Vacuum disc filters go beyond

Authors: Hahn, J Download Paper Open access courtesy of:

DOI https://doi.org/10.36487/ACG_repo/2355_68

Cite As:
Hahn, J 2023, 'Vacuum disc filters go beyond', in GW Wilson, NA Beier, DC Sego, AB Fourie & D Reid (eds), Paste 2023: Proceedings of the 25th International Conference on Paste, Thickened and Filtered Tailings, University of Alberta, Edmonton, and Australian Centre for Geomechanics, Perth, pp. 853-858, https://doi.org/10.36487/ACG_repo/2355_68



Abstract:
Modern high-performance disc filters such as the BoVac disc filter have set new standards in applications where large capacities of solids, liquids and air must be managed through the filters. These disc filters have an enormous hydraulic capacity. For applications in mineral processing, with a special focus on tailings (which typically have high solids throughputs but low filtrate and air flows), this capacity can be used to expand the filtration area while maintaining the benefits of very good cake discharge, even with thin cakes (4–5 mm) and a high filter speed. Research work over the last century has proven that increasing the filter area should be achieved by increasing the disc diameter because adding more discs leads to big problems with the cake discharge: i.e. the filter cake is not, or is insufficiently, blown off on the filter discs furthest away from the control head. However, as the disc diameter increases, the filter segments become longer and heavier. A suitable compromise was therefore found by doing both. The result is the first vacuum disc filter that offers significantly more than 300 m² of filtration area yet has no more than six discs.

Keywords: tailings dewatering, vacuum disc filter, backfill, filter area, footprint

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