Characterizing the effect of micro and macro heterogeneity of rock on its comminution behaviour

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The spatial variability of geometallurgical characteristics of an ore deposit can significantly influence the economic, mine planning, processing and waste management of a mining project. Given the significant amount of energy that is used in the comminution process, a good understanding of spatial variability of geometallurgical characteristics of an ore deposit could highly optimize the energy consumption in the mining and processing activities. Large numbers of tests would be required to characterize and delineate different geometallurgical domains within an ore body. The Point Load strength index test is widely used in geomechanics and is an inexpensive test that can be conducted on a large range of rock samples and by the mine staff themselves. The test can be carried out in a large quantity to statistically represent the entire ore body. Some experimental analyses have shown that the Point Load Index test could be correlated with the ore breakage characteristics (drop weight test, Bond Work index, etc.) which are required for design of crushing and SAG mill modelling. Other investigations have shown poor relationships between the mechanical strength of rock and the ore breakage characteristics and indicated that the rock mechanics tests do not provide information regarding grinding behavior down to the particle liberation level. The main objective of this research project is to determine how the micro- and macro- properties of rock (e.g. strength, mineralogical composition, grain size distribution, micro-cracks) can influence the response of rock during the comminution process.