Worley is proud to be a sponsor of the 10th edition of Copper 2019 from August 18-21 in Vancouver, Canada. Some of Worley's leading experts will be presenting, and our own Dr. Phillip Mackey, for whom the Pyrometallurgy Symposium is named, will be celebrated at several events during the four-day conference.
August 7, 2019
The Copper 2019 conference, held in Vancouver, Canada, from August 18-21, is a premier global industry event held every three years. This year marks the 10th Edition, and is hosted by Metsoc, the 58th annual Conference of Metallurgists (COM 2019) and the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (CIM).
Worley and Advisian are proud to announce that this year's International Pyrometallurgical Symposium at Copper 2019 is named after our own Dr. Phillip Mackey, one of the inventors of the Noranda reactor. It is fitting that the symposium, which received over 100 abstracts from around the world, is chaired by Dr.Tony Warner, a long-time colleague of Dr. Mackey.
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THE PHILLIP MACKEY SYMPOSIUM
According to the Copper 2019 website: "the Pyrometallurgy Symposium will be held in honor of the contributions of Phillip Mackey to the discipline of copper pyrometallurgy, including copper smelting technology. Notably, the International Copper Conference series was born during Phillip’s tenure as President of MetSoc in 1984. The objective of the symposium is to bring together world experts to address the latest innovations in copper pyrometallurgy and their impact on the copper industry.
PUB NIGHT IN HONOR OF PHILLIP MACKEY
MONDAY, August 19 | LIONS PUB
Worley is proudly co-sponsoring this ticketed celebration dinner ($70.00CAD) at the Lions Pub, which is within walking distance from the convention centre. The evening will include a pub-style menu and drink tickets. With its rich wood décor and charming ambiance, the pub is a favorite hangout for Vancouver locals and tourists.
Location: 888 W Cordova St. | Vancouver
WORLEY TECHNICAL SESSIONS
MONDAY, AUGUST 19
Copper 2019: Pyrometallurgy (The Phillip Mackey Symposium)
10:25 AM | Ballroom AB | Dr Phillip J. Mackey - A Lifetime of Achievement
Introduction + Copper Surveys - Chair: Tony Warner
John B. See, SeeBruce Solutions, and David G. C. Robertson (presenter only), Missouri University of Science and Technology
ABSTRACT. This biographical talk by a long-term friend and colleague of Dr Phillip J Mackey reviews Phillip's career from his early training and education in Australia and highlights his many professional achievements especially his contributions to the physical chemistry and process technology of copper production. The talk covers Phillip's more than 45 years of mining industry experience with a particular emphasis on the mining and processing of ores of copper, nickel, lead, zinc and precious metals working both in major roles for major mining companies and as a private consultant to such companies. During his time at Falconbridge- Noranda he played a leading role in the development of the Noranda process- the World's first commercial continuous copper smelting and converting process. Phillip is also experienced in due diligence studies and has worked World wide on a number of projects for companies such as BHP Billiton, Anglo-American Codelco and Rio Tinto. He has published more than 100 technical papers and articles and is the recipient of multiple professional awards in Canada and the USA the most recent being the TMS 2020 EPD Distinguished lecturer Award. Given this impressive career it is altogether appropriate that he is being honoured in the Phillip Mackey Symposium at Cu 2019.
10:50 AM | “Around the Copper World in Eighty Days”: A Virtual Tour of World Copper Operations and Technologies
Phillip Mackey and Tony Warner
ABSTRACT. Copper metal is produced in large or small tonnages in almost all countries of the world - handling raw materials in the form of either mined and milled ores, custom concentrates, other custom materials including scrap and recycled copper. The scale of operations and type of technologies used around the world varies widely. There is a certain concentration of both mining and smelter-refinery production as a total of ten countries produce some 80% of world mined copper, while ten countries - mostly different ones - produce about 80% of smelted and refined copper. As a result international copper trade is significant. The present paper takes the reader on a virtual tour of the copper plants throughout the world with a focus on smelter facilities. Operations and technology employed at each plant visited are discussed including a brief historical sketch. Future trends identified during the world tour are also discussed. The present authors considered sufficient time was required for a thorough study tour and settled on eighty days - the same as that for the celebrated story of world circumnavigation in the 1870s.
4:00PM. Meeting Room 10 | Copper Surveys II + Flash Smelting Sessions
Chair: Robert West
4:05 PM | Meeting Room 10 | Flash Furnace Feed System Developments
Michael E. Reed and Mark Coleman, Schenck Process UK Ltd
ABSTRACT. The control of feed delivery to the flash furnace remains and unsolved problem. There are still many operations around the world with limited control of feed delivery to the flash furnace. Schenck Process and Worley continue to work towards the ‘holy grail’ of both radial feed distribution and pulse less feed delivery. A range of options have been developed and implemented in the last 10 years and there have been some improvements but there are still areas of concern including: safety issues associated with concentrate leaks and spills, uncontrolled variations in feed rate including massive flooding events, that impact on a flash furnace performance globally on a daily basis. A number of interim steps are now available to pave the way to the ultimate feed system. This paper will investigate the developments over the last 10 years and discuss the pros and cons of this incremental step process for overall furnace control.
TUESDAY, AUGUST 20
4:05PM | Meeting Room 10 | When to Choose Direct to Blister Smelting Process
Robert C. West, Tak Seng Kho, Michael E. Reed, and Lincoln Thompson- Worley
ABSTRACT. In 1978 the Outotec direct to blister flash smelting process was commercialized with the commissioning of the Glogow2 smelting facility in Poland. Since then four further DBF facilities have been constructed, two at Olympic Dam, and one in Zambia and then most recently one in Glogow 1 in Poland. The DBF smelting process differs considerably from conventional smelting process in both chemistry and unit operations presenting opportunities for flowsheet CAPEX and OPEX savings particularly when the concentrate Cu grade is high. Worely has amassed considerable expertise in the Direct to Blister process and in this paper the process is compared to conventional smelt-convert processes. The processes are modeled and the key operating parameters, consumables and production metrics are directly compared. Subsequent flowsheets, key equipment lists and capital costs are also presented for comparison and discussion, Operational experience is also drawn upon to discuss safety considerations. The results show the range of concentrates which are most economically treated by the DBF process relative to those best treated in conventional processes along with those concentrates which could be treated by either process.
4:30 PM - Heat Balance Control Changes- Further Steps and Safety Issues
Michael E. Reed, Robert C. West, Tak Seng Kho, and WeiWei V. Zhang- Worley
ABSTRACT. The control of flash furnace heat balances is critical, suspension smelting control and stability comes from stable operation of the heat balance and in particular the reaction shaft exit temperature. A number of flash furnace operations have been reviewed to determine if the application of this approach is valid. The cause and effect relationship between reaction shaft exit temperature with uptake and throat build up is being enhanced with this work program. Our operating personnel are exposed to the operational hazards of cleaning this buildup from the throat and it is imperative that as an industry we continue to look for repeatable solutions. Worley has reviewed the operational data of a number of flash furnaces and looked at the possible improvements that can be made to decrease variation in the reaction shaft exit temperature.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 21
10:30 AM | Meeting Room 12 | The First Electrolytic Copper Refinery in Australia at Wallaroo, South Australia
Phillip Mackey, Michael Reed, Ben McHenry, South Australian Museum, Adelaide SA, Australia, and Jon Weir, Inception Group Albert Wraith, Private Consultant
ABSTRACT. The Wallaroo smelter on the Yorke Peninsula, South Australia commenced smelting operations in 1861 treating ores from the nearby Moonta and Kadina mines. The plant expanded and modernized on several occasions and was a leader in the successful introduction of new technology to improve operations. It operated continuously until 1923 when local mines became exhausted; in the closing stages of the 19th century it was the largest copper smelter in the world outside of those in Swansea, Wales. In 1892 a small electrolytic refinery was established at Wallaroo, the first in Australia, based on principles developed by Elkington at Pembrey, Wales in 1869. The Wallaroo refinery was specifically built to recover gold and silver from copper produced by smelting gold-containing feed materials shipped from Western Australia. This first venture into electrolytic refining was replaced in 1903 by a somewhat larger refinery which, although modest in size for its time, with a capacity of about 1000 tonnes of cathode copper per year, was very productive in precious metals. Anode copper was produced by an updated version of the reverberatory-based Welsh process until 1910 when barrel-type pneumatic converters were introduced based on American practice; subsequently, anodes were cast by tapping the precious-metals rich "bottoms" portion of converter copper as produced at about one-fifth into the copper blow. The present paper describes the Wallaroo refinery, its anode supply and products, supported by the results of a recent analysis of a sample of a Wallaroo cathode held in the collection of the South Australia Museum, Adelaide SA, Australia.
WORLEY POSTER PRESENTATIONS
TUESDAY, AUGUST 20 | ATRIUM FOYER
Opportunities with High Density Solids (HDS) Precipitation
Daryl J. Purdie and Tony Warner
ABSTRACT. High Density Solids (HDS) Precipitation was first patented over 45 years ago, and since then has been widely used in the mining industry for Acid Rock Drainage (ARD) and tailings pond overflow treatment. This paper aims to review for designers, operators and managers the benefits of applying an HDS process to any precipitation circuit in their smelting, refining and bleed treatment operations, whether it is sulfide, carbonate or hydroxide precipitation. This paper discusses the development and subsequent application of the HDS process at two copper smelters, which resulted in significant improvements in settling and filtration rates, operability as well as reduced capital, maintenance and reagent costs.
Energy Efficiency Programs and Decreasing Our Carbon Footprint - Is It Feasible
Michael E. Reed, Tony Warner, Patience Showa, Phil O'Neil, and Ahmed Vahed
ABSTRACT. The Advisian group have assisted several operations complete energy management surveys with the aim of improving business performance. The approach has involved reviewing the operations to determine where opportunities for significant energy saving and integration with renewable energy supply exist. Alternative energy sources that have been reviewed include:
• Solar/battery support to remote operations
• Organic Rankine heat recovery
• Wind power
• Battery storage solutions
The other significant operational challenge that faces all operations globally is decreasing our carbon foot print. This paper looks at a conventional furnace heat balance and considers alternative energy sources to minimize our carbon footprint.
THE COPPER 2019 TEAM
We will have a significant presence at this event, with some of our most experienced experts and senior leaders available to discuss challenges, opportunities, and innovations of the copper industry.
Phillip J. Mackey | Principal Metallurgical Specialist
Phillip worked for many years at Xstrata and played a leading role in the development of the Noranda Process, the world’s first commercial continuous copper smelting and converting process and one of the important copper technologies developed in the twentieth century. He received the Noranda Technology Award in 1998 in recognition of his role in introducing the Noranda Converter, a new continuous converting process. He played a key role in the Copper Development Association’s activities and helped introduce the North American Initiative for Copper in Architecture to the copper industry in the 1990s.
Phillip served as president of The Metallurgical Society of CIM from 1983 to 1985. He received a Special Medal of Honour by the Society in 2007 for his role as co-founder of the now well-established Copper-Cobre Conference series. He is a Fellow of both CIM and TMS, and has received a number of awards from these institutions.
Daryl Purdie | Principal Metallurgical Specialist
Michael Reed | Global Director, Smelting & Refining
Robert West | Manager, Smelting & Refining
Tony Warner | Director Metallurgy, Smelting & Refining
