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Processing – Coal and Mineral Back |
Coal Quality Determination
WEIR provides services to both coal producers and consumers for the accurate determination of coal quality for contractual or control purposes. This includes the detailed design of coal sampling programs using statistics to determine sample requirements for a given level of precision. WEIR will assess the entire sample collection process from the sample point through laboratory procedures and equipment used to generate a result.
WEIR has developed a sampling spreadsheet to design the sampling program
so that it complies with ASTM and/or ISO requirements. As an independent third
party, WEIR can provide expert evaluations of sampling practices. We also
offer sampling workshops which are geared toward training personnel involved
in product quality determinations in the proper sampling and analytical techniques.
Plant Simulation and Performance Testing
WEIR offers services for preparation plant optimization. These begin with plant studies where the performance of a plant under a given set of operating conditions and feed product can be compared to optimal performance. Often times a complete picture of plant performance is not available until a performance test has been conducted. WEIR will design a performance test program that will generate the information required to determine the efficiency of major unit operations within the preparation plant. This information can then be imported into the plant simulator to develop a custom model of a customer’s preparation facility.
WEIR also conducts preparation plant performance forecasts in conjunction
with a mining plan and product quality data. Using the science of geostatistics,
the run-of-mine feed washability to a plant and its associated variances can
be input to the simulator, which is then used to predict clean coal quality
and recovery.
Quality Control Systems
WEIR offers programs to coal producers and consumers for the ongoing task of achieving and maintaining the highest possible level of quality control. This includes a complete assessment of the preparation plant Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) practices which can lead to ISO 9002 certification if desired. WEIR will assist the producer or consumer in drafting quality assurance manuals and standard operating procedures necessary to ensure that the highest product quality and maximum plant efficiency is achieved consistently.
One manner in which this is monitored is through the use of on-line coal
analyzers. WEIR provides on-line monitoring of coal analyzers from which a
data base is generated that can be used for statistical process control and/or
engineering evaluation.
Process Control Systems
WEIR provides engineering services for the design and implementation of process
control systems in a preparation plant. This included the development of control
algorithms and the programming of these relationships into PID or fuzzy logic
control loops that may be resident in a programmable logic controller in the
plant. Often this is done in conjunction with an on-line coal quality analyzer
for which a feedback and/or feed forward control strategy is developed for
the major unit operations within the plant.
As with the on-line monitoring of coal analyzers, WEIR offers its customers
on-line monitoring of complete control systems including the maintenance of
an engineering data base from which refinements to the control algorithms
or system can be made.
Areas of Expertise: