Benefits of Clamp-on flow metering in Mining and Metallurgical Operations

Clamp-on flow measurement using the ultrasonic transit me technique has matured and is now a preferable technology for control and monitoring in many metallurgical and mining applicaons. In general, if any two of the following are present then Ultrasonic Clamp On (USCO) should be considered or even preferred.

We at Flexim, as the leader in this field has seen an increase in requests parcularly in the following areas:

Water monitoring and stewardship

Mines and minerals use water in various ways, from high pressure hydro power lines in underground mines to drive drilling equipment, to a solvent in hydrometallurgical operaons to dust suppression, the common denominator is a requirement to responsibly and efficiently use and account for the water to do the least harm to the environment and nearby communies. Flexim's rugged portable meters are ideal for audits and reporng while the fixed meters are in many cases beer suited than the tradional mag meter

SO Abatement 2

Sulphuric acid producon as a method to reduce SO emissions is increasingly 2 becoming a preferred route to reduce this pollutant. The benefits are no addional waste streams, a saleable product and, depending on the technology, low addional water and other input requirements. A unique feature of metallurgical SO fed 2 Sulphuric acid plants is the fluctuaon of the feed SO concentraons and the resulng 2 affect it has on the stable operaon of the plant. Flexim meters are an ideal soluon as they can be retrofied with no shutdown (no fines or risk to equipment during start up) give both flow and concentraon measurement and work on both metal and GRP pipes. “We have recently installed meters on plants in Zambia, the DRC, South

Africa and Namibia”, says Mark Middelhoven the Africa Sales Manager, and all our customers have seen improvement in their plant performance.

Solvent Extracon

SX circuits both water and hydrocarbon mediums and USCO is a good measurement technique as it can measure both phases. Typically these are installed on the organic side, recently Flexim has been involved in a project to provide metering on SX cells as part of an automaon project. Previously this had been done by manually adjusng the valves, but as the trend to more automaon and reduced personnel connues the need to automaon and the benefits of beer control and efficiency the scope and usefulness of USCO is a key enabler

Energy efficiency

As the world moves towards a Net Zero future mining is key both in reducing its carbon emissions but also providing the raw materials for baeries, electrical infrastructure and catalysts for hydrogen producon. It is not surprise then the mines are invesng in improving their energy efficiency. Flexim again can help whether it is measuring steam in the processing plants or compressed air, addional metering points can be safely added hassle free.

One aspect holding back the adopon of Clamp-on is previous bad experience, either through cheap portables or incorrect specificaon. Since the meters are able to be installed outside the pipe, with no interrupon, it is easy to de-risk the decision through a trial or demonstraon. At Flexim we are happy to stand behind our product and a try before you buy approach is usually enough to convince scepcal stakeholders. The technology has matured and should be the first choice of technology in many instances.