Title

AUTOMATED SAMPLING AND ANALYSIS OF IRON ORE AT THE SALDANHA IRON ORE TERMINAL IN SOUTH AFRICA

AUTOMATED SAMPLING AND ANALYSIS OF IRON ORE AT THE SALDANHA IRON ORE TERMINAL IN SOUTH AFRICA

Authorship

Hofmeyr, Pierre; Pretorius., Dirk

Hofmeyr, Pierre

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Pretorius., Dirk

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DOI

10.5151/2594-357X-22382

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Abstract

Iron ore, which is transported by rail from the iron ore mines at Sishen, Northern Cape, to the Saldanha Iron Ore Terminal in the Western Cape needs to be analysed. Every shipment will be sampled and an average analysis of the ore will be produced which is required by the purchaser at the receiving port. On arrival at the iron ore terminal the ore is tipped from the rail trucks onto conveyor belts or onto stockpiles. The ore is then transported to the ore carrier via the conveyor belts. The conveyor belts run through the Sampling Plant and the ore is sampled periodically by means of an automated cross-stream sampler. A portion of the primary sample taken from the conveyor belt is then moved to the dedicated sampling laboratory situated adjacent to the cross-stream sampler. The conveyor belts also pass under the laboratory so sampling waste can be discharged directly back to the ship-loading conveyors. The sample is split in the laboratory, one split being used for moisture and particle size determination (PSD) and the other part is dried and then analysed by means of X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRFS) on fusion beads for major and minor elements. The XRFS system is completely automated including the preparation of the fusion beads. Particular care is taken to obtain high quality data for penalty elements. This paper is a case study describing the automated sampling systems and analytical methods used at the Saldanha Iron Ore Terminal from conveyor belt to analysis. The sampling and sub-sampling protocols used are described in detail as it is absolutely essential to maintain the integrity and representativity of the final sub-samples to be analysed. If the final analytical sample is not representative of the whole mass the quality of analytical data will be compromised.

Iron ore, which is transported by rail from the iron ore mines at Sishen, Northern Cape, to the Saldanha Iron Ore Terminal in the Western Cape needs to be analysed. Every shipment will be sampled and an average analysis of the ore will be produced which is required by the purchaser at the receiving port. On arrival at the iron ore terminal the ore is tipped from the rail trucks onto conveyor belts or onto stockpiles. The ore is then transported to the ore carrier via the conveyor belts. The conveyor belts run through the Sampling Plant and the ore is sampled periodically by means of an automated cross-stream sampler. A portion of the primary sample taken from the conveyor belt is then moved to the dedicated sampling laboratory situated adjacent to the cross-stream sampler. The conveyor belts also pass under the laboratory so sampling waste can be discharged directly back to the ship-loading conveyors. The sample is split in the laboratory, one split being used for moisture and particle size determination (PSD) and the other part is dried and then analysed by means of X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRFS) on fusion beads for major and minor elements. The XRFS system is completely automated including the preparation of the fusion beads. Particular care is taken to obtain high quality data for penalty elements. This paper is a case study describing the automated sampling systems and analytical methods used at the Saldanha Iron Ore Terminal from conveyor belt to analysis. The sampling and sub-sampling protocols used are described in detail as it is absolutely essential to maintain the integrity and representativity of the final sub-samples to be analysed. If the final analytical sample is not representative of the whole mass the quality of analytical data will be compromised.

Keywords

Iron ore sampling; Iron ore analysis; Saldanha iron ore terminal.

Iron ore sampling; Iron ore analysis; Saldanha iron ore terminal.