The Ups and Downs of Paste Transport

Authors: Pullum, L; Graham, LJW; Rudman, M; Aldham, B; Hamilton, R Download Paper

DOI https://doi.org/10.36487/ACG_repo/663_34

Cite As:
Pullum, L, Graham, LJW, Rudman, M, Aldham, B & Hamilton, R 2006, 'The Ups and Downs of Paste Transport', in R Jewell, S Lawson & P Newman (eds), Paste 2006: Proceedings of the Ninth International Seminar on Paste and Thickened Tailings, Australian Centre for Geomechanics, Perth, pp. 395-402, https://doi.org/10.36487/ACG_repo/663_34



Abstract:
Mineral tailings pipelines have to traverse undulating terrain. Paste and high concentration tailings lines convey non-Newtonian slurries and usually contain coarse particles, i.e. > 20 m, that are conveyed as a burden. In presentations at previous Paste conferences papers have been presented that demonstrated that such flows, while appearing to behave homogenously in fact stratify and require higher transport pressure gradients and more care when conveying than their true homogenous paste counterparts, (Pullum and Graham 2000, Pullum 2003, Talmon and Mastbergen 2004). The flows are most readily described using a stratified model and a non-Newtonian version of this type of model has been shown to predict such flows quite well (Pullum et al., 2004). While suitable non-Newtonian models have been devised for transport in horizontal lines the effect of incline on such hybrid suspension flows is yet to be established. A new tilting pipeline rig has been constructed at CSIRO to investigate the behaviour of these complex suspensions and this paper describes this new test facility and reports on preliminary results obtained with a visco-plastic suspension, typical of many non-Newtonian co-disposal systems, e.g. (Houman 2003).

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