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Evaluation of the Grade Deviation of a Concentrator Plant Feed Using Statistics and Geostatistics Methods: A Case Study in Sarcheshmeh Copper Mine, Kerman, Iran

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Abstract

The grade deviation between the Run of Mine (ROM) and the Concentrator Plant Feed (CPF) has been debated from early days of Sarcheshmeh Copper Complex establishment in Kerman province, Iran. As the concentrator plant was designed to work optimally based on a specific input feed, it is essential to determine the errors in different sampling steps and also evaluate the grade deviation between ROM and CPF. By determining the allowance limit of effective parameters in the deviation variance and using them for daily production planning, it may be possible to reduce this deviation. In this research, a method was presented to determine the grade deviation of CPF using statistics and geostatistics methods in order to compare this deviation with predicted ROM deviation in each working round. For this purpose, on a particular day, 50,000 tons of ROM with a grade of 0.89 ± 0.05 was sent to the plant, and was compared with the CPF (42,855 tons) and its grade confidence limit (0.92 ± 0.04). This grade was found to be within the limits of the predicted grade (0.93 ± 0.06) and the operation grade (0.89 ± 0.05) at 95 % confidence limit. Based on evaluations conducted, to reduce grade deviation and increase the recovery, it was proposed that if within 100 consecutive days, 95 grade cases from the CPF were cited within the confidence limit of the ROM grade, from thence no sampling be performed from the CPF, and the ROM grade be considered in metallurgical calculations.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are thankful to the National Iranian Copper Industries Company (NICICO) research and development unit as well as the mine production control and the quality concentration control units at the Sarcheshmeh copper mine for their valuable suggestions during this project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mining Engineering, Mine Exploration Group, Shahid Bahonar Kerman University, Kerman, Iran

    M. R. Shayestehfar & Taghvaee Nezhad

  2. Department of Mining Engineering, Mine Exploration Group, Amirkabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran

    A. Rezaei

  3. Department of Mining Engineering, Mineral Processing Group, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran

    M. R. Tavakoli Mohammadi

Authors
  1. M. R. Shayestehfar
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  2. Taghvaee Nezhad
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  3. A. Rezaei
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  4. M. R. Tavakoli Mohammadi
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to M. R. Tavakoli Mohammadi.

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Shayestehfar, M.R., Nezhad, T., Rezaei, A. et al. Evaluation of the Grade Deviation of a Concentrator Plant Feed Using Statistics and Geostatistics Methods: A Case Study in Sarcheshmeh Copper Mine, Kerman, Iran. J. Inst. Eng. India Ser. D 95, 183–188 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40033-014-0046-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40033-014-0046-4

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