sieves and a small laboratory tumbling mill equipped with a gross energy measurement device. The method was evaluated against rock mechanics tests and standard Bond grindability test. Within this approach textural information from drill cores is used as a sample classification criterion.

Experimental results show that a sample of approximate 220 g already provides relevant information about the grindability behavior of iron ores at 19% mill fillings and 91% fraction of the critical mill speed. The gross energy measured is then used to calculate an equivalent grinding energy. This equivalent energy is further used for predicting the variations in throughput for a given deposit and process.

Liberation properties of the ore connected to grindability elaborates energy required for grinding and significances of it when deciding to move to higher grinding energy considering the improvement of liberation of the desired mineral. However, high energy significantly enhanced the degree of liberation of magnetite and is expected to improve the concentrate grade after downstream treatment. The higher the magnetite content the better is the liberability of magnetite and the lower the energy required to liberate the desired mineral. Liberability of magnetite is also affected by texture classes containing low magnetite content. A methodology that combines this information has been developed as a practical framework of geometallurgical modeling and simulation in order to manage technical and economic exploitation of resource at early, project stages and during mining operations.

A geometallurgical model is currently built in two different ways. The first and the most common ... more A geometallurgical model is currently built in two different ways. The first and the most common way relies on geometallurgical testing, where a large number of samples are analysed for metallurgical response using small-scale laboratory tests, eg Davis tube testing. The second, mineralogical approach focuses on collecting mineralogical information over the orebody and building the metallurgical model based on mineralogy. At Luleå University of Technology,
Sweden, the latter method has been adopted and taken further in four ongoing PhD studies. The geological model gives modal composition by the help of element-to-mineral conversion and Rietveld X-ray diffraction. Texturally, the orebody is divided into different archetypes, and liberation measurements for each of them are carried out in processing fineness using IncaMineral, a SEM-based technique. The grindability and liberation spectrum of any given geological unit (sample, ore block, domain) are extrapolated from the archetypes. The process model is taken into a liberation level by mass balancing selected metallurgical tests using the particle tracking technique. The approach is general and can be applied to any type of ores. Examples of ongoing studies on iron and massive sulfide ores are given.

Detailed characterisation of antimony mineralogy in a geometallurgical context at the Rockliden ore deposit, North-Central Sweden

Minerals Engineering

The antimony (Sb) content of the Rockliden complex Zn–Cu massive sulphide ore lowers the quality ... more The antimony (Sb) content of the Rockliden complex Zn–Cu massive sulphide ore lowers the quality of the Cu–Pb concentrate. The purpose of this study is to characterise the Sb mineralogy of the deposit. The Sb-bearing minerals include tetrahedrite (Cu,Fe,Ag,Zn)12Sb4S13, bournonite PbCuSbS3, gudmundite FeSbS and other sulphosalts. On a microscopic scale these minerals are complexly intergrown with base-metal sulphides in the ore. Based on these observations mineralogical controls on the distribution of Sb-bearing minerals in a standard flotation test are illustrated. Deposit-scale and rock-related variation in the Sb-content and distribution of Sb-bearing minerals were found. This underlines the importance in understanding the geological background as a basis of a 3D geometallurgical model for Rockliden. Such a model is expected to predict the Sb content of the Cu–Pb concentrate, among other process-relevant factors, and helps to forecast when the Cu–Pb concentrate has to be treated by alternative processes, such as alkaline sulphide leaching, before it is sold to the smelter.

Practical way to quantify minerals from chemical assays at Malmberget iron ore operations – An important tool for the geometallurgical program

Minerals Engineering

This is the first step in establishing a geometallurgical program for the Malmberget iron ore dep... more This is the first step in establishing a geometallurgical program for the Malmberget iron ore deposit, northern Sweden. Geometallurgy captures geological and metallurgical (processing) information into a spatially-based predictive model of mineral processing characteristics. This paper describes the develop- ment of a practical, fast and inexpensive technique to quantify minerals from routine chemical assays. Ore samples and process samples from two different orebodies were used in the process of developing this element to mineral conversion technique that involved electron microprobe (EPMA), X-ray fluores- cence (XRF) and SATMAGAN analyses. The method was validated against QEMSCAN analyses. From the calculated modal mineralogy an ore classification system was established based on the iron mineralogy, iron mineral grades and gangue mineralogy to create a preliminary geological/geometallurgical model of the ore. However, in a geometallurgical context the modal composition is not sufficient and the geological model requires information on mineral textures, too.

Mineralogical information forms an essential basis in geometallurgy. Minimum information required... more Mineralogical information forms an essential basis in geometallurgy. Minimum information required in a mineralogical approach of a geometallurgical program is: modal mineralogy (mineral quantities) and mineral textures. Based on this information it is possible to link geological model with production model. Modal analysis is currently mostly done with Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) based image analysis, often called as automated mineralogy. As this method is tedious, slow, and costly, and has some limitation, an alternative technique was developed by combining quantitative X-ray diffraction (XRD) and chemical assays by X-ray fluorescence (XRF). In iron ores in Northern Sweden combined method gives a quantity of about ten minerals with adequate accuracy.

In the simulation of processes, which treat minerals, the mineralogical information is often igno... more In the simulation of processes, which treat minerals, the mineralogical information is often ignored or defectively used. A proper mineralogical characterization analyses the minerals present, gives their chemical composition and specific gravity. Moreover it defines the particle size distribution and with liberation analysis describes the particles present. This information with the help of the particle tracking technique creates a basis for creating property based models. To use the full potential of mineralogical information the process simulator should have a capability to importing directly the liberation analysis measurement files. A generic structure of a simulator supporting the particle level information and property based models is described.

HSC Chemistry 6.12

Outotec Researck Oy, Pori, …, Jan 1, 1974

World Congress, Jan 1, 2011

This paper presents a novel simulation concept for operator training in the field of mineral proc... more This paper presents a novel simulation concept for operator training in the field of mineral processing. The simulations are carried out with a dynamic process simulator HSC Sim ® of HSC Chemistry ® developed by Outotec Research Oy. The simulator is fitted to mimic an existing copper flotation circuit as accurately as possible by using metallurgical models and then integrated into a larger simulation environment, providing the operator trainees a realistic experience of the process. The simulation environment is designed to be scalable and very flexible, allowing many different usage scenarios and thus aiding in the transfer of the tacit knowledge from operator generation to the next. Concurrent work is being done on higher level analysis, utilizing the results reported in this paper.

pure.ltu.se

Geometallurgy combines geological and metallurgical information to create spatiallybased predicti... more Geometallurgy combines geological and metallurgical information to create spatiallybased predictive model for mineral processing plants. A review of how geometallurgy is currently applied in mining industry shows that the linkage of geological information and metallurgical response relies on small number of samples tested in laboratory. Therefore a holistic particle-based approach is proposed. The particle-based approach uses minerals and particles as a common parameters going through the geometallurgical program from the collecting of the geological data to the process simulations. The approach consists of three quantitative models: 1) geological model, 2) particle breakage model and 3) unit process models. The geological model describes quantitatively and spatially modal composition and texture of the ore. The particle breakage model that describes quantitatively what kind of particles will be produced as the rocks given by the geological model are broken. The unit process models quantify how particles behave in different unit operations. For developing and managing the models some practical techniques are described and proposed. Finally the models are combined in a simulator which is used to run the process simulation and derive process performance parameters for each ore block individually. The process performance parameters include figures like throughput; energy consumption; concentrate recovery and grade; and tailing properties. Finally a practical example from Kemi chromite mine is given.

L a m b e r g , P e rtti , 2005 . F rom G e n e tic C oncepts to P r actice -L ithoge o c h e mic... more L a m b e r g , P e rtti , 2005 . F rom G e n e tic C oncepts to P r actice -L ithoge o c h e mical Identifi cation of N i-C u M ine r a lised I ntrusions a n dL o calisa tion of theO r e . G e o l o g i c a l S urv e y o f F i n l a n d, B u lle t i n 4 0 2 . 264 p a g e s , 18 3 figure s , 40 t abl e s a n d dat a CD a s a n a ppe n d ix.

Lima, RMF, Ladeira, ACQ, Da Silva, CA et. al …, Jan 1, 2007

The relevance and value of liberation analysis for plant design and optimisation is well establis... more The relevance and value of liberation analysis for plant design and optimisation is well established. However, especially in flotation, the use of liberation information provided by image analyser systems such as the JKMRC Mineral Liberation Analyser (MLA) and QEMSCAN, has been largely concentrated on deportment (or losses) studies of valuable minerals in circuits. In addition, in all data presentation packages, liberation data are presented in a simplified fashion where multiphase particles are treated as binaries (i.e. valuable mineral plus other minerals lumped together). A more robust and rigorous approach for diagnosis, modelling and optimisation of circuits is to perform liberation analysis considering all mineral phases in particles. To this aim, a systematic methodology has been developed for reconciliation of multiphase particles. The method consists of seven steps aiming to minimize the error propagation of liberation data. The steps are as follows: 1) unsized mass balance, 2) size-by-size mass balance, 3) conversions from elemental assays to mineral quantities, 4) liberation data reconciliation, 5) particle classification and binning, 6) smoothing of liberation data, 7) mass balance of particle classes (i.e. liberation mass balance of multiphase mineral particles).

JOM Journal of the …, Jan 1, 2004

HydroCopper TM technology comprises a chloride-leaching method for copper sulfi de concentrates a... more HydroCopper TM technology comprises a chloride-leaching method for copper sulfi de concentrates and copper production up to semi-products. As compared with the commonly used sulfate solutions, brine solutions offer aggressiveness and stability of the copper(I) ion and, consequently, a lower energy consumption in leaching. Copper(II) ions and oxygen are used as oxidants. Iron reports to the leaching residue as oxide and sulfur as elemental sulfur. Gold is dissolved and recovered in the third stage of the counter-current leaching when the redox potential reaches higher levels.

Geometallurgy is a growing area within a mineral processing industry. It brings together tasks of... more Geometallurgy is a growing area within a mineral processing industry. It brings together tasks of geologists and mineral processing engineers to do short and medium term production planning. However, it is also striving to deal with long term tasks such as changes in either production flow sheet or considering different scenarios.
This paper demonstrates capabilities of geometallurgy through two case studies from perspective of Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering division Lulea University of Technology. A classification system of geometallurgical usages and approaches was developed in order to describe a working framework.
A practical meaning of classification system was proved in two case studies: Mikheevskoye (Russia) and Malmberget (Sweden) projects. These case studies, where geometallurgy was applied in a rather systematic way, have shown the amount of work required for moving the project within the geometallurgical framework, which corresponds to shift of the projects location within the geometallurgical classification system.

Comminution test method using small drill core samples

Minerals Engineering

Comminution tests aim to measure the comminution properties of ore samples to be used in designin... more Comminution tests aim to measure the comminution properties of ore samples to be used in designing and sizing the grinding circuit and to study the variation within an ore body. In the geometallurgy context this information is essential for creating a proper resource model for production planning and management and process control of the resource’s exploitation before and during production.

Standard grindability tests require at least 10 kg of ore sample, which is quite a lot at early project stages. This paper deals with the development of a method for mapping the variability of comminution properties with very small sample amounts. The method uses a lab-scale jaw crusher, standard laboratory sieves and a small laboratory tumbling mill equipped with a gross energy measurement device. The method was evaluated against rock mechanics tests and standard Bond grindability test. Within this approach textural information from drill cores is used as a sample classification criterion.

Experimental results show that a sample of approximate 220 g already provides relevant information about the grindability behavior of iron ores at 19% mill fillings and 91% fraction of the critical mill speed. The gross energy measured is then used to calculate an equivalent grinding energy. This equivalent energy is further used for predicting the variations in throughput for a given deposit and process.

Liberation properties of the ore connected to grindability elaborates energy required for grinding and significances of it when deciding to move to higher grinding energy considering the improvement of liberation of the desired mineral. However, high energy significantly enhanced the degree of liberation of magnetite and is expected to improve the concentrate grade after downstream treatment. The higher the magnetite content the better is the liberability of magnetite and the lower the energy required to liberate the desired mineral. Liberability of magnetite is also affected by texture classes containing low magnetite content. A methodology that combines this information has been developed as a practical framework of geometallurgical modeling and simulation in order to manage technical and economic exploitation of resource at early, project stages and during mining operations.

A geometallurgical model is currently built in two different ways. The first and the most common ... more A geometallurgical model is currently built in two different ways. The first and the most common way relies on geometallurgical testing, where a large number of samples are analysed for metallurgical response using small-scale laboratory tests, eg Davis tube testing. The second, mineralogical approach focuses on collecting mineralogical information over the orebody and building the metallurgical model based on mineralogy. At Luleå University of Technology,
Sweden, the latter method has been adopted and taken further in four ongoing PhD studies. The geological model gives modal composition by the help of element-to-mineral conversion and Rietveld X-ray diffraction. Texturally, the orebody is divided into different archetypes, and liberation measurements for each of them are carried out in processing fineness using IncaMineral, a SEM-based technique. The grindability and liberation spectrum of any given geological unit (sample, ore block, domain) are extrapolated from the archetypes. The process model is taken into a liberation level by mass balancing selected metallurgical tests using the particle tracking technique. The approach is general and can be applied to any type of ores. Examples of ongoing studies on iron and massive sulfide ores are given.

Detailed characterisation of antimony mineralogy in a geometallurgical context at the Rockliden ore deposit, North-Central Sweden

Minerals Engineering

The antimony (Sb) content of the Rockliden complex Zn–Cu massive sulphide ore lowers the quality ... more The antimony (Sb) content of the Rockliden complex Zn–Cu massive sulphide ore lowers the quality of the Cu–Pb concentrate. The purpose of this study is to characterise the Sb mineralogy of the deposit. The Sb-bearing minerals include tetrahedrite (Cu,Fe,Ag,Zn)12Sb4S13, bournonite PbCuSbS3, gudmundite FeSbS and other sulphosalts. On a microscopic scale these minerals are complexly intergrown with base-metal sulphides in the ore. Based on these observations mineralogical controls on the distribution of Sb-bearing minerals in a standard flotation test are illustrated. Deposit-scale and rock-related variation in the Sb-content and distribution of Sb-bearing minerals were found. This underlines the importance in understanding the geological background as a basis of a 3D geometallurgical model for Rockliden. Such a model is expected to predict the Sb content of the Cu–Pb concentrate, among other process-relevant factors, and helps to forecast when the Cu–Pb concentrate has to be treated by alternative processes, such as alkaline sulphide leaching, before it is sold to the smelter.

Practical way to quantify minerals from chemical assays at Malmberget iron ore operations – An important tool for the geometallurgical program

Minerals Engineering

This is the first step in establishing a geometallurgical program for the Malmberget iron ore dep... more This is the first step in establishing a geometallurgical program for the Malmberget iron ore deposit, northern Sweden. Geometallurgy captures geological and metallurgical (processing) information into a spatially-based predictive model of mineral processing characteristics. This paper describes the develop- ment of a practical, fast and inexpensive technique to quantify minerals from routine chemical assays. Ore samples and process samples from two different orebodies were used in the process of developing this element to mineral conversion technique that involved electron microprobe (EPMA), X-ray fluores- cence (XRF) and SATMAGAN analyses. The method was validated against QEMSCAN analyses. From the calculated modal mineralogy an ore classification system was established based on the iron mineralogy, iron mineral grades and gangue mineralogy to create a preliminary geological/geometallurgical model of the ore. However, in a geometallurgical context the modal composition is not sufficient and the geological model requires information on mineral textures, too.

Mineralogical information forms an essential basis in geometallurgy. Minimum information required... more Mineralogical information forms an essential basis in geometallurgy. Minimum information required in a mineralogical approach of a geometallurgical program is: modal mineralogy (mineral quantities) and mineral textures. Based on this information it is possible to link geological model with production model. Modal analysis is currently mostly done with Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) based image analysis, often called as automated mineralogy. As this method is tedious, slow, and costly, and has some limitation, an alternative technique was developed by combining quantitative X-ray diffraction (XRD) and chemical assays by X-ray fluorescence (XRF). In iron ores in Northern Sweden combined method gives a quantity of about ten minerals with adequate accuracy.

In the simulation of processes, which treat minerals, the mineralogical information is often igno... more In the simulation of processes, which treat minerals, the mineralogical information is often ignored or defectively used. A proper mineralogical characterization analyses the minerals present, gives their chemical composition and specific gravity. Moreover it defines the particle size distribution and with liberation analysis describes the particles present. This information with the help of the particle tracking technique creates a basis for creating property based models. To use the full potential of mineralogical information the process simulator should have a capability to importing directly the liberation analysis measurement files. A generic structure of a simulator supporting the particle level information and property based models is described.

HSC Chemistry 6.12

Outotec Researck Oy, Pori, …, Jan 1, 1974

World Congress, Jan 1, 2011

This paper presents a novel simulation concept for operator training in the field of mineral proc... more This paper presents a novel simulation concept for operator training in the field of mineral processing. The simulations are carried out with a dynamic process simulator HSC Sim ® of HSC Chemistry ® developed by Outotec Research Oy. The simulator is fitted to mimic an existing copper flotation circuit as accurately as possible by using metallurgical models and then integrated into a larger simulation environment, providing the operator trainees a realistic experience of the process. The simulation environment is designed to be scalable and very flexible, allowing many different usage scenarios and thus aiding in the transfer of the tacit knowledge from operator generation to the next. Concurrent work is being done on higher level analysis, utilizing the results reported in this paper.

pure.ltu.se

Geometallurgy combines geological and metallurgical information to create spatiallybased predicti... more Geometallurgy combines geological and metallurgical information to create spatiallybased predictive model for mineral processing plants. A review of how geometallurgy is currently applied in mining industry shows that the linkage of geological information and metallurgical response relies on small number of samples tested in laboratory. Therefore a holistic particle-based approach is proposed. The particle-based approach uses minerals and particles as a common parameters going through the geometallurgical program from the collecting of the geological data to the process simulations. The approach consists of three quantitative models: 1) geological model, 2) particle breakage model and 3) unit process models. The geological model describes quantitatively and spatially modal composition and texture of the ore. The particle breakage model that describes quantitatively what kind of particles will be produced as the rocks given by the geological model are broken. The unit process models quantify how particles behave in different unit operations. For developing and managing the models some practical techniques are described and proposed. Finally the models are combined in a simulator which is used to run the process simulation and derive process performance parameters for each ore block individually. The process performance parameters include figures like throughput; energy consumption; concentrate recovery and grade; and tailing properties. Finally a practical example from Kemi chromite mine is given.

L a m b e r g , P e rtti , 2005 . F rom G e n e tic C oncepts to P r actice -L ithoge o c h e mic... more L a m b e r g , P e rtti , 2005 . F rom G e n e tic C oncepts to P r actice -L ithoge o c h e mical Identifi cation of N i-C u M ine r a lised I ntrusions a n dL o calisa tion of theO r e . G e o l o g i c a l S urv e y o f F i n l a n d, B u lle t i n 4 0 2 . 264 p a g e s , 18 3 figure s , 40 t abl e s a n d dat a CD a s a n a ppe n d ix.

Lima, RMF, Ladeira, ACQ, Da Silva, CA et. al …, Jan 1, 2007

The relevance and value of liberation analysis for plant design and optimisation is well establis... more The relevance and value of liberation analysis for plant design and optimisation is well established. However, especially in flotation, the use of liberation information provided by image analyser systems such as the JKMRC Mineral Liberation Analyser (MLA) and QEMSCAN, has been largely concentrated on deportment (or losses) studies of valuable minerals in circuits. In addition, in all data presentation packages, liberation data are presented in a simplified fashion where multiphase particles are treated as binaries (i.e. valuable mineral plus other minerals lumped together). A more robust and rigorous approach for diagnosis, modelling and optimisation of circuits is to perform liberation analysis considering all mineral phases in particles. To this aim, a systematic methodology has been developed for reconciliation of multiphase particles. The method consists of seven steps aiming to minimize the error propagation of liberation data. The steps are as follows: 1) unsized mass balance, 2) size-by-size mass balance, 3) conversions from elemental assays to mineral quantities, 4) liberation data reconciliation, 5) particle classification and binning, 6) smoothing of liberation data, 7) mass balance of particle classes (i.e. liberation mass balance of multiphase mineral particles).

JOM Journal of the …, Jan 1, 2004

HydroCopper TM technology comprises a chloride-leaching method for copper sulfi de concentrates a... more HydroCopper TM technology comprises a chloride-leaching method for copper sulfi de concentrates and copper production up to semi-products. As compared with the commonly used sulfate solutions, brine solutions offer aggressiveness and stability of the copper(I) ion and, consequently, a lower energy consumption in leaching. Copper(II) ions and oxygen are used as oxidants. Iron reports to the leaching residue as oxide and sulfur as elemental sulfur. Gold is dissolved and recovered in the third stage of the counter-current leaching when the redox potential reaches higher levels.