Minerals Engineering 15 (2002) 123–129

www.elsevier.com/locate/mine

Fine dry comminution of calcium carbonate in a Hicom mill with an

Inprosys air classifier
R.M. Braun a, J. Kolacz b, D.I. Hoyer a,*

a
Hicom International Pty Ltd., 8 Khartoum Rd., North Ryde NSW 2113, Sydney, Australia
b
SINTEF, Materials Technology Department, Norway
Received 30 April 2001; accepted 12 December 2001

Abstract
The Hicom mill is a high-intensity tumbling mill that can be used for fine and ultra-fine media grinding. Recent investigations on
fine dry grinding with the Hicom 25 pilot plant, operating in closed circuit with an IAC 200 Inprosys high-efficiency classifier, have
indicated that this milling combination is well suited to the efficient production of fine mineral powders. Closed circuit grinds were
performed on 98% passing 94 lm limestone to a range of product sizes from 98% passing 26 down to 6.4 lm to determine the specific
energy requirements for the milling of this material. The results from these tests show efficient classifier separation as well as rapid
and efficient comminution in the Hicom mill. Ó 2002 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.

Keywords: Industrial minerals; Comminution; Fine particle processing; Grinding

1. Introduction ations up to 50 times stronger than gravity, Hoyer

Located at Hicom’s test facility in Sydney Australia,
the Hicom dry pilot plant consists of a Hicom 25 nu-
tating mill operating in closed circuit with an Inprosys
IAC 200 high-efficiency classifier. Recent work con-
ducted on the comminution of dry calcium carbonate
powders has demonstrated the energy efficiency of this
plant for fine and ultra-fine grinding.
A series of tests under different conditions have been
performed to demonstrate the effectiveness of this
equipment combination for the production of fine
powders. Closed circuit grinds were performed on cal-
cium carbonate (sized 98% passing 94 lm) to a range of
product sizes from 98% passing 26 down to 6.4 lm to
determine the specific energy requirements for grinding
of this material. The results from these tests show effi-
cient classifier separation as well as rapid and efficient
comminution in the Hicom mill.
2. The Hicom mill
The Hicom mill is a high-intensity tumbling mill that
uses a nutating motion to generate centrifugal acceler-
*
Corresponding author. Tel.: +612-9919-1203; fax: +612-9887-3034.
E-mail address: dhoyer@chwarman.com (D.I. Hoyer).
0892-6875/02/$ - see front matter Ó 2002 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.
PII: S 0 8 9 2 - 6 8 7 5 ( 0 1 ) 0 0 2 1 7 - 5
(1996), Hoyer and Morgan (1996). Fig. 1 shows a
schematic of a Hicom 110/60 mill, with 110 kW motor
and 60 l grinding chamber. The 10 pole motor is directly
coupled to the drive shaft and controlled by a variable
speed drive, resulting in very low transmission losses.
Operation of the mill is controlled by a PLC that
monitors startup, running and shutdown procedures.
The grinding chamber has a conical upper section
with a hemispherical base, the chamber motion is similar
to swirling a conical flask with the wrist. The grinding
chamber is restrained by a patented bearing called the
Nutator, and the nutating motion is delivered by a
crankshaft via the transmission. The chamber does not
rotate, rather it nutates, resulting in the generation of
centrifugal acceleration fields inside the chamber.
Fig. 2 is a cut-away view showing how the feed ma-
terial passes through the mill. The feed drops vertically
into the grinding chamber and is ejected via eight dis-
charge ports around the periphery. These ports may be
open holes of around 40 mm diameter, or they may be
covered with slotted grates. Some ports may be blocked
entirely with plugs. The mill load tumbles in a manner
somewhat similar to a ball mill, though in a horizontal
rather than a vertical plane. A variable speed drive
operates the mill at speeds of between 600 and 800 rpm,
resulting in high power densities and a high frequency of
interparticle collisions. The power density of this
124 R.M. Braun et al. / Minerals Engineering 15 (2002) 123–129
Fig. 1. Section view of a Hicom 110/60 mill, with 110 kW motor and
60 l grinding chamber. The overall height excluding motor is 2.30 m.
Fig. 2. Cut-away view showing feed material flow path: Hicom 110/30
mill, with 110 kW motor and 30 l grinding chamber.
machine is up to 1700 kW=m3 , which is considerably
higher than most other grinding machines.
The Hicom mill has found application not only in fine
grinding of hard ores, Hoyer (1999); Hoyer and Boyes
(1994), and softer ores such as talc and limestone, but
also in intensive attritioning areas such as diamond re-
covery plants, Hoyer and Lee (1997) and mineral sands,
Hoyer et al. (2001). For fine grinding applications
grinding media is used. The media is retained in the
grinding chamber by slotted grates fitted over the
chamber discharge ports. The residence time is con-
trolled by altering the discharge area by increasing or
decreasing the discharge port open area. A more de-
tailed description of the Hicom mill is available on the
Internet at www.hicom-mill.com.
3. The Inprosys classifier
The Inprosys air classifier was developed by the Sintef
group in Trondheim, Norway and compares favourably
with other air classifiers. The classifier design results in
increased classification efficiency and reduced specific
energy requirements, Ardvison and Kolacz (1999).
A schematic diagram of the Inprosys classifier is
shown in Fig. 3. As can be seen, the feed material enters
the classifier suspended in air through a vertical
pipe positioned at the bottom of the classifier. Initial
Fig. 3. Schematic drawing of the Inprosys air classifier.
 R.M. Braun et al. / Minerals Engineering 15 (2002) 123–129
classification takes place in the classifying chamber.
After passing the feed dispersion cone, the coarse ma-
terial is discharged from the classifier by gravity through
the coarse fraction outlet. Remaining material rises with
the air stream to the top of the classifier.
A rotor accelerates the material to its peripheral
speed thus creating a centrifugal force in the particle to
act against the air drag forces. As the particles move
towards the inside of the rotor and are accelerated to its
peripheral velocity, a coriolis effect is generated. As
particle velocity increases, the centrifugal force increases
and coarser particles can be rejected outside the rotor,
while finer particles pass through the rotor and are
discharged from the classifier fines outlet.
A secondary air inlet, supplying the classifier with an
additional air stream, is used to clean the coarse fraction
from the very fine particles agglomerated on the surface
of the coarser grains. This results in an improvement of
the classification efficiency.
4. Hicom dry pilot plant
Previous grinding test work in the Hicom mill indi-
cated that the mill was suitable for fine grinding in a wet
batch environment, Hoyer and Boyes (1994). This series
of tests aimed to demonstrate that the Hicom mill is
equally well suited to continuous fine dry grinding. To
conduct this test work the Hicom pilot plant was fitted
with an Inprosys IAC 200 Classifier as shown in Fig. 4.
The mill is operated in a partially air swept manner,
with the mill discharge mechanisms being both the
Fig. 4. Schematic of the Hicom pilot plant.
125
centrifugal force and the air flow through the mill
discharge grates. The classifier total airflow rate is
controlled by a variable speed drive linked to the sys-
tem fan, while throttle valves on the respective air
streams are used to adjust the ratio of primary to sec-
ondary air.
The circuit comprises a feed bin and vibrating feeder
with automatic control of feed rate, a Hicom 25 mill
with a 25 kW variable speed motor, a high efficiency
rotor type air classifier, as well as a cyclone and dust
collector for product recovery. Also included are system
and bag house fans for pneumatic transportation and
instrumentation for control and monitoring of mill
power, mill discharge temperature and system airflow
rates.
The plant includes automatic control of feed rate,
control of classifier primary air via a VSD, manual
control of secondary airflow via a butterfly valve, and
manual control of classifier and mill speeds. Instru-
mentation includes the determination and display of mill
feed rate, primary and secondary airflow rates, classifier
speed and power consumption, mill power and mill
discharge temperature.
5. Test work: fine limestone feed ceramic grinding media
A sample of approximately 2 ton of limestone powder
was obtained for these investigations. The feed size was
nominally 98% passing 94 lm with a d80 of 45 lm and a
d50 of 20 lm. A range of different sized products was
manufactured from this feedstock with varying
126 R.M. Braun et al. / Minerals Engineering 15 (2002) 123–129

processing conditions to determine the effects of those
conditions on the circuit performance.
The Hicom 25 mill grinding chamber has a volume of
approximately 10.7 l and can be fitted with either
stainless steel or polyurethane liners. The mill was op-
erated at 960 rpm, which equates to a centrifugal force
of 32 G’s. The mill was filled with 19.26 kg of 2.4–2.6
mm ceria stabilised zirconia grinding media (S:G: ¼ 6:0)
to give a mill filling of 50%. The media was retained in
the mill by two grates with 1.6 mm width slots fitted over
the mill discharge ports. The mill discharge area was
1100 mm2 .
The mill feed rate, classifier rotor speed, and classifier
airflows were all adjusted to achieve the desired product
size. A proprietary grinding aid was added directly into
the mill throat as a dilute aqueous solution via a small
diaphragm pump, grinding aid addition was generally
maintained at either 300 or 500 g/ton.
Table 1 shows a summary of the results of the pilot
plant runs. The table lists the experimental conditions as
well as the product and recycle size parameters for the
individual runs. The sizings were taken by manual
sampling once it was believed that the grinding circuit
was operating in a stable manner. All sizings were per-
formed on a Malvern Mastersizer Malvern 2000 Ver.
2.00 laser diffraction with Hydro 2000 MU attachment
using water with tetrasodium pyrophosphate as a dis-
persant and a particle refractive index and absorption of
1.554 and 0.1, respectively.
The full particle size distribution curves for the feed,
recycle and product curves for these three runs are dis-
played in Figs. 5–7.
6. Discussion of grinding results
In the graphs displayed in Figs. 5–7, the large size
reduction of the top size of the product can be seen. Also
evident is the comparatively smaller reduction in the
bottom size fractions, resulting in a relatively steep
product particle size distribution. This steep product
PSD results from efficient grinding and classification
and leads to a low specific energy for a given product.
It is believed that the efficient grinding in the Hicom
mill is a result of the high intensity environment, where
due to the high effective weight of the grinding media, it
imparts more energy than the same size media in an
ordinary mill. This leads to more intense and more
frequent impacts. In addition to this, the high intensity
environment and small chamber volume result in a low
residence time in the mill. This reduces the opportunity
for over grinding of fine fractions.

Table 1
Summary of pilot plant operating conditions and results
Feed Run 1 Run 2 Run 3
Mill speed, rpm – 768 768 768
Mill acceleration, G’s (nominal) – 32 32 32
Discharge area, mm2 – 1117 1117 1117
Discharge slot width, mm – 1.6 1.6 1.6
Feed rate, kg/h – 82 209 93
Net power, kW – 6.9 6.0 7.1
Energy, kW h/t – 84.1 28.7 76.3
Classifier speed, rpm – 5000 2100 5000
Classifier primary air, m3 =h – 800 900 800
Classifier secondary air, m3 =h – 180 200 65
Classifier air ratio (secondary/primary air) – 0.225 0.222 0.081
Classifier efficiency (at 1 lm) – 62.3 79.4 52.5
Media size, mm – 2.5 2.5 2.5
Media S.G – 6.0 6.0 6.0
Mill filling – 50% 50% 50%
Grinding aid dosage, g/t – 500 300 300
Mill discharge temp, °C – 56.1 47.4 46.0
Recirculating load, kg/h – 123 200 184
Recirculating load ratio – 1.44 0.96 2.04
Air solids loading, kg=m3 – 0.209 0.372 0.320
Test duration, min – 65 132 70
Ambient temp, °C – 18 18 18
Product d98 , lm 94.4 7.9 25.8 6.4
Product d90 , lm 61.7 5.4 17.5 4.5
Product d80 , lm 45.4 4.2 13.0 3.7
Product d50 , lm 20.3 2.5 6.3 2.3
Recycle d90 , lm – 25.7 51.1 35.5
Recycle d80 , lm – 18.1 41.2 25.0
Recycle d50 , lm – 9.5 25.4 11.5
R.M. Braun et al. / Minerals Engineering 15 (2002) 123–129 127

Fig. 5. Feed, product and classifier recycle PSD’s for Run 1.

Fig. 6. Feed, product and classifier recycle PSD’s for Run 2.

Fig. 7. Feed, product and classifier recycle PSD’s for Run 3.

128 R.M. Braun et al. / Minerals Engineering 15 (2002) 123–129
Fig. 8. Classifier performance in the Hicom pilot plant during fine grinding of calcium carbonate.
Fig. 8 is a graph illustrating the efficiency of the
classifier cut during the production of the fine calcium
carbonate. As can been seen there is a noticeable ‘‘fish
hook’’ effect, predominantly for the finer grinds (Runs 1
and 3). Generally, this is considered to be an indication
that the ratio of secondary and primary air to the clas-
sifier is too low, Ardvison and Kolacz (1999).
The fish hook effect is defined as a local maximum in
the curve rather than a continuous decay to zero, Na-
pier-Munn et al. (1996). It is considered to generally
result from electrostatic, thermodynamic, or physical
causes or due to moisture in the feed material, Kolacz
(2000).
It is difficult to determine the conditions that caused
the fish hook effect during these tests, since none of these
causes was specifically monitored or investigated. The
primary means by which the classifier controls the fish
hook effect is by correct adjustment of the ratio of pri-
mary and secondary air.
A possible explanation for the fish hook effect is the
fact that only cyclone fraction has been analysed as the
fine product. In this case the ultra fines, partly attached
to the surface of the coarse classifier fraction grains, are
reported in the efficiency curve, while the ultra fines re-
moved by the cyclone and collected in the filter are not
included. This has artificially magnified the fish hook
effect.
The bag house component consisted of between 5%
and 10% of the final product by weight. This material
was not included in this analysis since the bag house was
contaminated with a small component of coarse feed
size material. This material resulted from the bag
houses’ secondary role as the dust suppression system
during mill feed bin filling. The bag house material
typically had a d50 of less than 2 lm, however the top
size varied considerably depending on the degree of
contamination.
Despite the presence of the fish hook effect the clas-
sification efficiency is still high at between 80% and 85%
in the 2–3 lm range, however further optimisation work
on the classifier operation undoubtedly has the potential
to further increase the milling efficiency of the Hicom/
Inprosys circuit on this material. Higher airflow rates
combined with higher classifier rotor speeds also in-
crease the classifier efficiency, Kolacz (2000).
7. Comparison of grinding results
The specific energies required for the milling of this
material to the products shown in Table 1 are shown
below as Fig. 9. The energies for the production of the
same sized material based on d80 ’s for an optimised ball
mill are also given. These figures were estimated on the
basis of pilot scale ball mill grinding carried out by
SINTEF in Norway. The results were compared with
optimised industrial scale ball milling circuits, where
similar energy consumption levels were recorded. This
gives confidence in the accuracy of the estimates.
This graph clearly illustrates the reduction in energy
required to mill this calcium carbonate to fine sizes in
the Hicom mill dry pilot plant over what would be ex-
pected for a typical ball milling circuit. For the material
sizes produced during this test the milling energy re-
quirements were between 31% and 70% lower than
would be expected for a conventional ball milling cir-
cuit.
8. Summary of fine grinding pilot plant results
The best results obtained during this test were with a
mill speed of 32 G’s and a classifier air solids loading of
between 0.2 and 0:4 kg=m3 . A mill load of 50% media by
 R.M. Braun et al. / Minerals Engineering 15 (2002) 123–129
Fig. 9. Specific energy for grinding 94 lm calcium carbonate to different sizes.
volume was used and the media was 2.5 mm partially
stabilised zirconia (S:G: ¼ 6:0). The media was retained
by 1.6 mm grates over the peripheral discharge ports.
Grinding aid was added at a dosage rate of between 500
and 300 g/t.
These tests have demonstrated that the Hicom pilot
plant can be used to efficiently grind calcium carbonate
to fine sizes. This ability to grind this calcium carbonate
material rapidly and efficiently is thought to be due to
the short mill residence time and high power density in
the Hicom mill. The efficient classification of the mill
discharge material in the IAC 200 classifier also impacts
on the plant efficiency by reducing the recirculating load
and hence over-grinding in the mill.
Although the classifier operation was not fully opti-
mised, the operation of this circuit has resulted in a
substantial reduction in milling energy requirements for
the production of fine sized material, compared to a
typical ball mill.
9. Conclusions
The efficient separation of product and recycle mate-
rial in the IAC 200 classifier as well as the high intensity
milling environment of the Hicom 25 mill combine to
result in a substantial reduction in milling energy re-
quirements for the production of fine sized material. For
the material sizes produced during this test the milling
energy requirements were between 31% and 70% lower
than would be expected for a ball milling circuit.
The milling energy requirements of the Hicom mill/
Inprosys classifier combination is significantly less than
129
that of an ordinary ball milling circuit, and operating
costs are therefore likely to be substantially lower.
Further increase in the milling efficiency of this plant are
likely with additional optimisation work on the classifier
operating parameters.
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