Mineral material processing method and processing plant

Abstract

In a mineral material processing method, mineral material is processed in a mineral material processing plant. Heat generated in heat sources of the processing plant and/or fuel used in a motor of the processing plant is cooled in a cooler of the processing plant. The cooler is equipped with a blower. Wetting water is directed to the mineral material for binding dust generated in the processing. Heat of at least one heat source of the processing plant and/or heat of the fuel is transferred to the wetting water before using the wetting water for dust binding. The wetting water is directed, before the dust binding, to a first heat exchanger for receiving heat in the wetting water.

Claims

1. A mineral material processing method comprising: processing mineral material in a mineral material processing plant; cooling in a cooler of the processing plant at least one of heat generated in heat sources of the mineral material processing plant and fuel used in a motor of the mineral material processing plant; cooling the cooler with a blower; directing wetting water to the mineral material for binding dust generated during processing of the mineral material; transferring to the wetting water heat of at least one heat source of the mineral material processing plant and/or heat of the fuel before using the wetting water for dust binding; and directing the wetting water in a flow direction before the dust binding to a first heat exchanger for receiving heat in the wetting water.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising cooling with the wetting water a plurality of cooling targets selected from a group consisting of: the heat source of the processing plants; charge air; and the fuel used in the motor.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising cooling with the wetting water at least one of the following: hydraulic liquid of hydraulics, charge air of the motor, the fuel of the motor, and cooling liquid of the motor of the mineral material processing plant.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising transferring heat transferred to the wetting water to a target of the mineral material processing plant that needs at least one of: heating, and heat equalization, and thereafter directing the wetting water to the dust binding.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising directing to an additional cooler at least one of the following that is cooled with the wetting water: cooling liquid of the motor and hydraulic liquid of the hydraulics.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising storing in a heat storage heat transferred to the wetting water and directing thereafter the wetting water to the dust binding.

7. The method according to claim 6, further comprising releasing heat stored in the heat storage to a target of the mineral material processing plant that needs at least one of: heating and heat equalization.

8. A mineral material processing plant comprising: a motor; a cooler equipped with a blower for cooling at least one of heat generated in heat sources of the processing plant and fuel used in the motor; dust binding means for directing wetting water to the mineral material and for binding dust generated during processing of the mineral material; and heat transfer means through which the wetting water is arranged to flow during use of the mineral material processing plant before directing the wetting water to the dust binding means, the heat transfer means being configured to transfer to the wetting water heat of at least one heat source of the mineral material processing plant and/or heat of the fuel, wherein the heat transfer means comprises a first heat exchanger that is arranged before the dust binding means in a flow direction of the wetting water.

9. The mineral material processing plant according to claim 8, wherein the cooler is configured to cool with the wetting water a plurality of cooling targets selected from a group consisting of the heat sources of the mineral material processing plants, charge air, and the fuel used in the motor.

10. The mineral material processing plant according to claim 8, wherein the processing plant at least one of the following is arranged to be cooled with the wetting water: hydraulic liquid of hydraulics, charge air of the motor, the fuel of the motor, and cooling liquid of the motor of the mineral material processing plant.

11. The mineral material processing plant according to claim 8, wherein heat transferred to the wetting water is arranged to be transferred to a target of the mineral material processing plant that needs at least one of: heating and heat equalization, and the wetting water is arranged to flow thereafter to the dust binding means.

12. The mineral material processing plant according to claim 8, wherein the mineral material processing plant comprises an additional cooler which is arranged to cool additionally at least one of: the cooling liquid of the motor and the hydraulic liquid of the hydraulics in the heat transfer means after the cooling.

13. The mineral material processing plant according to claim 8, wherein the mineral material processing plant comprises a heat storage configured to receive and store heat transferred in the wetting water in the heat transfer means before the dust binding means.

14. The mineral material processing plant according to claim 13, wherein a first heat exchanger or a second heat exchanger is positioned in the heat storage for transferring heat of the wetting water to a liquid volume of the heat storage.

15. The mineral material processing plant according to claim 13, wherein the heat storage is positioned in a bottom of a screen.

16. A mineral material processing plant comprising: a motor; a cooler including a blower operable to remove heat from one of a plurality of heat sources of the processing plant and fuel used in the motor; a heat exchanger operable to receive a supply of wetting water, wherein the heat exchanger transfers heat from the plurality of heat sources and/or the fuel to the supply of wetting water to create a heated supply of wetting water; and a dust binding means operable to receive the heated supply of wetting water and to direct the heated supply of wetting water to bind dust generated during operation of the mineral material processing plant.

17. The mineral material processing plant according to claim 16, further comprises a heat storage device that receives the heated supply of wetting water and removes and stores heat from the heated supply of water.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The invention will be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying schematical drawings, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 shows a side view of a crushing plant that is suitable for mineral material crushing;

(3) FIG. 2 shows a known combination cell of a cooler;

(4) FIG. 3 shows a first example of a processing plant according to the invention;

(5) FIG. 4 shows a second example of a processing plant according to the invention; and

(6) FIG. 5 shows a third example of a processing plant according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(7) In the following description, like numbers denote like elements. It should be appreciated that the illustrated drawings are not entirely in scale, and that the drawings mainly serve the purpose of illustrating some example embodiments of the invention.

(8) FIG. 3 shows a cooling arrangement in which cooling 4 of hydraulics of a processing plant 200 is moved separate from a combination cell 10 of a cooler of the processing plant. The cooling 4 of the hydraulics is arranged in a first heat exchanger 5, and (cold) wetting water used for dust binding of mineral material flows to a first input 6 of the first heat exchanger. The wetting water flowing (warmed up) from an output 7 to dust binding means 20 of the processing plant to be used in dust binding. The wetting water is sprayed by the dust binding means 20 in a dust binding target of the processing plant such as a crushing chamber of a crusher.

(9) A charge air cooling cell 11, a fuel cooling cell 12 and a motor cooling liquid cell 13 are arranged on top of each other in a layer-like combination cell 10′ in the same structure in an influencing range of a blower (not shown in the Fig.). The charge air cooling cell 11 and the cooling liquid cooling cell 13 of the motor 104 can be increased significantly if the main dimensions of the cooler are kept unchanged. The rotation speed of the blower can be substantially smaller wherein the noise level is decreased and the energy consumption is reduced.

(10) FIG. 4 shows a cooling arrangement in which the source of the heat to be transferred to the wetting water is both the cooling system of the motor and the hydraulic system. The wetting water arriving from an external source warms up in a first heat exchanger 5 that comprises three pairs of inputs and outputs.

(11) The (cold) wetting water used for dust binding of mineral material is connected to flow to a first input 6. As a difference with reference to the FIG. 3 it can be seen that heat content of the wetting water is utilized before the dust binding when the wetting water flows from a first output 7 to the dust binding means 20 through structures of a feeder 8. Heat of the wetting water is transferred before the dust binding to structures of the feeder 8 of the processing plant for frost-prevention of them. Accordingly, heat can be transferred, for example to structures of a screen or a conveyor of the processing plant before use of the wetting water in a dust binding target.

(12) A cooling circuit 4 of the hydraulics is connected to a second input 9 of the heat exchanger 5. The cooled down hydraulic oil lows out of a second output 15 of the heat exchanger, if necessary to a first additional cooler 16, for example a first additional cooling cell.

(13) The motor cooling liquid cooling circuit 3 is connected to a third input 17 of the heat exchanger 5. The cooled down motor cooling liquid is flowing out of a third output 18 of the heat exchanger, if necessary to a second additional cooler 19, for example a second additional cooling cell.

(14) The first and second additional cooling cells 16, 19 can be arranged in the combination cell 10′ of the type shown in FIG. 3 but because of the smaller cooling need the sizes thereof may be significantly small.

(15) FIG. 5 shows a cooling arrangement in which the sources of the heat to be transferred to the wetting water is both the cooling system of the motor and the hydraulic system. The wetting water proceeding from an external source warms up in a first heat exchanger 5 that comprises three pairs of inputs and outputs 6, 7; 9, 15; 17, 18 such as in FIG. 4.

(16) Part of the heat of the wetting water is stored in a heat storage 30 by a second heat exchanger 31 in the example of FIG. 5. This arrangement enables storing of heat when the processing plant is not used. The warmed up wetting water is directed through the second heat exchanger 31 positioned in a liquid volume 32 of the heat storage 30, heat of the wetting water is released to the liquid of the heat storage and after that the wetting water is directed to the dust binding 20. Heat stored in the heat storage 30 can be released to a target of the processing plant that needs heating and/or heat equalization, for example to heating of the hydraulic oil in connection with starting of the machine.

(17) Embodiments of the FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 can naturally be combined according to the invention and, among others, different combinations of heat sources and/or the fuel cooling circuit 2 can be connected to the first heat exchanger 5 as parties that release heat. Further, the heat transferred to the wetting water in the first heat exchanger 5 can be utilized in one or several targets that need heating and after that the wetting water can be used in connection with the dust binding. The first heat exchanger 5 can also be positioned in the heat storage 30.

(18) Embodiments of the heat exchange system shown in FIGS. 3 to 5 can be used, for example, in the crushing plant 200 of FIG. 1.

(19) The foregoing description provides non-limiting examples of some embodiments of the invention. It is clear to a person skilled in the art that the invention is not restricted to details presented, but that the invention can be implemented in other equivalent means. Some of the features of the above-disclosed embodiments may be used to advantage without the use of other features.

(20) As such, the foregoing description shall be considered as merely illustrative of principles of the invention, and not in limitation thereof. Hence, the scope of the invention is only restricted by the appended patent claims.