Challenges

Today, many operations are finding their capital budgets declining. Companies are trying to squeeze everything they can from their plants to achieve higher throughputs with minimal spending.

Ore grades are declining, pulling product liquor solution (PLS) grades lower, too. Higher flows must be pushed through solvent extraction to maintain production levels at the plant. This can increase entrainment problems. And, extraction loading limitations being what they are, it still may not be possible to reach the throughput you’re after.

Ore grades are also becoming more complex. More and different impurities mean additional solvent extraction scrubbing or purification steps are required to maintain strip-liquor purity. Crud management systems are labor-intensive, and if they’re done poorly or improperly, they can reduce plant availability and performance.

Fire is an inherent risk that must be managed at every solvent extraction circuit, and destructive fires have occurred at several plants. Best practices and insurance requirements continually rise. For new plants, fire prevention and protection design can be expensive. Old plants may require retrofits in order to be code compliant.

Organic extractants may degrade over time, and must be continually monitored. Sub-optimal extractants can lead to poor plant performance, and require organic treatment stages to improve their function.