Let us show you the way to the green mining industry! - News

6 June 2022

Let us show you the way to the green mining industry!

As in most sectors, the mining industry tries to do all necessary to cause as little damage in their environment as possible with their activities due to increasingly strict legal regulations and louder social expectations. They actively work to harmonize mining with nature in a way that preserves fertile soil, clean air, biodiversity, and clean, drinkable water. This is not an easy task , but it is not impossible either -of course, only if you manage to find the path that points in the direction of a much greener future.

Water is a great value!

Water management is one of the most crucial aspects of green operations as it is a natural resource with limited supply yet a necessity for human life. Water is essential in the mining sector as well since a lot of water is needed to transform ore into pure metal. However, water becomes even more expensive around mines because it is often very difficult to access. Therefore, conscious water management should begin with ensuring that not a drop of water is wasted .

We can help you with this, as players in the mining industry can count on our special plastic balls!

By covering open-surface water reservoirs and tanks with cover balls, evaporation loss can be reduced by up to 90%, thus minimizing water loss.

Nowadays, sustainability has become the main aspect in the water management of mines : using as little water as possible from the available water resources, polluting them as little as possible, and cleaning and/or reusing as much of the contaminated water as possible. This change in perspective is a very important and necessary step to ensure that not only our present but also our children's future will be carefree.

The most efficient approach to accomplish sustainability goals is through waste management and environmental protection with cover balls.

Another crucial area in which our balls might be useful is waste management. Since the ore frequently only contains small amounts of valuable metals, mining generates a lot of waste. As a result, a lot of rock that is worthless from the extraction point of view is brought to the surface. After processing, these are stored in sterile pits or tailings reservoirs. If this rock is not contaminated during processing, the mine region can be easily recultivated, even grapes can be grown on the arid slopes, and the surface of the tailings reservoirs can be covered with fertile soil and used as agricultural or forestry land. However, the situation is often not that simple since extremely hazardous environmental substances are used during processing, making the waste hazardous. They must be insulated to prevent toxic substances from escaping into the environment in order to save nature and the environment. Our balls can assist with this because when they are poured to the surface of the tailings reservoirs, an insulating layer is formed that keeps the alkaline, fine-grained dust moist and reduces the risk of dusting (e.g. in red mud storage). In addition, the layer also protects birds and other wild animals, as it hides the open water surface that would attract them

Covering tailings after the closure of mines is regulated by strict laws in most countries. EURO-MATIC cover balls can also provide a perfect solution in compliance with the regulations.

Our balls can also be used during electrolytic metal refining. The result: drastically reduced costs…

Our balls can also play an important role during the electrolytic metal refining process used to extract pure metal from the ore. But how? The automatic machine line, that is needed to move the anodes, performs a continuous in-and-out movement in the acid bath, so it is not feasible to apply a fixed cover layer on it. Although the acid baths would need to be covered,as the intense evaporation caused by heating of the chemical liquid results in the production of acid mist in the workshop, which has several disadvantages:

A high-performance extractor system is needed;
A dangerous working environment is created as harmful fumes and gases are released;
Heat and material loss occurs as both types of transportare unimpeded on the surface of the uncovered liquid; and
The corrosive acid mist damages the metal structure of the factory , which ends up in the need for frequent maintenance

These problems cause serious trouble and unnecessary, avoidable costs.

How is it possible to avoid them?

By using EURO-MATIC industrial balls, these problems can be easily eliminated or their effects can be drastically reduced. With the ball covering an insulating layer can be created that isolates the acid bath from its surroundings,significantly reducing their interaction. Inpractice, this means:

heat and material loss can be reduced by up to 75%;
harmful gases and vapors enter the environment even less, as 91% of the surface will be covered;
a healthier working environment can be created
a low-duty extraction system is enough;
the acid mist will not damage the metal structure of the plant, as its concentration will be much lower.

In addition to the current electricity and raw material prices, the investment cost of our balls can be repaid very quickly, even within a few months, since the balls can save significant heating, material, electricity, and maintenance costs.

One of our exemplary projects took place in Chingola, Zambia, where Nchanga Consolidated Copper Mines Ltd. used millions of 20mm PP balls to cover an acid bath used for copper refining and enjoyed the benefits of ball covering.

With our balls, companies in the mining sector not only provide the shortest and easiest path to a greener future but also the most economical!

Want to give the ball blanket a try?

Product

Industrial balls

Industrial balls offer an effective solution for covering various liquids in diverse industries.

Learn more

Operation

If a sufficient amount of balls are placed on a surface, they self-arrange side by side by floating on the surface of the liquid due to the low density of the air and plastic inside them. They create a coverage of 91% of the surface. The layer of balls isolates the liquid and separates it from its surroundings, i.e. significantly reduces their interaction with each other. In practice, with just one layer of EURO-MATIC balls has many advantages, making it suitable for a wide range of effective uses.

Energy saving

Due to the good thermal insulation capacity of the plastic and the air inside the ball, our product saves energy cost up to 75%, as the heat loss is significantly reduced. In addition, it is an important safety aspect that, due to the thermal insulation, the area around the tanks and pools does not get hot.

Evaporation reduction

All liquids evaporate, and as the temperature rises, evaporation becomes an increasingly rapid process and causes significant fluid loss that usually needs to be refilled. With the help of the balls, the rate of evaporation can be reduced by up to 90%, so much less liquid needs to be refilled. In many cases, the investment cost of the balls pays for itself in a short period of time, already from the avoided cost of compensating for fluid losses. In cases where lower humidity is important (e.g. due to drying of the workpiece), the return is even faster as higher productivity can be achieved.

Reduction of harmful gases and odors

In an industrial environment, the evaporation of liquids usually releases fumes and gases that are hazardous and harmful to the environment and the human body. For this reason, it is necessary to use a high-performance exhaust system that removes the harmful air from the production hall. By using industrial balls, direct and indirect cost savings can be achieved, and workers can work in improved and healthier working environment. Direct cost savings can be achieved with a drastic reduction in evaporation, thus significantly reducing the amount of harmful substances released into the environment, so the exhaust system can be operated at a much lower capacity, resulting in lower energy consumption, and in some cases, its ongoing operation can be even omitted. Indirectly, the heating costs of the plant can be reduced, as the air exchange in the hall is much lower. Furthermore, the often corrodent and highly corrosive vapor does not further damage the structure of the hall and the metal parts in operation, thus they require less maintenance and get a much longer service life.

A safer work environment

From the point of view of occupational safety, business, in which components are immersed in liquids with high temperatures and/or dangerous to human beings are considered to be a major hazard. The reason behind it is that in a case of any accident occurred at any time with a equipment or any object falling into the liquid present a great danger for safety of workers. To prevent such accidents, a cover layer that can be created with EURO-MATIC balls makes the perfect solution, as it almost completely prevents liquid from splashing. Additionally, by reducing the release of hazardous and non-hazardous, but unpleasant-smelling gases and vapors into the air, a healthier and more pleasant working environment can be achieved.

Reduction of oxygen absorption

By covering the surface of the liquid, the oxygen content of the air absorbs more slowly in the liquid because its open surface is reduced. This advantage can be exploited in industrial environments, because oxygen readily reacts with metals and acts as the engine for corrosion processes. If the dissolved oxygen level of the liquid decreases, the rate of corrosion processes slows down, and the service life of the parts increases. A layer of balls achieves 60% less dissolved oxygen content.

Easy to install and use

The installation of the balls is a very quick and easy process, with the investment costs being way lower than traditional covering methods. No maintenance is required after installation, so there are no operating and maintenance costs during its long service life. During use, it does not create obstacles to objects immersed or moving on the surface of the liquid. Hence, changes in the liquid level are not causing any problems. We can make a conclusion, that the simple layer formed with EURO-MATIC industrial balls is a flexible system, that performs its function almost unnoticed and does not cause any hindrances with the given technology.

Material of the industrial balls

	HDPE	PP	PVDF
Name	high density polyethylene	polypropylene	polyvinylidene fluoride
Density	0,95 g/cm³	0,91 g/cm³	1,78 g/cm³
Melting temperature point	130 °C	165 °C	174 °C
Application temperature range	-110 – 60 °C	0 – 100 °C	-30 – 150 °C
Strength	3	4	5
Izod impact strenght	5	4	4
Chemical resistance	4	5	5
Price	5	5	2
1 – bad, 2 – not good, 3 – acceptable, 4 – good, 5 – excellent