Ore sorting is separating an ore into constituent parts. Today, ore sorters are widely used in industrial mineral mines, diamond mines and base and precious metal mines.
Ores are typically sorted to increase the efficiency of other refining processes, by reducing the amount of material to be processed while simultaneously increasing its purity.
Modern, automated sorting applies optical sensors (visible spectrum, near infrared, X-ray, ultraviolet), that can be coupled with electrical conductivity and magnetic susceptibility sensors, to control the mechanical separation of ore into two or more categories.
Base and Precious Metals
Gold
PGMs
Copper
Zinc
Nickel
Industrial Minerals
Pegmatites
Limestone
Calcite
Dolomite
Coal
Magnesite
Quartz
Feldspar
Gems
Diamonds
Tanzanite
Pre-concentrate mill feed into high-grade and low-grade fractions
Build a smaller mill or effectively increase the capacity of an existing mill
Remove low-grade fraction that is actually costing money to mill
Add previously uneconomic zones to reserves
Manage ore blending programs more effectively
Sort high-grade ore out of low-grade stockpiles and waste dumps
Recover value from previously uneconomic waste
Reduce environmental risks and costs
Reduce mill energy consumption
Send acid generating waste rock to appropriately designed dumps
Optimize multiple process streams
Send appropriate ore directly to the mill, leach heaps or smelter
Pre-concentrate ore underground or at remote sites
Reduce haulage and hoisting costs
Mine satellite orebodies and sort on site
Monitor the composition of the mill feed
Provide real time data to operators for process optimization and work index
prediction