CFlo recently installed a Micrograder BT Processing Plant for Suraj Minerals for their Alpha Kaolin project in Bhuj, which helped them maximize the recovery of China Clay and increase its production 5-fold. The newly commissioned plant also helped them produce high quality glass grade silica sand which opened up the doors to some of the biggest glass manufacturers in the state.
Suraj Minerals is one of the leading manufacturers and suppliers of Levigated, Crude and Powdered China Clay having 10 mines spread over 100 hectares in Bhuj, Gujarat. Ever since their inception in 1984, they had been using conventional methods to process the mined clay which was very time consuming, labour intensive and inefficient. They would put the crude clay mixed with silica sand in blengars and mix it with water to make slurry. The slurry would then be passed through screw classifiers which would separate the clay and sand. The inefficient separation was resulting in a loss of 3-5% of valuable clay which got mixed with silica sand, also damaging the quality of silica sand.
There was a pressing need for an efficient solution that would enable them to ramp up the production of china clay and also produce high quality glass grade silica sand from a single plant.
Alpha Kaolin sent in their clay samples to our lab for inspection. Based on the encouraging test results on the samples, our tech team recommended the installation of Micrograder BT with Spiropure Spiral Gravity Concentrators (for heavy minerals separation) and Nanowash Ultrafine Classification System (for clay separation of 45 microns).
The equipment was finally commissioned in Feb 2021 which helped them unlock the potential of their raw material and turn in unprecedented profits for Suraj Minerals.
Some of the key improvements realised by Suraj Minerals:
| Before CFlo | After CFlo |
|---|---|
| Slow & inefficient process | Fast & efficient process |
| 16 tons of clay produced / day | 80-90 tons of clay produced / day |
| 3-5% of valuable clay lost in the process | Only 0.5% of valuable clay lost in the process |
| Low quality Silica sand (often mixed with clay) Sold for Rs 200-230/ton |
High-quality glass grade Silica sand produced Sold for Rs 550-700/ton |
| Silica Sand being sold to Silica sand processors or to small-scale glass industries |
Silica Sand being sold to the largest glass manufacturers in Gujarat and Kolkata (Saint-Gobain Glass, HNG, Gujarat Guardians, Gujarat glass, Piramal Glass) |
| Unreliable equipment resulting in frequent breakdowns and increased downtime. |
Reputed brand with minimal breakdown and downtime. |
| Labour intensive process needing a lot of manpower | Fully automated process, needing minimal manpower |
| Huge amounts of water wasted | Up to 95% of water recycled back into the system |
| High power consumption | Low power consumption |
| A lot of space needed for additional plant setup | Compact plant with effective space utilisation |
With the successful installation of the equipment, Suraj Minerals has seen a 5-fold jump in their China Cay production and is now one of the leading manufacturers and suppliers in the region.They have also been able to successfully manufacture glass grade silica sand from the same feed and fetch a much higher rate per ton for the entire production. It is indeed gratifying to see the transformation brought about by this installation.For more information on how our technology can transform your Silica Sand and China Clay production, get in touch with us.
