An experimental investigation of the effects of operating parameters on the wear of lifters in tumbling mills

• Published in: Minerals engineering 2010-06, Vol.23 (7), p.558-562
• Main Authors: Rezaeizadeh, M., Fooladi, M., Powell, M.S., Weerasekara, N.S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abrasion; Abrasion resistance; Charge; Comminution; Drying; Grinding; Mills; Mineral processing; Optimization; Particle size; Wear; Wear rate
• ISSN: 0892-6875; 1872-9444
• DOI: 10.1016/j.mineng.2009.12.010

Lifters are usually used with mill liners to extend their life and to enhance the grinding and crushing efficiency. Although the lifters are durable wear parts but they will gradually worn and consequently their dimensions change during the course of operation. These changes in dimensions have a significant influence on the overall economic performance of the mills. Therefore, it is useful to know the relationship between the mill operation and the lifter profile, and the influence of lifter wear on the change in lifter profile. In this work, a laboratory mill which is capable of producing the required impact and abrasion grinding was operated both wet and dry. Many factors were varied such as: velocity, charge, ore size and different material for the lifters. Also the wear rate on the top and face of lifters are compared in the different conditions. It is found that the mill charge and the mill speed significantly affect the wear rate. Also, the results showed how size distribution affects the wear rate. The results can be interpreted in terms of the wear process in industrial scale mills over different operating conditions. The experimental results provide the possibility of including the lifter wear in optimising mill performance.