The LeachStar suite of controllers, from Mintek, increases plant performance and improves safety by deploying:
- advanced signal fault detection
- safety checks, ensuring safe control of cyanide especially
- advanced control techniques, especially designed for each process unit.
LeachStar Advanced Process Control works in conjunction with a Cynoprobe and C2 Meter to help reduce cyanide consumption by 20 per cent.
Benefits of LeachStar
LeachStar provides a number of advantages:
- Increased plant performance
- Reduced cyanide consumption
- Reduced carbon losses
- Increased recovery.
Thickener Control
When thickeners are located between unit operations, such as between milling and leaching, they present an opportunity to be used in an integrated control strategy. It is possible to significantly stabilise individual thickeners as well as downstream circuit operation by employing an effective thickener control and optimisation solution.
The LeachStar Thickener Controller provides the following benefits:
- Reduces flocculent consumption
- Improves clarity of thickener overflow water
- Ensures stable thickener operation by minimising bed slides of high-rake torque scenarios
- Stabilises the flow rate and density of the underflow, thereby improving the performance of downstream processes.
Cyanide Control
Cyanide is a significant operating cost. Its effective use requires a dosage rate related to the operating conditions on the plant and the pH of the solution must be held in the correct range. Furthermore, cyanide represents probably the most significant health and safety risk on gold circuits. Safe control of the cyanide dosage is imperative.
The following cyanidation-related control and estimation modules are available as LeachStar modules on StarCS:
- Cyanide Concentration Signal Fault Detector
- Cyanide Concentration Soft Sensor
- Cyanide Controller.
Adsorption Control
Carbon-in-pulp plants offer the potential for excellent recoveries of gold, but the operating conditions must be correct. Upsets to the plant must be detected early enough so that the appropriate action can be taken.
Apart from the cyanide and pH controllers already mentioned (and applicable to adsorption control) the LeachStar control suite also includes a carbon management strategy that moves carbon upstream.
Discover the benefits that LeachStar offers by implementing a comprehensive approach to cyanide management.
