Mineral Processing

In light of OSHA’s recent passage of the respiratory crystalline silica rule, minimizing exposure to respirable silica dust is a significant concern of the minerals processing industry. A mining company turned to DustMASTER for help managing silica dusts generated by its crushing operation and maintenance practices. Specifically, the company required stabilizing of dust collected in a hopper throughout the plant, as well as sweeping dusts, for safe transportation and disposal in spent areas of the mine.

Guided by the customer’s specifications, DustMASTER proposed our 20 TPH Series II mixing system, which includes a Turbin style pan mixer with a hydraulically operated discharge door, a metered water system and control with a programmable controller which includes 100% manual override and load cell readout.

The fully enclosed, low-profile Turbin mixer fit into the tight area underneath the hoppers. Robust cast Ni-Hard paddles quickly lift and roll material into the preferred moist ball shape. A bottom discharge door releases the processed material for stockpile until it can be returned to the mine. The system can batch continuously as needed.

A manual test prior to installation involved monitoring and recording the results of adding moisture percentage by weight to the silica dust. After just one week for testing and documenting results, it was determined that this DustMASTER product was successful. The final product was dust free with 12% water and a 60 second cycle time. The conditioned silica dust was acceptable for transport and landfill disposal.

To learn more about how DustMASTER managed silica dust, please see the chart below or contact us directly. For a PDF of mineral dust application, click here.