ISASMELT—Not just a flash in the pan

摘要

The Copper ISASMELT process, a technology that emerged into the global metals industry during the 1990s, is now processing more than three million tonnes of concentrates and secondary copper materials each year. The submerged lance smelting technology produces either copper matte or copper metal in plants located in Australia, the United States of America, Belgium, India, Germany and China. M.I.M. Holdings Limited (MIM) licenses the process to external companies through its technology division, MIM Process Technologies. MIM, as an operating company and technology supplier, is able to provide external clients with proven process design and continuous operational improvements together with full training and commissioning assistance services from experienced operations personnel. The Copper ISASMELT furnace at Mount Isa Mines is treating more than one million tonnes of copper-bearing feed per year. Furnace campaigns of more than two years are now standard. This paper describes the current status of the copper ISASMELT furnace at Mount Isa and compares its performance with that of the two most recent installations in China and India. It includes a summary on development of a continuous converting process. This process will employ similar process fundamentals to ISASMELT and has the potential to replace Peirce Smith converters.