5 benefits of Multotecs Trommel Screens in Canada
Trommel screens are used in mining, waste management and in recycling to separate and screen materials, sorting them into different sizes. Multotec has been supplying and improving its trommel screen design since 1982 and has supplied customised and durable trommel screens to mines around the world, including Canada. Multotec’s product line ranges from 950 mm to 5 500 mm diameter and from 1 220 mm to 6 000 mm in length with a mass of 800 kg to 30 000 kg. All our trommel screens are vibratory and thermal stress relieved, resulting in a longer wear life. Our trommel screens are trusted by many mines to optimise their mineral processing and to lower overall plant costs.
Multotec Canada has branches in Edmonton, Montréal, and Vancouver. Our range of trommel screens is guaranteed to improve your plant’s efficiency. These trommel screens are suited for the mineral processing of diamonds, gold, nickel, zinc, uranium and coal with each trommel designed to facilitate the adequate separation process of each mineral to ensure the best quality is attained. In this blog we discuss 5 benefits of using Multotec’s range of trommel screens.
1. Efficient material separation
Trommel screens are used for material separation and sorting applications. They consist of a cylindrical drum that rotates around its axis. They work through a titling action that allows materials to be fed into the top of the drum. When the drum rotates, the material is moved upwards and then dropped onto the screen, allowing smaller particles to fall through the perforations. This process results in larger particles remaining in the drum, and which are moved towards the discharge end of the machine. The motion of the drum helps to separate the material based on size and weight. Trommel screens can be customised by Multotec Canada to have different-sized openings in the drum to suit specific mineral processing requirements. Our trommel screens are designed with special attention paid to the materials used in their construction. Several parameters are considered when the steel frames are designed:
-
The feed end flange is designed to be compatible with the mill or scrubber flange. The flange has a machined face with a compatible bolting arrangement to the mill or scrubber discharge trunnion flange.
-
The internal diameter of the feed end flange or feed end liners is designed to be the same diameter as the mill discharge or mill discharge liners. The trommel feed end liners can also have a slightly larger diameter to create an outward step that compensates for wear of the mill discharge liners.
Multotec Canada offers range of trommel screens that includes:
Trommel screens with modular panels
Trommel screens below 2 500 mm in diameter consist of modular 305 x 305 mm polyurethane or rubber screen panels, catering for applications from high impact to high abrasion.
Suitable for applications in the processing of gold and iron ore.
Mill & Scrubber Trommels
Multotec’s high-capacity mill and scrubber trommels deliver increased screening and washing functionality to enhance the efficiency of your mineral processing operation. Mill and scrubber trommels comprise a durable rubber-lined steel frame and replaceable screening surface.
Multotec mill and scrubber trommels accommodate both modular rubber and polyurethane screening panels, which, through modular design and repair capacity, reduce downtime. They are suitable for applications in platinum and copper processing plants.
Large trommel with cast polyurethane panels.
Trommel Screens with a diameter exceeding 2 500 mm that comprise heavy-duty cast polyurethane panels are either bolted or pinned into position. The exceptional strength-to-weight characteristics of polyurethane provide the optimum solution for larger screening applications, with a low mechanical stress and fatigue factor. These trommel screens are used for gold, copper and iron ore mineral processing.
Trommel Screen Panels
Multotec’s trommel scrolls enhance the control of material from the feed-end of the trommel to the discharge end, while weir bars retain the material in the screening area. A combination of both scrolls and weirs feeds material in a controlled manner at the optimal speed for maximum process efficiency. They are best suited for applications in copper, gold and iron ore processing.
Self-driven trommels
Designed for high-capacity screening applications, self-driven trommels can be hydraulically driven on a centre shaft at the end of discharge or propelled by a motor and gearbox driving supporting wheels. Self-driven trommels accommodate screen panels in either modular or bolt-down form in a wide selection of apertures or materials. These trommels can be applied in the processing of gold and iron ore.
Double Trommels
Double Trommel screens are attached to the end of scrubbers to allow a dual grading procedure within a single trommel screen installation. This helps to enhance your mineral grading capacity.
These trommel screens consist of larger-aperture rubber or polyurethane screen panels enclosed by finer aperture or wire-weave screens. The double trommel screens can be applied in the mineral processing of coal, gold and copper.
SAG Mill Trommel Screens
The SAG mill trommel screen provides a simple mechanism to classify large volumes of mill product. This feature in these trommels makes them the preferred equipment for application in gold, diamond and copper processing. Multotec Canada’s range of SAG mill trommel screens have specialised screen media to enhance the performance of the trommel screen.
While polyurethane screen media is often specified for ball mill trommels, Multotec has developed a range of compression moulded rubber compounds that have achieved excellent results in high wear SAG mill duties. Multotec offers rubber screen media that can operate successfully at elevated temperatures, this screen media is also inert to hydrolysis caused by bacteria present in process water.
The careful consideration of the working depth of screen panels is essential for abrasive ores. The design of the internal steel frame caters for both lump size and trommel load.
2. High-capacity screening
Multotec’s trommel screens can screen massive amounts of materials in a short amount of time. The rotating drum design ensures that material is broken up and separated into different sizes. This innovative design allows you to process more minerals in a shorter time so you can achieve increased productivity and improved product quality of gold, copper, iron ore, diamonds and coal.
Along with designing our systems for high- capacity screening, we design and manufacture screening trommels to ensure structural integrity, which is achieved through fastening systems.
Fastening Systems
Multotec has designed pin and sleeve attachment systems that allow for the secure installation of large heavy-duty screen panels. It allows for screen media to be replaced easily from inside the trommel, which makes the process safer, while the ease of installation reduces trommel downtime.
Multotec’s trommel systems have the following benefits:
- Modular screen media reduces operating expenditure and down time
- Specially formulated rubber compounds maximise panel wear life
- Attachment systems allow for quick and safe panel change outs
- Modular system allows for support frames to be refurbished and re-used
- Design philosophy optimises both efficiency and wear life of screen media
- Extensive database (> 1 500 trommels) allows for accurate sizing and modelling
- Latest Finite Element Analysis (FEA) techniques ensure structural integrity
3. Reduced downtime
Multotec’s range of trommel screens is constructed to withstand the harshest mineral processing conditions. All our trommels are designed using Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to the British Standard 7608:1993 fatigue element analysis of steel structures. This helps to optimise fatigue life. This process helps Multotec Canada to estimate the fatigue life of a trommel screen during the design process. This, in turn, ensures that the trommel screen has a longer lifespan. In addition, they are constructed with rubber to ensure that they have a longer wear life of up to 20 weeks. Trommel screens for sale at Multotec Canada branches significantly reduce downtime by being manufactured with top-quality products and designed with optimum functionality in mind.
4. Improved product quality
Our trommel screen range is manufactured to separate materials according to size and specified function. This results in the ability to attain higher accuracy and consistency in the processing of the final product, thereby improving the quality of the mineral being processed. They also have a positive impact on mineral marketability and value.
Multotec Canada also supplies vibrating screens, markedly different from trommel screens. Because of this difference, there have been enquiries about which of them is best suited for mineral processing. To establish how trommel screens improve product quality. We highlight these differences below.
The difference between trommel screens and vibrating screens
The difference between a trommel screen and a vibrating screen is the design. Vibrating screens are designed to vibrate to separate materials while trommel screens are designed to rotate and lift materials to facilitate their separation. Trommel screens are thicker than vibrating screens, making them more suitable for applications processing abrasive ore. Their thickness results in them having a longer lifespan, which helps reduce costs on a mineral processing plant.
5. Economical turnkey solutions
Multotec’s Canada’s range of trommel screens is manufactured with harsh environments in mind and are therefore built with high-quality materials to ensure a longer wear life and to produce maximum results. Our trommel screen range is designed to maintain our promise to help you, “Achieve your mineral processing goals.” Our economical turnkey trommel screen solutions for mineral processing can significantly improve your product quality, increase productivity, and reduce downtime.
To further optimise your plant, reduce costs and ensure that our trommel screens work for you, our trommel screens need to be maintained in the following ways:
- Cleaning: Trommel screens need to be cleaned on a regular basis so that material does not build up and clog the screen, reducing its effectiveness.
- Lubrication: Trommel screens are made up of moving parts that need to be lubricated to ensure smooth operation and prevent damage.
- Belt and chain replacement: the belts and chains that drive the trommel screen may wear over time and need to be replaced to ensure optimum function.
- Bearing replacement: Trommel screens have bearings that support the rotating drum. These bearings require regular inspection to ensure that any form of wear and tear is detected in time for timeous repair.
- Drum replacement: The rotating drum in trommel screens becomes damaged or worn over time and needs to be replaced to ensure the effective performance of the trommel screen.
Service and Technical expertise
Our products come with service and technical support. These services consist of a service level agreement with Multotec where a Field Service Team will conduct condition monitoring and trommel maintenance. The simplicity and robust nature of trommels make them a viable alternative to vibrating screens in SAG mill scalping and classification applications. Many mill operators keep a complete rotatable standby unit which reduces planned downtime. Since trommels do not operate with high dynamic loads, there is no need for robust civil support.
Our services extend to:
-
Test work capabilities
From full plant and process audits and optimisation to equipment retrofitting.
-
Training
From the world’s leading metallurgists with tailored training programmes.
-
Field service maintenance
Our equipment is backed by extensive field service and maintenance agreements.
-
Condition monitoring
Predictive and preventive maintenance solutions to enhance equipment life.
Maximise your mineral processing with Multotec’s custom-made range of trommel screens. Our range of trommels and trommel screens ensure the efficient screening and washing of materials. We also tailor our abrasion-resistant screens to your plant’s requirements.
You can rely on Multotec Canada’s trommel screens to not only optimise your plant’s mineral processing performance, but also to improve your profitability. Our branches in Edmonton, Montréal, and Vancouver are available to assist you with your trommel screen requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
Trommel screens are used for processing minerals such as gold, iron ore, copper, diamonds, potash and coal.
They can efficiently sort different materials according to different sizes. In mineral processing, this process is beneficial because it makes sorting good quality materials easier. Multotec’s trommel screens having the following benefits:
- Modular screen media reduces operating expenditure and down time
- Specially formulated rubber compounds maximise panel wear life
- Attachment systems allow for quick and safe panel change outs
- Modular system allows for support frames to be refurbished and re-used
- Design philosophy optimises both efficiency and wear life of screen media
- Extensive database (> 1 500 trommels) allows for accurate sizing and modelling
- Latest Finite Element Analysis (FEA) techniques ensure structural integrity
For a particular application, the size of the trommel screen required will depend on elements like the intended throughput, the size of the material being processed, and the required screening efficiency.
Trommel screens make use of a rotating drum to separate materials, while vibrating screens use a series of screens to separate materials through vibration.