Roy Hill Mine, located in the Pilbara WA, required multiple pump systems to transfer leachate from sumps to an evaporation pond located 50 metres away.
The pump systems needed to be portable, easy to use and able to cope with the composition of the leachate.
Apart from portable generators, there is no power available at Roy Hill. Generators bring their own issues in regards to maintenance and fuel spills and due to the remote location and OH&S issues, ideally the pumps could run without operator involvement.
The leachate being pumped has possible hydrocarbon contamination and, combined with higher temperatures, requires a pump with material of construction to work reliably. The required performance parameters was to pump 20m3/day at 30 metres TDH.
The Lorentz PS600HR14-2 Solar Pumping System with Viton Stator was proposed with capability to pump 2.6 m3/hour at 50 metres TDH.
Five pumping systems were required. An 800W PV system was mounted on each on a fold-out frame in a 6×4 galvanised trailer – the two outside panels are able to fold onto the inside two panels for transportation.
A pump manifold with pulse flowmeter, isolation valve, pressure switch (for automatic cut-off) and camlocks were included on the rear drop-down tray for easy connection to 150 metres of lay flat hose on a manual roller. A LORENTZ Well Probe mounted in the sump ensures the pump only runs when leachate is present.
Samsung C&T were extremely happy with the result as they had been looking on the market for 18 months to find a suitable solution. Samsung conducted acceptance testing at our Lonsdale facility and signed off on all VDDR documentation to comply with Roy Hill standards and specifications.