Image Gallery
CONVEYORS AND TRANSFER CHUTES
Conveyors and transfer chutes are the heart of materials handling operations. Conveyor belts, such as these examples carrying Nickel and coal, can have a greatly extended lifespan if chute design is optimised.
DEM MODELLING
Chute Technology’s DEM modelling experience allows us to accurately show material flow before and after a new design, so that benefits are clearly shown. These benefits may include improved throughput (tph), reduced wear and reduced blockages or spillage. Chute Technology can improve the issue in a specific transfer point, take a broader view of a transfer system, or use our engineering expertise to provide a transfer audit on a series of transfers.
PROBLEMS WE SOLVE: BLOCKAGES AND SPILLAGE
Poorly designed chutes can lead to blockages and can cause spillage, such as the examples shown above, which can halt production and cause unwanted downtime headaches. Another problem that can arise is the need for unnecessary hosing.
PROBLEM SOLVING EXPERTISE
When Chute Technology designs a new transfer chute, as shown in the examples above, we run detailed DEM models to compare the flow, wear, surface temperatures and other factors between the original and the new design. The first image shows a series of DEM models showing the original and new flow. The second is a drafted model of the new chute design, ready to manufacture.
PROBLEMS WE SOLVE: DUST ISSUES
In addition to material flow and throughput advantages, better chute design can also significantly reduce dust. The example above shows a before and after image of a plant where Chute Technology optimised the materials handling process and reduced dust issues.
OUR EXPERTISE: MINING EQUIPMENT
Chute Technology has extensive experience working with mining equipment, such as stacker reclaimer, shown above.
OPTIMISING BUCKETWHEEL PERFORMANCE
DEM models of bucketwheels, where Chute Technology has worked to optimise flow, improve belt tracking and minimise spillage, belt wear and skirtboard wear.
PROBLEMS WE SOLVE: CRACKED TILES
Cracked tiles, like the ones shown in the examples above, are a sign of excessive chute wall flex, thermal stress and could be related to material impact angles. An engineering analysis and chute audit is needed to determine the root cause of the issue and find solutions that prevent the problem from recurring. We also use Finite Element Analysis (FEA) for chute flex testing.
MODULAR DESIGNS
Chute Technology has designed adjustable components inside chutes to provide the best possible loading path for material onto a screen. Our designs are modular, and we have built in adjustments to account for changes in material properties over time.
OUR EXPERTISE: UNDERGROUND CHUTES
An example of an underground chute featuring adjustable rods and shafts for flow tuning (images 1 and 2) and an example of a modular underground chute and conveyor solution for an Australian coal mining operation (images 3 and 4).
INNOVATION: MULTI-DIRECTIONAL TRANSFER CHUTE
Chute Technology’s Multi-Directional Transfer Chute. This cost-saving universal chute – which can rotate output through 160 degrees left or right – can remove the need to custom-manufacture individual chute types to fit the confined spaces and particular angles of individual mines. It features a rotating outlet beneath the head that can be angled to any position required to facilitate product flow.
OUR EXPERTISE: SHIPLOADERS
Chute Technology has a wide range of experience with shiploaders. Chute Technology’s innovative designs can not only increase material flow, but can load more of the ship with more ore than standard designs, increasing profitability and efficiency.
OUR EXPERTISE: THERMAL ANALYSIS
Chute Technology uses advanced thermal analysis techniques and equipment to determine hotspots where a chute is experiencing liner failure that are causing downtime and production losses.
PROBLEMS WE SOLVE: MATERIAL FLOW ISSUES
Chute Technology’s thermal analysis expertise is used to identify problem areas affecting material flow. This series of images show ceramic tiles inside the chute as well as the outer shell of the chute.
INNOVATION: DIFFUSED BUFFER BIN LOADER
Chute Technology’s diffused buffer bin loader design for bulk materials conveyor chute systems uses a diffused loader to distribute incoming feed more evenly over a greater area of the surface of stockpiles in the bins, instead of concentrating it onto one large inefficient cone-shaped peak. This new design can increase the buffering capacity between the reclaiming and shiploading functions by up to 20%.
PROBLEMS WE SOLVE: SKIRTBOARD WEAR
Chute Technology can design materials handling systems that prevent spillage and create a smooth material flow with no abrasive contact with skirtboards. In the images above, the first image shows the skirtboards wearing out (before), and then the second image shows the smooth flow (after).
OUR EXPERTISE: DEWATERING CHUTES
Chute Technology analyses the behaviour of coal and water flows during all phases of conveyor sequences and develops a design to work effectively over the full range of conditions.
Simulation techniques are applied to understand the dynamics, and to test potential solutions before the manufacturing process starts, and our latest design has performed to expectation and eliminated water flush back problems.