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FLOWSHEET DEVELOPMENT:

PATFIO consultants will make the right flowsheet selection for your project. By understanding the ore body, mining schedule and processing requirements, PATFIO model and compare all suitable flowsheet options and provide recommendations for the optimal circuit configuration. These assessments typically compare efficiency, capital and operating costs. In house modelling techniques developed for design, utilising testwork from drill core or whole rock samples are employed to size circuits, allowing options to be compared with the most suitable progressing forward. An engineering design brief is prepared providing a circuit description; process flow diagrams, mass balance and major equipment selections are reported as the basis of the selected flowsheet option. PATFIO is experienced in process design across a wide range of commodities including gold, nickel, copper, cobalt, lead, zinc, REEs, PGM’s, iron ore, uranium, phosphates and mineral sands.

METSIM PROCESS MODELING SERVICES:

PATFIO specializes in creating process models using METSIM software (www.metsim.com). We can quickly develop a tailored process model for you and provide the native file, ensuring you receive a high-quality interactive model without the need for your team to master METSIM or the APL programming language. We can also create custom APL subroutines and functions to meet your specific modeling needs, and seamlessly integrate dynamic links to external aqueous chemical equilibrium calculators. With extensive experience in both steady-state and dynamic modeling, we can elevate your process from initial concept to comprehensive characterization using a METSIM process model. Additionally, PATFIO offers on-site training for your staff to manage and update the model, or we can conduct training remotely.

HEAP LEACHING DYNAMIC MODELING: 

Heap Leach Modeling The process of heap leaching for the extraction of gold, silver, or copper is intricate, involving numerous reactions, inventories, and recycling streams. Elbow Creek has cultivated a strong proficiency in creating heap leach models utilizing METSIM simulation software. These models integrate the mine block model and consider the heap’s geometry, leaching cycles, leach curves, reagent consumption, pregnant solution collection, and metal recovery processes (CIC, SX/EW). This dynamic modeling environment provides daily mass balances for the entire operation. Models can be tailored for new heap leach projects, expansions, or existing operations. In the initial phases of a project, laboratory column leach test modeling is also beneficial. This approach facilitates early assessment of leach kinetics, quantifies reagent usage, and allows for the extrapolation of potential metal recoveries. Data from column tests can be effectively incorporated into a model for the full-scale heap leach operation.

Why model a heap leach?

  • Develop accurate forecasts for metal production as a function of time (monthly, quarterly, annually)
  • Conduct “What If?” analysis with mine plan, leach curves, ultimate extractions, lift heights, number of lifts, interlift liners, etc.
  • Estimate the build-up of impurities in leach solution (e.g., copper build-up in a gold/silver heap leach)
  • Estimate metal and reagent inventories within heap pore solution
  • Estimate reagent and fresh water consumptions over the project life
  • Dynamic models consider solution recirculation and the “sponge” effect of multiple lifts
  • Couple models with aqueous chemistry calculators to evaluate:
  • Metal-cyanide equilibrium
  • Ferrous/ferric distribution
  • Gypsum saturation
  • Solubility of minor constituents