Improved Pump Efficiency with Chesterton Superset

In a mineral beneficiation plant, slurry pumps in flotation areas can often only maintain optimum performance for three to five days, while the shaft sleeves themselves wear down so rapidly that they must be replaced every fortnight. This can be tiresome for mine managers, forcing them to either carry out constant maintenance work or renew their exhausted machinery, a process that is not only expensive but also time consuming.

This is where the Chesterton Superset solution comes into play. While it also manufactures high performance lubricants and automatic lubrication systems, Chesterton is known throughout the mining community for its sealing expertise, and durable design, engineering polymeric solutions for use in various ore processing operations. Using its long history of working closely with mining and ore processing companies across the globe, the company has developed a pump solution that can help mine operators dramatically reduce maintenance costs, and improve efficiency during mineral processing procedures. The Chesterton Superset, which includes both a slurry sealing packer and a solids repeller, combines the superior sealing capabilities of Chesterton’s compression packing products with the EnviroSeal SpiralTrac Environmental Controller, which improves packed stuffing box efficiency. This combination reduces flush water consumption and optimizes fluid quality, generating energy savings and improving ore recovery levels and grade quality.

During a recent live test, the Superset was added to the packing system of a fully functional lead, zinc, and copper mineral processor with impressive results. Thanks to the new technology, the pump system operated for a total of 35 days, seven times its previous life expectancy, while the shaft sleeve lasted twice as long as it would under normal circumstances. Chesterton’s total sealing solution boosts packing and equipment service life while dramatically reducing flush rates, and crucially increasing the mean time before failure (MTBF) of its users’ pump systems. The system generates a positive impact on its clients’ systems not only in terms of productivity but also for the safety and operational side of its customers' businesses. The total savings generated by the Superset solution vary depending on the ore processing system on which it is used. However, results from the live test suggest that companies running base metal processing plants can recover their initial investment in just five weeks from just one Superset system.