Project Background: The stringent requirements of iron ore beneficiation for slurry pumps
In the iron ore beneficiation process, after the ore is crushed and ball-milled, the resulting slurry has a high concentration, large solid particles with high hardness, and extremely strong abrasiveness. The tailings transportation and concentrate transportation in the beneficiation plant have extremely high requirements for the wear resistance, continuous operation reliability, and maintenance convenience of the slurry pumps.
This project is located in the North China region and is designed to handle 5 million tons of iron ore annually. The beneficiation process adopts a staged grinding - weak magnetic separation procedure. The tailings transportation section requires transporting a tailings slurry with a concentration of approximately 35% - 45% from the beneficiation plant to a tailings storage facility 3 kilometers away. The required headroom is approximately 65 meters and the flow rate is approximately 800 m³/h.
The slurry pump of a certain brand that the customer was previously using has revealed the following problems during actual operation:
- **Short lifespan of flow components**: The average service life of the impeller and the protective sleeve is less than 2,000 hours. Frequent replacements result in significant downtime losses.
- **Low operating efficiency**: The measured pump efficiency is only 58% - 62%, indicating high energy consumption.
- **Poor sealing reliability**: Frequent leakage at the shaft seal area affects the on-site environment and increases the maintenance workload.
In response to these issues, the technical team of Ruitong Pump Industry conducted detailed condition investigations and parameter calculations. They then selected and configured a **100AH type slurry pump** and the corresponding motor system for the customer.
Technical solution and delivery highlights of AH type slurry pump
| Traffic | 800 m³/h |
| Head (of a pump or a water column) | 65 m |
| Speed | 980 r/min |
| Motor power | 220 kW |
| Impeller diameter | 510 mm |
Core technological advantages
High-chromium alloy flow components, significantly enhancing the wear resistance lifespan.
The flow components of the AH type slurry pump are made of A05 high-chromium white cast iron (with a chromium content of approximately 26% - 28% and a hardness of HRC ≥ 58). Compared to the ordinary high-chromium materials used in the customer's original equipment, the wear resistance has been improved by approximately 40%. The on-site operation data shows that the service life of the impeller is expected to reach 3,500 - 4,000 hours, and the life of the sleeve is expected to exceed 4,000 hours.
2. Optimize the hydraulic design, and increase the pump efficiency to 72%**
The optimized blade and water chamber profiles using CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) technology have reduced hydraulic losses and disc friction losses. The measured pump efficiency under full-load conditions reached 72%, which is approximately 10-14 percentage points higher than the original equipment provided by the customer. Based on an annual operation of 8,000 hours, each unit can save approximately 150,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year.
3. Dual-sealing structure, completely resolving the leakage issue
A sealing solution combining the auxiliary impeller power seal and the modular mechanical seal is adopted. Under operating conditions, the auxiliary impeller forms a negative pressure zone within the pump chamber, effectively preventing the slurry from entering the sealing chamber; when the machine is shut down, the mechanical seal ensures the sealing effect. This solution fundamentally solves the problem of shaft seal leakage.
4. Modular design, making maintenance more convenient
The AH type slurry pump adopts a bracket structure. Between the pump body and the bracket, there is a rear cover. When replacing the flow passage components, there is no need to dismantle the inlet and outlet pipelines and the motor. A single person can complete the daily maintenance work. The time for replacing the flow passage components once has been shortened from the original 8 hours to less than 3 hours.
About czme
CZME is a world-class manufacturer of high-performance pumping solutions, serving industries such as mining, construction, environmental protection, and water treatment. We specialize in the production of Slurry pumps, Dredge pumps, Desulfurization pump, Marine dredging pumps, and other industrial pumps designed for handling solid-laden, highly abrasive, and corrosive slurries. Our expertise in slurry and wastewater management makes us a trusted partner for clients worldwide.
