“We’re not just selling a product, but a concept which could change how mining is done around the world,” Mr Barrows of Peterstow Aquapower commented.
At its factory, the company produces a closed-loop hydraulic drill, which it claims will revolutionise mining across the world.
At present, most of SA’s deep-level gold and platinum mines use hand-held pneumatic drills to bore holes in the underground rock face. In pneumatic drills, compressed air drives the drill bit. Explosives are then inserted into the holes to blast the rock.
“If you go underground, it’s like stepping into the Victorian era. If you had cryogenically frozen a miner from 100 years ago, the only difference would be the cellphone,” says Douglas Barrows, Peterstow founder and chairman.
The problem with pneumatic drilling is that it is very energy-and water-intensive. A compressor – which compacts the air for the drill – is on the surface, which can be thousands of meters above the actual drilling.
It is “very inefficient” mainly because of leaks in the pipes before it gets to the drill, according to Declan Vogt of the CSIR’s Center for Mining Innovation. “Of the electrical energy used, only 1% gets used in the drills,” he says.
Ian Cockerill, former CE of Gold Fields and a Peterstow board member, says: “The installed energy capacity at the average large mine is around 250MW, and something like 30% of that consumption is from compressors. If you can eliminate that energy consumption on half-dozen mines that saves enough energy to power a town the size of Port Elizabeth.”
Moreover, giant tanks of oil are attached to the compressor. This is to facilitate oil-mist lubrication for the machinery. This is part of the acid mine drainage problem and pollutes drinking water, Mr Barrow says.
“It was a crazy idea. I realised the future of the world (and mining) was not oil, but water.”
Mr Barrows developed the idea for the drill in the mid-1990s, but the technology suite did not exist at the time. “They’ve now completed the jigsaw puzzle.”
The Peterstow drill employs a patented closed-loop water hydraulic system in conjunction with modular power packs, which are taken underground.
The design dramatically reduces water and electricity usage.
It also decreases the chance of flooding, meaning that mines do not have to install and pay for additional facilities to pump water back to the surface.
The global mining industry is a big user of electricity. South African mining houses, in particular, are under pressure to cut the electricity consumption. Acid mine drainage – polluted water from mining areas – has found its way on to the national agenda.
“We can cut electricity consumption by up to 25%, and water usage by as much as 855, but the saving depends on each mining case,” Mr Barrows says.
Alan Barrows, Douglas’s son and Peterstow director, says the new leaders of mining houses are “more modern and forward thinking. We are in advanced negotiation with a number of South African mines.”
Douglas Barrows says: “There are about 34 trials and evaluations underground at this moment.”
The factory in Swaziland produces the drills and power packs – which come in 7,5kW and 15kW units – as well as road-breakers for construction. However, Peterstow has its eye on expansion, in which Alan Barrows envisions the factory producing 4 000-5 000 drills a month, from the current 100. Peterstow drills retail for about $18,5m for 1000 drills.
However, mines face a quandary as, on the one hand, the pneumatic drill infrastructure exists down the shafts but, on the other hand, the energy and water inefficiencies push up their costs.
Mr Vogt says: “I like the Peterstow technology. Redesigning drills from scratch and powering them with water has resulted in a superior drill, but you can’t predict worker preference.
“Managing the change process will dictate whether they (Peterstow) succeeds
Source: Business Day
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