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    Sonic injection into a PGM Peirce-Smith converter: CFD modelling and industrial trials

    232035_232035.pdf (3.130Mb)
    Access Status
    Open access
    Authors
    Chibwe, D.
    Akdogan, G.
    Bezuidenhout, G.
    Kapusta, J.
    Bradshaw, S.
    Eksteen, Jacques
    Date
    2015
    Type
    Journal Article
    
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    Citation
    Chibwe, D. and Akdogan, G. and Bezuidenhout, G. and Kapusta, J. and Bradshaw, S. and Eksteen, J. 2015. Sonic injection into a PGM Peirce-Smith converter: CFD modelling and industrial trial. Journal of the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. 115 (5): pp. 349-354.
    Source Title
    Journal of the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy
    ISSN
    2225-6253
    School
    Dept of Mining Eng & Metallurgical Eng
    Remarks

    This paper was first presented at the, Pyrometallurgical Modelling Principles and Practices, 4-5 August 2014, Emperors Palace Hotel Casino Convention Resort, Johannesburg.

    This open access article is distributed under the Creative Commons license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/11100
    Collection
    • Curtin Research Publications
    Abstract

    Peirce-Smith converters (PSCs) are extensively used in the copper, nickel, and platinum group metals industries. The typical converting operation involves lateral purging of air into molten matte through a bank of tuyeres. This blowing operation occurs at low pressure from the blowers, resulting in a bubbling regime that is considered inefficient from both a process and an energy utilization perspective. Inherent drawbacks also include recurrent tuyere blockage, tuyere punching, and low oxygen efficiency. Western Platinum embarked on a full-scale industrial evaluation of generating a jetting regime by using sonic injection. Prior to industrial- scale tests, a numerical assessment to ascertain the feasibility of implementing sonic injection into a PSC was conducted. The work included flow characterization at high-pressure injection achieving sonic velocity at the tuyere exit. The 2D and 3D simulations of the three-phase system were carried out using the volume of fluid method together with the RKE turbulence model to account for the multiphase and turbulent nature of the flow. This paper discusses the key findings in understanding plume extension, velocity distribution, shear wall stress analysis, and phase distribution characteristics in the system. Plant trials are also discussed with reference to the commercial aspects of a full-scale implementation of sonic injection in the smelter.

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    • Sonic injection into a PGM Pierce-Smith converter: CFD modelling and industrial trials
      Chibwe, D.; Akdogan, G.; Bezuidenhout, G.; Kapusta, J.; Bradshaw, S.; Eksteen, Jacques (2014)
      Peirce-Smith converters (PSCs) are extensively used in the copper, nickel, and platinum group metals industries to remove iron and sulphur from the molten matte phase. This technology has not changed significantly since ...
    • Towards sonic injection in Peirce-Smith converters: A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) Modelling Study
      Chibwe, D.; Akdogan, G.; Bradshaw, S.; Bezuidenhoudt, G.; Davis, J.; Eksteen, Jacques; Kapusta, J. (2012)
      This research work forms part of an assessment to complement the feasibility of implementing high pressure sonic injection into relatively small (2.25 m I.D by 3.66 m I.L) Peirce-Smith converters (PSC) used at Lonmin Plc. ...
    • Characterisation of phase distribution in a Peirce-Smith converter using water model experiments and numerical simulation
      Chibwe, D.; Akdogan, G.; Aldrich, Chris; Taskinen, P. (2011)
      In this study, we have experimentally and numerically studied fluid flow behaviour in industrialPeirce–Smith converter (PSC) using cold model simulations. The two- and three-dimensionalsimulations of the three phase system ...
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