Chapter 18

THE GOLDSTRIKE AUTOCLAVE PLANT

DESIGN, COMMISSIONING AND OPERATION

K.G. Thomas
Senior Vlce President, American Barrick Resources Corp., Toronto, ON

H. Pieterse
Assist. Vlce President-Engineering, American Barrlck Resources Corp., Elko, NV

R. Williams
Autoclave General Foreman, Barrlck Goldstrlke Mines, Inc., Elko, NV

K.S. Fraser
Senior M e t a l l u r g i s t , Kilborn Limited, Toronto, ON

J .R. Goode
Manager o f Metallurgy, Kllborn Limited, Toronto, ON

ABSTRACT i s about 40 km (25 miles) northwest of

the town o f C a r l l n which I s situated on
The Goldstrike autoclave p l a n t i s I n t e r s t a t e Highway 80. The s i t e I s
designed f o r the pressure oxidation o f about 1700 m (5576 f t ) above sea l e v e l
1363 t / d (1500 stpd) o f r e f r a c t o r y gold I n the Tuscarora Mountains.
ore. The p l a n t was commissioned i n
e a r l y February 1990 over a one week I n i t i a l Goldstrike Operations
period - an unusually short period f o r a
p l a n t o f t h i s complexity. The rapid Shallow, low-grade mineralization was
p l a n t start-up i s a t t r i b u t e d t o c e r t a i n discovered by diamond d r l l l i n g I n the
d e t a i l e d design and c o n t r o l aspects o f Goldstrlke area I n the 1960's. A heap
the plant. leach operation was established I n the
mid-1970's by the previous owners.
This paper discusses key features o f
the autoclave p l a n t w i t h emphasis on the The Post deposit was discovered I n
design o f the splash/flash system o f 1982. Gold production by mining and
heat recovery and the control systems. heap leaching reached 1 t / a (40,000
Commissioni ng and p l a n t operations over
the f 1r s t three months are reviewed.
oz/a) .
American Barrick purchased t h e
property I n 1987 and s t a r t e d an
BACKGROUND aggressive program of deep d r i l l i n g .
This l e d t o the discovery o f the Deep
Locatl on Post/Betze deposit and establ ished
s u f f i c i e n t reserves t o j u s t i f y an
The Goldstrlke property i s located I n i n i t i a l 4100 t / d (4500 stpd) m i 11 and a
Eureka County i n north-central Nevada on 5 500 000 t / a ( 6 m i l l i o n tons/a) heap
the C a r l i n geological trend. The mine leach operation.
181
182 ADVANCES IN GOLD AND SILVER PROCESSING

Geology and Reserves Oxlde M i l l

The deeper deposits occur i n s i l t y The Goldstrike oxide m l l l was

limestones which have been s i l i c i f i e d
and a r g i l l i z e d . Gold i n t h e sulphide
ore occurs mainly as inclusions i n f i n e -
grained p y r i t e and marcaslte. Oxidized
ore l i e s i n t h e upper p a r t s o f t h e
deposit.
Total ore reserves have increased
dramatically as more d r i l l i n g has been
performed. Reserves which stood a t 18 t
(0.6 m i l l i o n ounces) o f gold a t
a c q u i s i t i o n increased t o over 620 t (20
m i l l i o n ounces) a t t h e end o f 1989.
Almost 90% o f the gold i s i n r e f r a c t o r y
sulphide ore. This makes autoclavlng
p a r t i c u l a r 1y important t o Barrick.
commissioned on August 5, 1988 w i t h a
capacity o f 4100 t / d (4500 stpd). The
p l a n t incorporates a jaw crusher, a 1865
kW (2500 hp) semi-autogenous (SAG) m i 11
and two b a l l m i l l s w i t h a t o t a l o f 2275
kW (3050 hp). Ground ore i s c l a s s i f i e d
i n cyclones and cyclone overflow t r e a t e d
f o r gold recovery i n a conventional
carbon-in-leach (CIL) c i r c u i t .
Loaded carbon i s s t r i p p e d using the
h i g h temperature Zadra process. Gold i s
recovered from the s t r i p s o l u t i o n by
electrowinning. Cathodes are t r e a t e d i n
a r e t o r t f o r mercury recovery before t h e
gold i s r e f i n e d I n an induction furnace.

Betze Development Plan Overview I n 1989/1990, t h e oxide m l l l capaclty

The $400-mi 11i o n Betze Development
Plan was announced on January 9, 1989.
The Plan involves the staged expansion
o f f a c i l i t i e s a t Goldstrike t o permit
t h e annual production o f up t o 30 t (1
m i l l i o n ounces) o f gold.
was increased t o 5500 t / d (6000 stpd)
through t h e a d d i t i o n o f a cone crusher
i n t h e SAG c l r c u l t , increasing the m l l l
speeds, modifying t h e m l l l l i n e r s and
grates and changing t h e CIL c i r c u i t .
The c i r c u i t I s shown i n Figure 1.

D e t a i l s o f the Plan have changed as

JAW SAG

-
the deposit has become b e t t e r defined. CRUSmR WL
The sequence i s summarized i n Table 1. I

I CYCLONE I
1990 Oxide 4 100 I '1 .-e LUTOCLAVE RESDUE I
Sulphlde 1360
5460 6.2

1991 Oxide 4 100

Sulphlde 1 360
5 460 12.2
I I
1992 Oxide 6 100 Figure 1 Goldstrike Oxide C i r c u i t
Sulphlde 5 500
11 600 11.5 DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
1993 Oxide 0 I n i t i a l Testwork and Studies
Sulphlde 11 600
11 600 31.0 B a r r i c k and K i l b o r n s t a r t e d an
i n t e n s i v e program o f testwork when t h e
importance of Goldstrike's r e f r a c t o r y
Table 1 Betze Developlent Plan ore became apparent. E a r l i e r testwork
 GOLDSTRIKE AUTOCLAVE PLANT DESIGN 183

produced the data o f Table 2. Flotatlon

t e s t s showed only 75% gold recovery t o a
bulk, 20% mass p u l l , concentrate. 7 g/t (0.2 oz/st)
Silver 1 g/t ( .02 oz/st)

I PROCESS RECOVERY -%
I Copper
Lead
Zinc
Cyanidation 10 t o 20 Iron
Chlorlnatlon 15 t o 40
-

'
Flotatlon,Roast
with T a l l s Leach
Whole Ore Roast 75
Pressure O X I ~ .
50

88
t o 60
t o 85
t o 95
I Sulphur
Sulphur

Carbon - Total
Total
- Sulphlde
2.5 %
2.1 %

1.36 %
I
Carbon - as C 4 3.5 %
I Carbon - Organlc 0.75 %
fable 2 Recovery frm Goldstrike O r e -
I n i t i a l Test Data

Prellmlnary economlc analyses clearly

I
I
Mercury
Arsenic
Table 3 Goldstrike Ore Analysis
26 PPm
0.15 %
I

showed t h a t pressure oxidation was the

preferred process. I n t h i s operation
the gold-bearing sulphldes are oxidized
using oxygen gas under elevated pressure
and temperature. Oxidation destroys the
sulphide structure and exposes the gold
thereby maklng It more amenable t o
cyanldation. Detailed study o f the
process was in l t l ated.
D e f i n i t i v e Tests and Studies
D r l l l data and orebody model l i n g
established the t y p i c a l ore compositlon
sunmarlzed i n Table 3.
oz/st). Fine sulphides (20 micrometres)
assay as high as 170 g/t (5 oz/st).
Thickening. Tests and prel lminary
studies showed that an autoclave feed
containing a t least 40% solids was
desirable. This would require 50%
sollds i n the feed t o the pre-heat
system. A thickener would therefore be
required t o partially dewater the
grinding cyclone overflow. Tests showed
that a hlgh r t e type t h i c ener sized
f o r 8.8 t/d.
suitable.
-3 5
(0.9 stpd/ft ) would be

The metallurgical team designed a

detailed program o f testwork. An
i n i t l a l serles o f bench scale tests was
undertaken by Lakefield Research,
Ontario, Canada. A program o f p i l o t
plant t e s t s was then designed and
several laboratories Invited t o make
proposals. The work was awarded t o
Hazen Research, Golden, W.
Principal flndlngs o f the definitive
bench and p i l o t scale t e s t s were:
Mlneraloav. Pyrite and marcaslte are
the maln sulphldes with minor quantities
of arsenopyrite, pyrrhotite and
chalcopyrite. Most o f the gold occurs
as 0.5 micrometre grains i n p y r i t e and
marcasite. Coarse sulphides (200
micrometres) contain up t o 16 g / t (0.5
Carbonate Reduction, Tests Indicated
that the Goldstrlke ore was preferably
oxidized i n the presence o f 10 t o 15 g/L
o f free sulphuric acld. Oxidation o f
the sulphides produces acid but
carbonates i n the ore consume acld. To
ensure that oxidation takes place under
acid conditions, excess carbonate must
be destroyed before the ore enters the
autoclave.
Pr The batch tests
established that the rate o f oxldatlon
Increased with free acid content o f the
slurry. Tem rature variations i n the
IY
range o f 185 c (365OF) t o 225'~ ( 4 3 7 ' ~ )
had only minor impact on the overall
rate o f oxidation, other factors being
constant. Design resldence times o f
 184 ADVANCES IN GOLD AND SILVER PROCESSING

75 minutes were required f o r 95%

sulphlde oxidation a t an oxygen p a r t i a l I PLANT CONFIGURATION COST 1
pressure o f 345 kPa (50 p s i ) .

Neutrallzatlon Several 3 lines, 6 compartment 71

autoclave plants separate the oxidized horizontal, splash/f lash
s l u r r y i n t o l i q u i d and s o l i d f r a c t i o n s heat exchanger (HX)
by thickening. Acidic solutions are
neutralized and p r e c i p i t a t e d s o l i d s
discarded. Oxidized s o l i d s are washed
f r e e o f solute and neutralized before
I 3 lines, 6 compartment
horizontal, double pipe HX 69 I
CIL treatment. On some ores t h i s 4 11nes , 5 compartment 74
treatment y i e l d s improved gold recovery. horizontal, splash/flash HX
I t i s also a means o f cooling the
autoclave product p r i o r t o CIL
processing. 1 2 lines, 7 v e r t i c a l pots
per 1lne, splash/flash HX 68 1
The separate treatment route requi res 2 lines, 6 v e r t i c a l pots 69
expensive, acid-proof thickeners and two per l i n e , splash/flash HX
separate n e u t r a l i z a t i o n c i r c u i t s . Tests
on Goldstrike ore showed t h a t a bulk
n e u t r a l i z a t i o n step would work well.
Design requirements were established. 1
1
2 lines, 8 v e r t i c a l pots
per l i n e , double pipe HX

Comparing Type o f Vessel and Heat

65 1
I

P i l o t Plant. The basic autoclave p l a n t

flowsheet was established from the bench Exchanger. 1988 data, 4500 t / d plant.
t e s t data and preliminary economic
analyses. Major elements o f the
proposed p l a n t were then tested i n a Final Design C r i t e r i a
continuous p i l o t operation.
The various t e s t programs and
During t h e p i l o t plant operation, a comparat ive studies were used t o develop
t o t a l o f 3 t o f Goldstrike ore were the general flowsheet o f Figure 2. The
processed through a 24 L capacity f i n a l process design c r i t e r i a are
autoclave. Six t e s t campaigns were sumnarized i n Table 5 .
completed processing up t o 10 kg/h
during runs o f about 60 h duration each.

- 0 Throughout the
development period various mini-studies
were conducted t o guide the testwork and
permit selectlon o f the f i n a l design.
The economic r e s u l t s o f a t y p i c a l study
are presented i n Table 4 . Plant
o p e r a b i l i t y , a v a i l a b i l i t y , c a p i t a l and
operating costs featured i n the
selectlon process as well as economic
factors.

A spreadsheet template was developed

t o solve the complex material and
thermal balances around the autoclave.
This proved essential t o the rapid
assessment o f a l t e r n a t i v e p l a n t I
k i g u r e 2 Ooldstrike Autoclave C i r c u i t
configurations.
 GOLDSTRIKE AUTOCLAVE PLANT DESIGN

I UNITS DATA 1 the f i r s t o f two 12 m dia. x 13 m (40'

dia. x 42') acidulatlon/surge tanks.
Sulphuric acid i s added t o destroy
Genersl s u f f i c i e n t carbonate t o give a minimum
Average Feed Rate t/d 1360 required f r e e a c i d i t y l e v e l i n the
stpd 1500 autoclave discharge. A i r i s injected
Plant Avai lab11l t y X 85 i n t o the acidulation tanks t o s t r i p
Thickener carbon dioxide. The second tank also
Cyclone O/F Solids X 38 acts as a surge tank providing enough
Thickener Type High Rate feed t o keep the autoclave plant
Feed Sol ids X 12 operational when the grinding c i r c u i t i s
U/F Solids X 50.0 processing oxide ore.
U n i t Rate t/d. m1 8.8
Pressure Oxldatlon Splash/Fl ash Heat Exchange
Reaction Temp. OC 225
"F 437 Ore s l u r r y i s pre-heated t o 177'~
Oxygen Pressure Kpa 345 (350"~) i n a series o f three splash
PSI 50 condensers. The heat source I s l i v e
Design React. Time min 75 steam released from the autoclave
Sulphlde Oxldatlon X 95 discharge i n f l a s h vessels.
Oxygen Consumed kg/kg S 3.1
Oxygen U t i l i z a t i o n X 60
Vessel Canpartments 5 A l l three condensers are 2.3 m
-
Heat Recoverv Tmceratures i n t e r n a l diameter (1.d.) by 9.1 m side
System Feed OC 32 wall height (7.6'i.d. x 30'). The
Vessel Feed OC 177 carbon steel vessels are l i n e d w i t h acid
Approach Temp. OC 3 b r i c k and provided w i t h splash t r a y s t o
Peak CIL Feed OC 27

Main System
-
Heat Recovery Svstenog
Splash/Flash
Number o f Stages
Final Cooling Shell and Tube
I I
Table 5 Simplified Design C r i t e r i a f o r
Goldstrlke Phase 1 Autoclave Plant.
PLANT DESIGN
Feed Source and Preparation
Sulphide ore i s campaigned through
the crushing plant and stockpiled
separately. The Goldstrlke grinding
plant i s operated on oxide ore f o r about
18 h/d and sulphide ore f o r 6 h/d. The
grinding m i 11s are flushed out between
ore changes. Cyclone overflow i s pumped
t o the 30 m (100 ft) diameter pre-
oxidation thickener when sulphides are
being processed.
During about 18 h every day the
thickener underflow i s recirculated.
When new feed i s entering the system,
the thickener underflow i s advanced t o
maximize contact between steam and feed
slurry.
3 The bottan o f each vessel acts as a
pumpbox f o r the inter-stage f w d pumps.
These consist o f a s i n g l e operating pump
between the f i r s t and second splash
tower and a two-stage system between the
second and t h i r d tower. A1 1 inter-stage
pumps are 6" x 4" Denver Orion units.
The high pressure ( t h i r d ) condenser
product i s pumped by two Geho ZPM 600
s l u r r y pumps i n t o the autoclave. Each
pump can d e l i ver approx imatel y 60% o f
the required feed r a t e t o the autoclave.
When one pump i s shut down f o r valve
maintenance o r other work, the second
pump i s operated a t maximum speed.
Therefore planned shutdowns do not
seriously affect plant avai lab1l i t y .
Autoc 1eve
The autoclave vessel i s 4.12 m 1.d.
by 18.5 m tangent t o tangent (13.5' 1.d.
x 60.9'). I t has a proprietary
membrane/brick l i n i n g suitable f o r acid
service. The vessel i s i l l u s t r a t e d I n
Figure 3.
 ADVANCES IN GOLD AND SILVER PROCESSING
I pressure from the s l u r r y . As the
SLURRY-/ LAGITATOR
&SLURRY
INLET MANHOLE OUTLET
-
PLAN (TYP)
'OR
ELEVATION
Figure 3 General Arrangement of Autoclave
Each o f the f i v e compartments i s
provided w l t h a 93 kW (125 hp) mixer
mechanism. Shafts are equipped w l t h a
double mechanical seal. A sophisticated
seal water cooling/flushing system I s
provided. Each mixer i s mounted on a
flange sized t o permit removal o f the
mechanism, shaft and impeller without
dismantling the assembly.
Oxygen i s introduced t o each
compartment through a d i p tube extending
t o beneath the impeller.
Steam can be admitted through a
second plpe t o pre-heat the vessel o r
provide supplementary heat i f sul phide
levels are low. Cooling water can be
added through the same plpe t o l i m i t the
temperature i f necessary. Thls may be
required I n t h e l a s t few compartments -
especially i f sulphur l e v e l s are very
high.
Slurry Cooling
Slurry e x i t s the autoclave a t about
225'~ (437'~). A target temperature o f
2 7 ' ~ ( 8 0 ' ~ ) was set f o r the CIL feed t o
minimize carbon loading problems and
cyanide consumption.
An i n i t i a l s l u r r y cooling stage
involves the controlled release o f
pressure I s lowered, p a r t o f the water
i n the s l u r r y i s evaporated thereby
cooling the s l u r r y .
Control led pressure reduct ion takes
place i n a series o f three f l a s h tanks.
Each i s provided w l t h a r e s t r i c t i o n
o r i f i c e (choke) through which the s l u r r y
passes. Each choke i s sized f o r a
predetermined pressure drop selected t o
give the required thermal balance. As
an example, the f i r s t (high pressure)
f l a s h tank I s equipped w l t h a 71 mm
(2.8") choke designed t o create a
pressure drop o f 2.2 HPa (320 p s i ) a t
the design flow rate. I n contrast the
l a s t stage u n i t has a 89 mm (3.5") choke
and a pressure drop o f only 275 kPa (40
psig).
A l l three f l a s h tanks are 3 m 1.d. by
3.7 m tangent t o tangent (10' 1.d. x
12') and have a side o u t l e t f o r s l u r r y
discharge. Thls ensures t h a t there i s a
pool o f s l u r r y I n the vessel a t a l l
times t o protect the b r i c k l i n i n g o f the
flash tank from d i r e c t s l u r r y
impingement. Thls feature has been
missed from other desi gns and resulted
i n rapid f a i l u r e o f the l i n i n g due t o
abrasion effects.
The steam from each f l a s h tank i s
ducted t o the corresponding splash
condenser t o preheat the feed t o the
autoclave. A t one p o i n t i n the design,
the team considered the use o f cyclones
t o prevent the carry-over o f s l u r r y
droplets i n the steam. However t h i s
concept was rejected i n favour of larger
f l a s h tanks and steam ducts.
The larger f l a s h tanks also provide
greater inter-stage surge capacity and
improve c i r c u i t control.
The configuration o f a flash/splash
u n i t i s i l l u s t r a t e d i n Figure 4.
Flash evaporation i s not e f f e c t i v e
below the b o i l i n g p o i n t o f water.
Therefore shell-and-tube heat exchangers
are used t o reduce the s l u r r y
temperature t o t h e desired CIL feed
temperature. A cooling tower i s used t o
dispose o f low grade heat.
 GOLDSTRIKE AUTOCLAVE PLANT DESIGN
FROM FEED
SPLASH
"3r
CONDEN
TO HIGH PRESSURE
SPLASH CONDENSER
FEED PUMPS
I ~ l g u r e4 Arrangmmt o f ~ n t e m i a t ;
Pressure Splash/Flash Cool ing/Heating
Systen
Neutrallzatlon and CIL
Cooled s l u r r y I s pumped t o the f l r s t
o f three n e u t r a l l z a t l o n tanks connected
I n series. The acld I n the s l u r r y I s
neutralized w l t h llme s l u r r y . I t was
Intended t o pump neutral s l u r r y t o the
CIL c l r c u l t when the grinding c l r c u l t I s
handllng sulphldes. As noted below,
t h l s strategy has been revised.
Reagents and U t l l l t l e s
Flocculant. A packaged flocculant
system i s used f o r the preparation and
dlspenslng of reagent used f o r the
thickener. Deslgn capaclty I s 250 kg/d
(530 lb/d).
Concentrated acid I s
displaced from road tankers by dry a l r
i n t o a 330 t capaclty storage tank. I t
I s dispensed from a loop l l n e t o the
acldulatlon tanks. Acid consumptlon
varies w l t h ore carbonate content.
Design acld handllng capaclty I s 39 t / d
(43 stpd).
Oxvnen. Big Three I n d u s t r i a l Gas, I n c
o f Houston, TX own and operate the 160
187
t / d (175 stpd) cryogenic plant located
adjacent t o the autoclave plant.
The oxygen plant Includes 530 t (580
s t ) o f l l q u l d oxygen storage capaclty as
a precautlon.agalnst oxygen production
problems. Up t o 8 t / d (9 stpd) o f
l l q u l d oxygen can be produced f o r
storage.
Hlgh pressure oxygen I s dellvered t o
the autoclave through a blow-out tank
and other safety devlces t o ellmlnate
the p o s s l b l l l t y o f s l u r r y belng blown
back t o the oxygen plant.
Clme. Lime I s stored I n a 230 t (250
s t ) capaclty s l l o before slaklng I n a
detention type u n l t . Slurry contalnlng
15% s o l i d s I s held I n a 7.6 dla. x 7.6 m
(25' x 25') storage tank and d l s t r l b u t e d
through a loop l l n e .
Steam. Steam I s provlded from an 18 t / h
(40,000 lb/h) capaclty, 4.1 MPa (600
p s l ) bol l e r . The water q u a l l t y a t the
Goldstrlke s l t e i s poor. An elaborate
water treatmant plant I s provlded
Including c l a r l f l e r s , polymer traps,
reverse osmosl s and demlneral lzers.
A blow-out tank and other safety
devlces are provlded t o prevent back-
flow of s l u r r y t o the b o i l e r .
Alr. The autoclave plant I s provlded
w l t h hlgh pressure Instrument and plant
a l r compressors and a low pressure
process a1r compressor.
Plant Layout
'The arrangement o f the autoclave
p l a n t was developed by a team t h a t
Included several operators w i t h e a r l i e r
autoclave plant experlence. The team
had a c l e a r understanding o f the
operating and malntenance problems
created by unsatisfactory layout a t
other autoclave plants.
The team ensured t h a t good crane
access was provlded t o a l l pumps,
agltators, large s l u r r y valves and other
hlgh maintenance Items.
 188 ADVANCES IN GOLD AND SILVER PROCESSING

An important f a c t o r i n the design was Materials o f Construction

the f a c t t h a t the p l a n t w i l l be expanded
i n l a t e r phases o f the Development Plan. Acidic pressure oxidation presents
special, and p o t e n t i a l 1y severe,
It should also be noted t h a t the corrosion and abrasion problems.
Goldstrike s i t e i s extremely r e s t r i c t e d . Materials s e h c t e d f o r the Goldstrike
This required a compromise between good p l a n t are presented i n Table 6.
access t o equipment and a compact plant.
The r e s u l t i n g layout i s shown i n Figures
5 and 6. ITEM WETTED SURFACE
Thickener Painted Steel
Acidulation Tk. Chlorobutyl Rubber
Acidulation Agit. Chlorobutyl Rubber
SPLASH Splash Tks. Acid-proof Brick
CONDENSERS Inter-stage Pumps High C r I r o n
Geho - Housing CD4MCu
~ e h o- valves CD4MCu
Geho - Diaphragm EDPM
Autoclave Shell Acid-proof Brick
I n j e c t i o n Tubes Hastelloy C276
Auto. Aglt. Shaft T i Grade 12
Auto. Aglt. Imp. T i Grade 5
Flash Tank Walls Acid-proof Brick
Flash Valve Body T i Grade 2
Flash Choke Ceramic

Flash-Splash Steam Ducts

High Pressure Ti
Medium Pressure 20Cb-3
LOW pressure 316 Stainless Steel

Cooler Feed Pumps Chlorobutyl Rubber

Cooler Shell Carbon Steel
Cooler Tubes 316 Stainless Steel
Neut. Tank Chlorobutyl Rubber

r:z /
Neut. Tank Agit. Chlorobutyl Rubber

/ AGITATOR
REM~V-
AUTOCLAVET
J pONDENSEf?
SPLASH Table 6 Materials o f Construction

CONTROL SYSTEMS

D i s t r i b u t e d Control System

The autoclave p l a n t i s provided w i t h

a Bailey Network 90 d i s t r i b u t e d control
system (DCS). The DCS i s provided w i t h
two operator s t a t i o n s providing 15
screens o f process graphics, alarms,
trends and remote s t a r t / s t o p f unct ions.
An engineering workstation i s provided
f o r system configuration.

I I Two process control u n i t s are

Figure 6 Plant Section a t High Pressure provided, one f o r the autoclave and one
Flash Tanks f o r the a n c i l l a r y c i r c u i t s . A t o t a l of
 GOLDSTRIKE AUTOCLAVE PLANT DESIGN
about 300 discrete and 100 analogue
loops are handled by the system.
Thickening and A c i d i f i c a t i o n
Thickener underflow pumping r a t e I s
governed by t h e underflow density.
Flocculant i s added a t a pre-set rate.
Acid i s added t o the acidulation
tanks a t a pre-set r a t e determined by
the l e v e l o f carbonate i n the feed and
the ore flow rate.
Splash/Flash System
E f f e c t i v e control o f the splash/flash
system I s c r u c l a l t o t h e operation o f
the c i r c u i t .
The dynamics o f t h e system are q u i t e
complex making control p o t e n t i a l l y
d l f f l c u l t . For example, an increase i n
the flow o f cold s l u r r y t o a splash
condenser w i l l cause more s t e m t o
condense and reduce the pressure i n the
condenser. This reduces the head across
the condenser feed pump which causes the
flow t o increase even f u r t h e r .
The primary controlled variable i n
the system I s t h e flow r a t e between the
intermediate and high pressure splash
condenser. Flow r a t e i s sensed w l t h a
magnetic flowmeter and controlled by a
variable speed pump. The level i n the
high pressure splash condenser i s used
t o control the speed o f the autoclave
feed pump.
A cascade l e v e l / f low system i s used
t o control the r a t e a t which s l u r r y i s
pumped from the low pressure t o the
intermediate pressure condenser. The
level i n the intermediate condenser i s
used t o modify the set p o i n t on a flow
control loop on the lntermedlate
condenser feed pump.
The feed t o the low pressure
condenser I s governed by t h e s l u r r y
level I n t h a t vessel.
The low pressure condenser I s
operated a t atmospheric pressure. The
other two splash condensers are provided
w l t h pressure controlled vent valves.
The rather complex control system
described above worked flawlessly. It
allowed an extremely rapid and trouble-
free cmlssioning.
Control o f the pre-heat system i s
considerably eased through careful
design o f the system geometry. The
vessels are elevated t o ensure a high
head over suction o f each pump. 'This
provides a measure o f passive flow
control and ensures t h a t the pump
suction requirements are s a t i s f i e d .
R e s t r i c t i o n o r i f i c e s i n the inter-stage
pipe 1ines steepen the system curves and
f u r t h e r improve control. The surge
capacity provided i n the bottom o f the
vessels also improves c i r c u i t s t a b i l i t y .
Autoclave
Oxygen i s admitted t o the autoclave
a t a pre-set, control led rate. The
requl red feed r a t e I s calculated from
the sulphlde sulphur level i n the
autoclave feed assuming 60% u t i l i z a t i o n
and a consumption o f 3.125 kg o f oxygen
per kg o f sulphide sulphur. An
additional, f i x e d amount o f oxygen I s
added t o compensate f o r vent losses.
As i n e r t gases, such as nitrogen and
carbon dioxide, accumulate i n the
autoclave atmosphere, the pressure tends
t o Increase. A vent valve I s used t o
remove i n e r t s and control autoclave
pressure. Attempts t o use an on-line
oxygen analyzer have so f a r met w l t h
only l i m i t e d success.
Steam i s added t o the f i r s t and
second autoclave compartments t o control
the temperature t o pre-set levels.
Water i s automatically added t o the l a s t
three compartments t o control
temperatures.
A nuclear source and detector array
determine the level i n t h e l a s t
compartment. The choke valve on the
f i r s t flash tank i s modulated t o hold
the desired level.
Sampl 1ng
The autoclave plant i s provided wlth
sampling systems t o allow proper
 ADVANCES IN GOLD AND SILVER PROCESSING
assessment o f operating performance.
Sampling systems generally consist o f a
primary t h i e f sampler followed by a
secondary moving pipe type sampler.
Energy d i s s i p a t i n g tanks have been
provided between the two samplers.
CONSTRUCTION AND COMMISSIONING
General Schedule
Authorization f o r t h e autoclave
p r o j e c t was given i n mid-September,
1988. The order f o r t h e longest
d e l i v e r y item, the autoclave was awarded
immediately. The autoclave was received
on s i t e i n mid-June, 1989. I n s t a l l a t i o n
o f the l i n i n g system and acid curing was
completed a t the end o f September 1989.
The i n s t a l l a t i o n o f process and
service piping and the inspection and
cleaning o f the oxygen systems were
completed i n mid-January 1990.
Slurry was f l r s t admitted t o the
autoclave i n l a t e January and continuous
operation achieved on February 2, 1990.
Production data from t h a t date are
discussed below.
Check-out and Comissionlng Problems
There were remarkably few problems
during the check-out and comnissioning
period. The main problems were as
follows:
Agitator Seals. The double mechanical
seals supplied w i t h the autoclave
a g i t a t o r s were of a modified design.
Retaining pins were inadequate f o r the
torque and sheared. The problem was
eliminated by increasing the strength
and the number o f pins. The addition o f
glycol t o the closed-loop cooling f l u i d
system also helped by acting as a
l u b r i c a n t a t the seal face.
B a l l Valves. Trunnion mounted b a l l
valves are i n s t a l l e d as block valves
around the autoclave and t o prevent
back-flow from the high-pressure splash
condenser. I n i t i a l operations w i t h
these valves indicated very high
operating torque requirements a f t e r a
few valve cycles. These problems were
accomnodated during t h e start-up. The
valves have since been modified by t h e
a d d i t i o n o f hard surfacing on the
trunnions and bearing surfaces and the
addition o f l u b r i c a n t t o the trunnion.
TrWD Oversize. E a r l i e r operation o f
the p l a n t was made d i f f i c u l t by the
presence o f coarse ore p a r t i c l e s .
Construction debris was also a minor
annoyance. Problems were eliminated by
the re-routing o f sump l i n e s and the
addition o f second stage t r a s h screens
on the p l a n t feed .
Feed D i l u t i o n . Feed t o the autoclave
pre-heat c i r c u i t was o f lower than
desired s l u r r y density during the f l r s t
few days o f operation. D i l u t i o n was
reduced by re-routing o f sump lines.
Strainer Blockage. Perforated basket
s t r a l n e r s are provided on the suction
l i n e s o f the autoclave feed pumps.
These are intended t o protect the
p o s i t l v e displacement pumps from damage
by coarse debris. During startup, the
s t r a l n e r s required frequent cleaning
because o f tramp oversize.
More recently the s t r a i n e r s have
agai n requi red frequent clean1 ng .
The
entrapped material i s scale. This
originates i n the high pressure splash
condenser, becomes detached from the
walls and entrapped by t h e strainer.
Under some c i rcumstances, p a r t la11y
blocked s t r a i n e r baskets have resulted
i n erosion perforation o f the s t r a i n e r .
OPERATING RESULTS
Plant Throughput
The p l a n t throughput has increased as
r e s t r i c t i o n s have been I d e n t i f i e d and
eliminated. Daily tonnages i n excess o f
1820 t / d (2000 stpd) have been comnon.
Plant a v a i l a b i l i t y has also shown a
steady improvement. Seven-day running
averages i n excess o f 96% have been
achieved. The average a v a i l a b i l i t y over
the f i r s t three months was 77%.