As part of Aggregate Industries UK quarry restoration strategy, the RopeCon® system of Doppelmayr Transport Technology GmbH, Wolfurt/Austria, transports overburden for emplacement within the existing quarry. The design allows to control the drop height and, thus, to keep the discharge point close to the emplaced material from the beginning. This helps to minimise the impact from noise and dust during operation of the system. Recently, an assembly team retensioned the track ropes to raise the discharge height and enable the next backfilling phase (Figure 1).
Fig. 1. The design of the RopeCon® system in the Bardon Hill quarry allows to control the drop height. Photo: Doppelmayr
Like the first RopeCon® at the Lenzing plant, the second installation also impresses with high availability, wind stability and its ability to cross high-density plant infrastructure without any problem. As a consequence, the RopeCon® creates an optimal link between the raw materials storage facility and the digester house.
For the planned expansion of wood chip transport between the storage area and the digester house at their cellulose processing plant, LENZING AG, a leading company in the field of the production of fibres made from the raw material wood, contracted a second RopeCon® conveying system to ensure sustainable raw material supply. The system has to cover a length of roughly 630 m between wood storage area and digester house, passing right across the existing plant infrastructure. In addition, the system had to guarantee high availability in order to allow optimal integration into the production process and reliably deliver the 350 tons an hour to their destination.
The second RopeCon® installation has been built to run alongside the existing RopeCon®, which has been transporting beech wood chips since 2003. In the time since then, the system has proved to be a reliable and efficient solution for supplying the digester house. As the system is raised off the ground, it makes light work of crossing the existing infrastructure on the premises.
Doppelmayr Transport Technology GmbH is a 100% subsidiary of the international Doppelmayr Group with headquarters in Wolfurt, Austria. Within the group, Doppelmayr Transport Technology is the point of contact for the transport of goods and materials. Doppelmayr is the technology leader and pioneer in ropeway engineering and is also present in other lines of business. Apart from material transport systems the group also designs, plans, and manufactures passenger ropeways for winter and summer tourism as well as for the urban transit sector, rope propelled APMs (e.g., the systems currently operating at the airports of Toronto and Mexico City) or fully automatic high-rise warehouses.
Technical Details: Length: 630 m Vertical rise: 33 m Capacity: 350 t/h Speed: 2,65 m/s Motor rating, continuous: 60 kW
Further information: Doppelmayr Transport Technology GmbH doppelmayr-mts.com
A RopeCon® system has been transporting platinum ore in Booysendal since the end of 2018. In December 2021, the second installation, Booysendal North, was handed over to the customer. For this extension project at its Booysendal site, the South African mining company Booysendal Platinum (Pty) Limited, a subsidiary of Northam Platinum Limited, once again relied on technology from Doppelmayr. This second RopeCon® serves another mining area situated in the northern part of the site. It transports approximately 400t/h over a distance of 2.8km and a difference in elevation of -160m.
The space required on the ground is reduced to a minimum. Photo: Doppelmayr
The Booysendal North RopeCon® discharges the material into the same silo from which the material is loaded onto the Booysendal South system, which makes it a perfect link in a continuous conveying line. Since early 2022, the second loading point along the line has been in use, too. The option of an alternative loading point was provided at tower 2. A conventional feeder conveyor transports the material to the RopeCon® line where it is loaded directly onto the belt via a chute.
The axles are fitted with plastic running wheels which run on fixed anchored track ropes and guide the belt. Photo: Doppelmayr
RopeCon® is a technology developed by the ropeway manufacturer Doppelmayr. The system offers the advantages of a ropeway and combines them with the properties of a conventional belt conveyor. It essentially consists of a flat belt with corrugated side walls: Just as on conventional belt conveyors, the belt performs the haulage function. It is driven and deflected by a drum in the head or tail station and fixed to axles arranged at regular intervals to carry it. The axles are fitted with plastic running wheels which run on fixed anchored track ropes and guide the belt. The track ropes are elevated off the ground on tower structures.
The RopeCon® easily crosses this topographically challenging terrain. Photo: Doppelmayr
By using the RopeCon® system, the customer did not have to rely on trucks to transport the material, a definite advantage in this topographically challenging terrain with its sometimes very steep roads. Furthermore, using the roads only for the transport of people and supplies will have a positive effect on road maintenance costs.
Booysendal was also particularly careful to choose a transport system that would minimise the environmental footprint of the mine. By guiding the RopeCon® over towers, the space required on the ground is reduced to a minimum, or more precisely to the tower locations. At the same time, the system does not represent an insurmountable obstacle for wildlife or humans. The track crosses a number of roads, and even wildlife can roam freely underneath the RopeCon®.
Doppelmayr Transport Technology GmbH is a 100% subsidiary of the international Doppelmayr Group with headquarters in Wolfurt, Austria. Within the group, Doppelmayr Transport Technology is the point of contact for the transport of goods and materials. Doppelmayr is the technology leader and pioneer in ropeway engineering and is also present in other lines of business. Apart from material transport systems the group also designs, plans, and manufactures passenger ropeways for winter and summer tourism as well as for the urban transit sector, rope propelled APMs (e.g., the systems currently operating at the airports of Toronto and Mexico City) or fully automatic high rise warehouses.
Zijin-Continental Gold Sucursal Colombia is developing the Buriti-cá gold mine (Figure 1) in the northwest of Columbia, approximately 72 km from the city of Medellin. The area where the mine is located is mountainous and therefore logistically challenging. The reusable residues of the gold extraction process are used in an underground backfill, which is why they must be taken from the bottom of the valley to the mouth of the mine at 1,700 m above sea level, thereby covering a difference in altitude of approximately 646 m. What would be an arduous and long way for trucks with plenty of exhaust emissions becomes a swift and efficient job if a material ropeway is used.
In October 2017 the Austrian Doppelmayr Transport Technology GmbH, Wolfurt, was awarded the contract to build a 1.4 km long ropeway with material buckets and for a transport capacity of 175 t/h. The system was conceived as a continuous bi-cable ropeway. It has a fixed tensioned track rope for the material buckets with their carriage to travel on. The buckets are driven by the continuously moving haul rope loop to which they are attached via detachable grips.
To allow for the haul rope to be run at a constant speed, the buckets are detached from the loop in the stations and braked before they are loaded via a chute. Once a bucket has been filled, it is accelerated to running speed again and re-attached to the haul rope before leaving the station. In the unloading station, the bucket is once more taken off the haul rope. At the designated unloading point a special mechanism unlocks the latch on the bucket, the bucket is tipped, and the material is safely transferred onto another chute. The bucket then returns to its original position. It is locked again and re-attached to the haul rope before travelling back into the valley empty.
In the past, continuous bi-cable ropeways have often been used for material transport applications. For the Buriticá project, Doppelmayr’s engineers have revised the design and mechanics of continuous bi-cable ropeways from scratch and optimised it for the transport of material in buckets. The system complements Doppelmayr’s portfolio of material transport solutions. It was put into service in February 2021 and has a transport capacity of 175 t/h of residues.
Bardon Hill Quarry near Leicester in Leicestershire is one of the United Kingdom’s oldest continuously operated quarries (Figure 1). Aggregate Industries UK Ltd has recently developed a new quarry extension at this strategically important site. In order to sustain quarrying activities, a separate material handling system is required to extract, process and transport overburden for emplacement within the existing quarry as part of its restoration.
Doppelmayr Transport Technology GmbH, Wolfurt/Austria, has worked closely with Aggregate Industries to develop a unique solution that will dramatically reduce CO2 emissions and environmental impact compared with road haulage or the footprint associated with a conventional surface conveyor system.
The proven RopeCon® system is a combination of ropeway technology and conventional conveying technology. Track ropes will span 850 m across the entire pit upon which the belt which transports the overburden will travel. The RopeCon® system includes a reversable second belt that will enable simultaneous conveying and emplacement activities. During the life of the operation, the RopeCon® track ropes will be periodically retensioned to allow the system to be lifted above the placed material. This ability to control the drop height will minimise the impact from noise and dust during operation of the system.
Currently under construction, this will be the first such installation in the UK and will transport up to 1,000 t/h of overburden.
Bardon Hill Quarry near Leicester in Leicester-shire is one of the United Kingdom’s oldest continuously operated quarries (Figure 3). Aggregate Industries have recently developed a new quarry extension at this strategically important site, extending mineral production for a further 27 years. During the initial 14 years of production, over 12 M m3 of overburden material must be progressively extracted. The extracted overburden material will be processed and conveyed for emplacement within the existing exhausted quarry to a depth of 125 m.
A road haulage solution is not permitted due to the generation of considerable CO2 emissions, whilst a conventional conveyor system would have been very costly due to the length and number of transfer points required to navigate the existing quarry haul roads. An innovative and sustainable solution was therefore required to minimise the impact upon local residents, wildlife and the environment.
Other operational constraints included the requirement to minimise the drop height from material discharged into the quarry and to allow continuous operation of the delivery conveyor without compromising the use of heavy mobile equipment to handle and place the delivered overburden.
To address these complex requirements of the client Aggregate Industries, the Austrian Doppelmayr company, Wolfurt, has developed a novel solution for the backfill system. The proven RopeCon® system, a combination of ropeway technology and conventional conveying technology, will span 850 m across the entire pit with track ropes. The belt which transports the overburden moves on these steel wire track ropes. The material can be transferred onto a second belt directly in the rope span. This creates a second discharge point at a distance of approximately 100 m from the first discharge point. Depending on where the material is needed, either the first or the second discharge point can be used.
To solve the problem of the drop height, a smart concept has been developed which gradually reduces the sag as the backfill progresses. The drop height can thus be kept below 45 m at all times to minimise the impact from noise and dust during operation of the system.
The contract was signed in March 2019 and the system was due to be operational in December 2020 where it transports approximately 1,000 t/h of overburden over a distance of 500 m.
The RopeCon® system which transports platinum ore from Booysendal South to the existing processing plant has recently gone into operation. The South African mining company Booysendal Platinum (Pty) Ltd., a subsidiary of Northam Platinum Ltd., is relying on technology by Doppelmayr for their expansion project at the Booysendal concession. The terrain between the new mining areas to the north of the Booysendal concession and the existing processing plant is challenging in terms of topography. In a straight line, a distance of approximately 4.8 km and a difference in elevation of 530 m must be covered. For the expansion of the Booysendal mine, a cost-effective, reliable and safe means of transport was required, and Booysendal Platinum (Pty) Ltd. opted for a RopeCon® system to tackle the challenge of transporting 909 t of platinum ore (Figure 1).
RopeCon® is a technology developed by the ropeway manufacturer Doppelmayr Transport Technology GmbH, Wolfurt/Austria. The system offers the advantages of a ropeway and combines them with the properties of a conventional belt conveyor. It essentially consists of a flat belt with corrugated side walls. Just as on conventional belt conveyors, the belt performs the haulage function. It is driven and deflected by a drum in the head or tail station and fixed to axles arranged at regular intervals to carry it. The axles are fitted with plastic running wheels which run on fixed anchored track ropes and guide the belt. The track ropes are elevated off the ground on tower structures.
The material mined at Booysendal South is loaded onto the RopeCon® belt via a silo and two chutes. In the vicinity of the processing plant, the RopeCon is linked to the existing conveying equipment. A switch chute allows for the material either to be transferred directly onto a feeder conveyor to take it to the processing plant, or to be discharged onto a stockpile via a second, smaller RopeCon® thus creating a temporary puffer.
Booysendal was also particularly careful to choose a transport system that would minimise the environmental footprint of the mine. Because RopeCon® is guided over towers, the only space required on the ground is for these structures, which, in the case of Booysendal, amount to no more than twelve. At the same time, the system does not represent an insurmountable obstacle for wildlife or humans. The track crosses a number of roads, and even wildlife can roam freely underneath the RopeCon®.
Construction of the RopeCon® commenced in January 2018. Eleven months later, and perfectly on schedule, commissioning began. Since 20th December 2018, the installation has been transporting approximately 20,000 t/d of platinum ore over a distance of 4.8 km between the mining area and the existing plant.
As part of an additional expansion programme, Booysendal awarded to Doppelmayr the contract for a second RopeCon®, which will connect with the first system and enable transport from another mining area north of the concession. The second system is designed to transport 400 t/h over 2.8 km and a difference in elevation of 160 m. It is due to start operating in early 2021.
The countryside around the village of San Juan Sacatepéquez in south-eastern Guatemala is hilly and forested. Cementos Progreso, S. A. had been planning to build a new cement plant there for some time. Among other things, the project required a solution to transport limestone and marl from the crusher to the processing plant. Cementos Progreso, S. A. opted for RopeCon® as a means to cover the distance of approximately 1.6 km and the vertical rise of almost 200 m. RopeCon® is perfectly suited for the hilly terrain and for the crossing of wooded areas (Figure 1).
The San Gabriel cement plant is located some 35 km northwest of Guatemala City. There the Guatemalan company Cementos Progreso, S. A. produces some 2.2 Mt/a of cement for the local market. The limestone needed for the process is mined in a quarry located approximately 200 m lower than the cement plant. The terrain between the crusher in the quarry and the plant is hilly and wooded and stretches over a distance of approximately 1.6 km.
By using RopeCon® to transport the limestone between the crusher and the processing plant Cementos Progreso, S. A. is able to cross that terrain in a straight line despite the difficult topographical situation. This means that a gradient of 22° is reached where the terrain is steepest. Because the RopeCon® belt is fitted with axles with running wheels at regular intervals, no additional cleats were required to tackle that gradient.
The system requires no more than four towers over its entire length. Thanks to the long rope spans between the towers the amount of space required on the ground can be reduced to a minimum. The need to interfere with vegetation remains limited to a small number of points and the track does not represent an insurmountable obstacle for wildlife or humans.
RopeCon® has now taken up operation. The material is loaded onto RopeCon® by a feeder conveyor and unloaded at the unloading station via a housed-in chute. The system transports 2,100 t/h of limestone and marl to cover the demand for the cement production.
RopeCon® is a product developed by the Austrian ropeway manufacturer Doppelmayr in Wolfurt. It offers the benefits of a belt conveyor as well as those of a cable car by successfully combining what is best in both technologies. The system is currently in use for a variety of material transport applications. It essentially consists of a cross-reinforced continuous flat belt with corrugated side walls which is driven and deflected by a drum in the head or tail station. The belt is fixed to axles arranged at regular intervals, which support the belt. Running wheels are fitted to either end of the axles. These run on track ropes with fixed anchoring and guide the belt. The three track rope pairs form the line structure for the system and are elevated off the ground on tower structures. The system therefore requires only a minimum of space on the ground and is ideally suited for difficult terrain and to cross obstacles of all kinds.
In North-western Colombia, approximately 72 km from the city of Medellín, CGL Sucursal Colombia, a subsidiary of the Canadian mining company Continental Gold Inc., is developing the gold ore deposit Buriticá. The logistics of the project has to overcome some challenges in this very mountainous region. A ropeway will be installed to transport tailings from the valley floor to the paste backfill plant at 1,700m a.s.l. covering a difference in elevation of 646 m. In October 2017, Doppelmayr, headquartered in Wolfurt/Austria, was awarded a contract to build an approximately 1.4 km long ropeway to transport 175 t/h of material in buckets. Commissioning of the system is planned to take place in March 2019.
The Cerattepe underground copper mine of the Turkish Eti Bakır A. Ş. mining company, a member of Cengiz Holding, is situated in very mountainous terrain approximately 3.5 km southwest of Artvin, a city in the Black Sea region in north-eastern Turkey. The mined copper ore is transported to the river with a 4.5 km long ropeway, which covers a difference in elevation of more than 1,500 m on its way there.
The mouth of the Cerattepe copper mine is at approximately 1,700 m a. s. l. From there, the ropeway transports the ore into the valley over a distance of 4.5 km across steep, wooded terrain. The incline is more than 43° at the steepest point. The ropeway can also be used to transport backfill material from the valley to the mouth of the mine.
The system consists of a continuously moving steel wire rope to which the 51 material buckets (Figure 1) are attached by means of a grip. The rope loop is driven by bullwheels in the loading station and tensioned via a return bullwheel in the unloading station in the valley. A mechanism in the stations opens the detachable grip of the material buckets and slows down each bucket. The buckets can thus be stopped for the loading and unloading procedures in the stations but can still travel along the track at full speed. They are re-attached to the rope as they leave the station.
Furthermore, the Cerattepe ropeway allows for the combined transport of material and people. Apart from the material buckets in which the ore is transported, the system will also be equipped with some passenger cabins (Figure 2). In these cabins, the mineworkers can travel to their workplace comfortably and in safety. A trip in any of the cabins takes approximately 20 min. Two different types of guides are installed in the stations: one for the material buckets, and one for the passenger cabins. Material flow and passenger transport can thus be kept separated.
To prevent soiling of the sensitive environment, the buckets have been fitted with lids. Any loss of material along the track can thus be prevented. In the unloading station, the lids are opened automatically via a special mechanism and the buckets are turned upside down so that the material will fall onto a chute. Then the buckets are tilted back to their normal position.
Operation of the ropeway is fully automatic. Operating costs can thus be optimised. There are also hardly any moving parts along the track. All material buckets and cabins travel through the stations regularly and can be easily inspected and maintained there.
To cover the entire distance and the enormous difference in elevation of 1,500 m, the ropeway requires only eleven towers. The footprint on the ground can thus be minimized, and because the system is elevated off the ground, it does not represent an insurmountable obstacle for man or wildlife.
The ropeway took up operation in December 2017 and has since been transporting 60 t/h of copper ore into the valley.
