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JET MILL TECNOLOGY FOR VERY FINE COAL PRODUCTION

Marco Surracco, Maria Caterina Tilocca

Abstract

In this paper is presented a study conducted to verify the possibility of using a prototype of fluid energy mill, based on the opposing jets principle, for the reduction to ultrafine size of a beneficiated coal, intended for energy production. The original counterflow jet mill used operate in closed circuit with a cyclone type separating chamber, producing fine powders with a definite top size. Many processing plants routinely use jet mills in the final stages of mineral treatment for the production of high quality concentrates. Even the use of coal for energy purposes, in a perspective of a sustainable development, depends largely on the comminution processes used to produce ultrafine coal particles. This allows to use it, in form of slurry, as a conventional fuel for power generation, besides it consents the separation of the majority of the impurities that, in that size, are largely free. However, the traditional methods of comminution for ultrafine coal particles production, are known to be intrinsically inefficient. Plus, they require a large amount of energy in order to obtain such fine dimensions. In fact, many researches are currently focused on highlighting more effective methods for ultrafine grinding. Experimental studies conducted so far on the main industrial minerals in the ultrafine powder sector, with our jet mill prototype, are extended to coal as to assess the jet mill performance and specific power consumption in this specific field. The experiments where conducted on a coal sample coming from the treatment plant of the Nuraxi-Figus coal mine (Sardinia-Italy). The coal utilized are classified as “long-flame sub-bituminous coal”, according to the American standard ASTM D 338. The jet mill feed was ground to sizes below 1 mm. The results showed the obtainment of fine size coal powders (54% by weight -10?m with a +38?m lower than 5% by weight) and a specific energetic consumption around 280 kwh/t.

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DOI resolver: doi.org/10.5593/sgem2021/1.1/s04.068

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