Thickeners and Clarifiers

DELKOR Thickener for rock phosphate in Morocco.

DELKOR Thickener and Clarifier - cost-effectively increasing percentage solids in solid/liquid phase

Key Facts

4 x 30 m diameter, 2 x 32 m diameter and 2 x 39 m diameter high rate thickeners with elevated steel design to treat potash in Garlyk, Turkmenistan.
4 x 30 m diameter, 2 x 32 m diameter and 2 x 39 m diameter high rate thickeners with elevated steel design to treat potash in Garlyk, Turkmenistan.
34 m diameter paste thickener with on-ground steel design to treat iron tailings.
34 m diameter paste thickener with on-ground steel design to treat iron tailings.
25m diameter CCD 6x thickener, Gold & Silver, Newmont Cerro Negro, Argentina.
90 kg/h flocculant dosing system.
90 kg/h flocculant dosing system.
44m Tropicana Gold tailings thickener.
Diameter
1 - 100 m

Drive capacity
Up to 16 MNm

Tank types
Elevated, on ground, welded steel and bolted steel

DELKOR Thickeners for mining, minerals and chemical processing

The DELKOR Thickener is renowned for its performance across various sectors, including the mining, minerals and chemical industries. DELKOR Thickeners are known for their efficiency and have been installed globally, with over 1,000 units in operation. The units can be as large as 100 m in diameter. 

DELKOR specialists offer an unmatched combination of experience and product-based knowledge that is enhanced by the company’s extensive global experience. Clients therefore benefit from direct technical discussions with local DELKOR experts, who leverage worldwide experience to provide the best local solutions.

Continuous improvement and innovation are at the core of DELKOR's approach, ensuring that our solutions remain at the forefront of technological advancements.

The DELKOR Thickener has been typically applied in mineral processing, beneficiation and hydrometallurgy for:

  • Ferrous and non-ferrous metals
  • Critical and industrial minerals
  • Fertilizer
  • Phosphoric acid
  • Gypsum
  • Battery recycling/electronic waste
  • Chemical industry
  • Metal refineries
  • Treatment of plant residue/effluents/tailings
  • Gas cleaning plant (GCP)
  • Steel melt shop (SMS)

DELKOR Thickener range

DELKOR Paste Thickeners are designed to achieve the process requirements for slow settling slimes/fines material that exhibits high yield stress, which is referred to as ‘paste’. The use of paste thickeners addresses several environmental problems associated with mine tailings, including enhancing the life of tailings ponds, improving water recovery and facilitating tailings reclamation and re-vegetation. 

DELKOR has supplied paste thickeners up to 40 m in diameter.

DELKOR High Density Thickeners are for applications where high water recovery or high dense underflow is required but without the process and pumping issues associated with paste.

DELKOR has units in operation from 1 m to 99 m in diameter.

As one of the pioneers of high rate thickening, DELKOR has hundreds of units operating successfully around the world.

Where water quality and clarity are the deciding factors, the DELKOR Clarifier and DELKOR Pinned Bed Clarifier (PBC) achieve low total suspended solids (TSS) or clarities down to 20 ppm.

Testing capabilities

Dynamic thickener tests are conducted in-house at our laboratory facility or on-site to optimize the amount and selection of flocculant/coagulant and determine the output guarantee parameters.  

Typical tests include static cylinder tests to investigate the type of flocculant, optimum amount of flocculant, feed solids dilution and settling rate. The dynamic test, followed by the static cylinder test, determines the size, compaction time, overflow clarity, underflow density and rheology.

Features of the Thickener

The self-diluting feed well uses the density difference between the inside and outside of the feed well to ensure optimum feed solids for higher settling.

This is the most efficient method of achieving the required dilution and involves using a mixer-pump to draw liquid up a draft tube and then inject it into the thickener feed. The feed dilution is controlled based on input feed solids.

This system is used in high yield stress and viscous/paste slurry applications. It reduces the yield stress of the slurry to improve pumpability, thus lowering the energy consumption of the discharge slurry pump. 

The feed box collects slurries from various entry streams and mixes them uniformly. This ensures that the slurry entering the thickener feed well is consistent in composition, which is essential for optimal thickening performance.

When dealing with multiple thickeners, the feed distribution box is used to evenly distribute the slurry to each thickener. This uniform distribution is critical to ensure that each thickener operates efficiently and effectively, without overloading or underfeeding any single unit.

APC enhances performance by optimizing set points and reducing variability, thereby increasing efficiency through automated multivariable control. It improves plant performance and, additionally, leverages advanced analytics and machine learning to utilize data effectively, which minimizes human error and enhances safety and reliability of equipment operations.

Thickener control is crucial to ensure optimum thickener operation to provide the required output parameters.

Automated thickener control ensures:

  • Autonomous and fully automatic operation, driven from the control room and from on-site
  • Virtual monitoring/network system with robust mass data transfer
  • Automatic predictive maintenance and equipment health reporting
  • Equipment performance monitoring
  • Energy consumption control and optimization

DELKOR Paste Thickener - virtual tour

Design/engineering capability

DELKOR leverages the latest engineering design methods in the development of its thickeners. The in-house state-of-the-art design facility checks and confirms the stability of the equipment using tools such as finite element analysis (FEA), structural analysis (static and dynamic including seismic analysis), design automation, 3D modeling and computational fluid dynamic (CFD) modeling. 

The thickeners are designed in accordance with international codes to suit local steel profiles. 

The steel bolted design reduces site erection time. 

The various types of rake profile available include low drag, truss and thixotropic, and rakes with picket fencing. Accessories available include a froth spray system and skimmer arrangement.

Flocculant/coagulant dosing system or plants

In addition to thickeners/clarifiers and filters necessary to improve settling and filtering, DELKOR provides standard or customized automated flocculant dosing systems based on client requirements. The flocculant plant size offered ranges from 0.5 kg/h to 150 kg/h and, depending on requirements, can be of even higher capacity.

Benefits

Minimized downtime

The DELKOR Thickener is designed to maximize machine availability by reducing operational interruptions. Its consistent performance leads to fewer maintenance requirements and prolonged periods of uninterrupted operation.

Optimized flocculant

The DELKOR Thickener features an advanced feed well design, utilizing either auto dilution or forced dilution techniques. This innovative approach significantly reduces flocculant consumption, typically by 10 to 15% compared to traditional feed well designs. This lowers operational costs and enhances the overall efficiency of the thickening process.

High solids loading per unit area

The DELKOR Thickener maximizes solids loading per unit area, allowing for a more compact footprint. This is achieved through its advanced feed well design and efficient rake mechanism. The feed well ensures optimal distribution and mixing of incoming slurry, while the rake mechanism effectively consolidates and compacts the solids. This design enhances the thickening process and contributes to more efficient and cost-effective plant layouts.

System synergies and proven solutions

DELKOR offers a comprehensive range of equipment, including flotation cells, linear belt screens, jigs, thickeners, horizontal belt filters and filter presses for various industries, demonstrating:

  • Versatility to adapt to different processing environments
  • Reliability and robustness to withstand rigorous processing conditions
  • Efficiency by maximizing productivity and minimizing operational costs

References

Morocco

High Rate Thickeners

DELKOR received two major orders from OCP S.A Morocco for the design and supply of nine high-rate…

India

DELKOR Paste Thickener - Tata Joda

DELKOR supplied and commissioned a paste thickener for iron ore waste dumps with a diameter of 15 m,…

Peru

DELKOR High Density Thickener - Moquegua Peru

6 x 46 m diameter DELKOR high-density thickening plants (3 x 46 m to replace 3 x 99 m thickeners and 3 x…

Argentina

DELKOR High Rate Thickeners & Clarifiers, Argentina-Chile border

14 x DELKOR high-rate thickeners and clarifiers for Barrick Gold's Pascua Lama Project, which straddles…

Peru

DELKOR High Rate Thickeners & High Density Thickeners-Apurimac, Peru

Three DELKOR High-Performance and two DELKOR High-Density Thickeners for a new Peruvian copper mine with…

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