MIDES Grinding Media Recycling: Maximize Efficiency and Reduce Production Costs

During the grinding process, continuous friction between the grinding media leads to gradual wear, compromising process efficiency. This wear increases grinding temperature and disrupts the even distribution of grinding media, significantly raising production costs.

Faceted or broken grinding media not only reduce grinding efficiency but can also increase electricity consumption by up to 6%. The presence of scrap in the grinding media can reduce grinding efficiency to nearly zero, leading to product retention and clogging of mill grilles. This decreases productivity and raises costs and time—critical factors in large-scale production.

Importance of Recycling:

• Reduction of Clogging: Eliminates clogging of grilles, especially at the mill outlet.
• Increased Efficiency: Enhances the efficiency of grinding media, achieving the desired material granulometry.
• Energy Savings: Reduces circulating load in the mill, lowering energy consumption and operational costs.

Impact Example:

For a cement plant with a capacity of 2,000 tons/day, grinding energy consumption can account for up to 36% of the plant’s total energy use, or 43 kWh/ton. A cement mill with a capacity of 100 tons/hour and a grinding media load of 250 tons can show up to 25% (and in some cases up to 46%) of scrap and defective balls, resulting in 62.5 tons of inert mass. This translates to excessive energy consumption, which turns into heat with minimal grinding effect.

MIDES Solution:

MIDES offers a recycling service that provides the best cost-benefit ratio on the market. We have developed a spreadsheet to calculate the efficiency gain of your plant by using our recycling service. Contact us to find out how we can help optimize your production and reduce costs.