Dynamic Modeling of a Vibrating Screen Considering the Ore Inertia and Force of the Ore over the Screen Calculated with Discrete Element Method

Vibrating screens are critical machines used for size classification in mineral processing. Their proper operation, including accurate vibration movement and slope angle, can provide the benefits of energy savings and cost reductions in the screening process and the whole mining process. Dynamic models of the vibrating screen movement available in the literature do not simulate ore motion or its interaction with screen decks. The discrete element method (DEM) allows for the calculation of the dynamic of the ore. In this paper, two 2D three-degrees-of-freedom dynamic models for a vibrating screen are tested, using linear and nonlinear approaches for angular displacement. These models consider the inertia of the ore and the ore force calculated with DEM. A double-deck linear motion vibrating screen is simulated using the DEM software LIGGGTHS. DEM is used to obtain the ore parameters in the steady state and the force on the screen decks. Two cases are compared: Case 1 considers the ore as moving together with the vibrating screen, and Case 2 considers the ore force on the screen deck as calculated by DEM. Simulations are carried out with data for an industrial vibrating screen used in copper mining. The force over the screen is significantly different between the cases. Case 1 produces a force that is unrealistic because the ore cannot produce a high-amplitude adhesion force over the screen decks. In Case 2, no adhesion force acts between the ore and deck. It is concluded that the linear dynamic model used in Case 2 is adequate to evaluate the influence of the ore on the movement of the vibrating screen. The linear dynamic model considering the force as in Case 1 can be used to simulate a vibrating screen, as long as a correct calibration parameter is included to obtain an accurate motion amplitude.