Another Successful Symposium

Special points of

interest:

UK Minerals Sympo-

sium.

ICPC Organising Com-

mittee meeting

Out & About in the

Groups

Council discuss reor-

ganisation

BCURA Coal Science

Lecture

Events

Inside this issue:

Report on the “UK

Minerals” symposium

1-3

President’s Comments 4

London Olympics 2012

presentation

5

Visit to Cleveland Pot-

ash

7

Reorganisation report 8

Coal Science Lecture 10

Programme 11

Autumn 2011 Issue 10

The Minerals Engineering Society (Formerly The Coal Preparation Society)

Horizons

On Thursday 13th October 2011, the Minerals Engineering Society, supported by the South Midlands Mining & Minerals Institute and the Coal Research Forum, staged an excellent one-day symposium at the Yew Lodge Hotel & Conference Centre, Kegworth, Derby. 59 delegates attended to hear pres-entations on the theme “UK Minerals – Engineering Innova-tion for a Sustainable Future”. The delegates and speakers were welcomed by MES Senior Vice President Ian Flanagan, who informed the audience that this was the second in a series of annual symposia, following on from last year‟s two-day event in Nottingham. This year it had been decided to hold a one-day symposium, free to members, to focus on the UK Minerals Industry and its sus-tainability. Ian wished those present an enjoyable, productive day. Session1 Chairman Andrew Howells introduced Nigel Jackson, Chief Executive of the Mineral Products Association, and invited him to open the proceedings with a Keynote Presentation. After outlining the role of the MPA as a trade association for the aggregates, asphalt, cement, concrete, lime, and silica sand industries, Nigel summarised current is-sues for the UK Minerals Industry. The industry is the major material supplier to the con-struction and manufacturing industries, which are vital to the economic performance of the UK. Nigel criticised the UK Government for failure to support growth in the industry; in-deed he scathingly described them as “a drag on growth”, with a penal industry tax bur-den, a commitment to localism which will hinder development, and a “gold-plated” ap-proach to implementation of European legislation. The second speaker was Rob McConnell, Plant Manager at Cleveland Potash Limited and a member of the MES, who posed the question “Potash Mining – do you need us?” Rob explained that “Potash” is Potassium Chloride, but the term is loosely applied to vari-

ous compounds used in agriculture. He described the history of CPL and the mine in the former county of Cleveland, UK, now owned by Israel Chemicals Lim-

ited. The processing plant there sepa-rates the potash from salt and clays in the mined ore and concentrates the prod-uct to 95% purity. Potassium is an essen-tial element of soil to retain fertility, and agriculture accounts for 85% of potash usage in the UK. Rob then outlined the world market for potash, projecting that an increasing population would lead to a rise in global fertiliser consumption. So

Nigel Jackson

An attentive audience!

Page 2

UK Minerals – Engineering Innovation for a sustainable future.

Session 2 was chaired by MES Past President Mike Gurr. He introduced Rachel Krzeminski, Customer Liaison Manager (Major Projects) for Aggregate Industries Lim-ited, who spoke on “London 2012 Olympics – The Green Build”. Rachel began by giving an overview of the £9.3bn (largely public funded) construction programme for the Olympic Park and Athletes Village. Construction will be completed on time, within budget, and to a high standard. Many constructions have already been handed over to the client for the staging of test events, and landscaping of green space is now well under way. Key drivers for the project included achieving a balance between engineer-ing cost and sustainability objectives. Rachel concluded that “The lasting legacy will be what we have learnt.” The next presentation was by Gareth Rowse from Han-son UK, part of the Heidelberg Cement Group, and a

leading supplier of build-ing materials to the UK construction industry. Gareth described in some detail the design and con-struction of the Hanson EcoHouseTM, the first masonry constructed house to achieve Code Level Four under the UK Code for Sustainable Homes. The EcoHouse™ is an innovation show-case, bringing together the latest developments in off-site masonry con-struction, thermal mass, and natural ventilation. Gareth closed by de-scribing the company‟s

new brick factory at Measham in Leicestershire – the most efficient in Europe, built on a brownfield site with low energy and high sustainability credentials. The last paper of the morning session was given by Daniel Ashton, Regional Engineering Manager for Si-belco UK. After giving an overview of the Sibelco Group‟s global product portfolio, Daniel went on to de-scribe Sibelco UK operations, which were principally in silica sand, clays, and dolomite. The biggest user of silica sand is the glass industry: other main uses are in foundry applications, water filtration, and the sports and leisure industry. Kaolin clay is used in ceramics, paper, paint, cosmetics, adhesives and sealants. Ball clay is used in landfill caps, dams and canal beds; it is also used in the manufacture of roof tiles, bricks, and refractory tiles. The principal use of dolomite in the UK today is as a construc-tion aggregate, with industrial dolomite being used mainly by the iron and steel industry, and in glassmaking. Daniel also outlined the company‟s environmental performance, including land restoration, tree and hedge planting, cuts in carbon emissions, and energy efficiency. After lunch, Andrew Howells introduced Andrew Cave, Chief Executive of the Smallpeice Trust. This is an edu-cational charity promoting careers in Science, Technol-

ogy, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), founded in 1965 by Dr Cosby Smallpeice. The Trust aims to encour-age students to follow careers in engineering and help to secure our technical future. Mr Cave outlined the key role of partner companies in achieving the Trust‟s aims, and expressed concern that there were few involved in mining and minerals processing. The Trust had previously run residential Mining and Minerals courses, but needed sup-port to continue. To this end, Mr Cave had held discus-sions with the MES President and other Officials, and he thanked the Society for giving him the opportunity to com-municate the work of the Trust at this seminar. The first afternoon session was chaired by Rod Stace from Nottingham University, representing SMMMI. Rod introduced Mike Todd from Speciality Minerals Incorpo-rated to talk on Calcium Carbonate – finding the niche markets. Mike explained that SMI is an international pro-ducer of high performance minerals. In the UK the com-pany owns a manufacturing unit dating back to the 19th century, in a residential area of Birmingham. The unit pro-duces Precipitated Calcium Carbonate (PCC) from Der-byshire Limestone, which is crushed, calcined, rehy-drated, and then combined with CO2 from the calciner to precipitate out calcium carbonate. Mike went on to ex-plain some of the applications for PCC. A presentation by MES Past President Neil Rowson fol-lowed, on behalf of Tarmac Limited, outlining work that Birmingham University had done on “Optimisation of Min-eral Processing – Mine to Mill”. JKSimMet software was used to develop strategies for the comminution plants at two Tarmac UK quarries. Neil outlined how the software was used to simulate the processes employed, and how data from testwork was inputted, allowing the effect of altering various operating parameters to be evaluated. The software gave good correlation with sample data, and proved to be more user friendly than other programs. Neil concluded that the project outcomes had been the development of a site model to evaluate process options and develop good practice for energy savings. The final session of the day was chaired by Professor John Patrick from the CRF. He introduced Steve Foster, Business Manager, Sin-gleton Birch Ltd, whose presentation was entitled “Lime for Life”. Steve briefly covered the history of lime production, Lime is produced by heating cal-cium carbonate (limestone or chalk) to produce cal-cium oxide (quicklime), which is then hydrated to form calcium hydroxide (slaked lime). Singleton Birch has two lime manu-facturing units in the UK. Steve went on to describe some of the many uses of lime.

Gareth Rowse

Steve Foster

Page 3

Issue 10

The main uses are in iron and steel making, environ-mental protection, construction and agriculture. Other applications mentioned by Steve included sugar making, leather tanning, toothpaste additive, oil additive, and flo-tation of many non-ferrous ores, e.g. copper The last speaker of the day was Andrew Bloodworth, Head of Science Minerals & Waste for the British Geo-logical Survey, who asked “Is the UK‟s future supply of indigenous minerals secure?” There are many benefits

arising from exploiting indigenous mineral sup-ply sources, including less risk of disruption to supply of minerals for energy, construction, and industrial uses: the disbenefits are environ-mental and amenity im-pacts. There is enor-mous opposition to min-erals extraction and the “localism agenda” will have an impact – de-mand is seldom co-located with supply. An-

drew talked about what might be done to mitigate these threats, and asserted that future security of indigenous supply would be key to sustaining the UK economy. After a lively Question Forum led by John Patrick, MES Vice-President Ian Flanagan gave thanks to all the speakers for their outstanding contributions to an inter-esting and informative day, to the session Chairmen for their input, and to all the delegates who had given their

attention and participated in the Q&A sessions.

Words Peter Cooper, Photos Vic Branfoot

Andrew Bloodworth Mike Todd, Steve Foster & Neil Rowson in the final

Question Forum

Visit to Monckton Coke & Chemical Works

On a sunny 19th October 2011, eight MES members en-joyed a visit arranged by Northern Group to the Monckton Coke & Chemical Co. Ltd. plant near Royston, Barnsley. This is coke production unit was acquired by Hargreaves

Services plc from UK Coal in 2005. Works Director Iain Archibald welcomed the visitors and gave an introductory presentation. Monckton takes its coal supplies from the Hargreaves-owned Maltby Colliery

a few miles away near Rotherham in Yorkshire, and produces coke for Industrial and Domestic use. Monckton also sells by-products such as tar, benzole, and ammonia, and surplus electricity to the grid. The -25mm coal is crushed to 60% -3mm be-fore being carbonised in ovens at 950°C in the ab-

sence of air for about 20 hours. These are gas-fired ov-ens in batteries of 3x9 and 1x15. The resulting coke is quenched, crushed to -60mm, then screened into five grades. The gas produced from the ovens is drawn through an electrostatic precipitator, ammonia washers and benzole scrubbers, before passing into a low pres-sure gas holder. About 50% of the gas is used to fire the coke ovens; the rest is fed to a 7MW CHP plant. Strict environmental controls are employed, as the plant

is adjacent to the village of Royston. Dust, smells, noise, and visual intrusion can all result in complaints; the fact that coke has been produced on this site for over 130 years, does not mean that controls can be relaxed. Mr Archibald and his Coal & Coke Logistics Manager Andy Hucknall (MMES) then conducted the visitors on a tour of the works. Areas visited included the coal stock-yard, the coke ovens (where ovens were seen being dis-charged and then recharged), the by-products plant and the control room. Back in the site office, a hearty buffet was enjoyed by all, and Northern Group Chairman John Sowter proposed a vote of thanks to Iain and Andy for

their efforts.

Words and photos by Peter Cooper

Iain Archibald

Iain Archibald and Andy Hucknall with the visitors on site

Horizons

Page 4

Kind regards

.Greg Greg Kelley

President

My second year of office is in response to Ian Flanagan‟s present business priorities and the need to defer his elec-tion as President for another year. It is for this reason I intend to break with tradition and not give a Presidential Address, as this would normally state the intention for the coming year of office. My theme for a second year of office remains the same - “Positive change through Engagement” which comprises the three key elements

Positive can do attitude

Relevance to today‟s needs

Involved and visible membership

In the last year much of Council‟s discussions have been centred on the future of our society focussing on what would be the optimum structure to fulfil our organisational requirements. Continuing with a multiple group structure becomes increasingly difficult with the poor involvement of our members. However, after considerable debate and the successful election of committees in both Northern and Southern groups, Council agreed to continue with the current Group structure for the immediate future. We must now move forward and work to improve the relevance of our activities and the involvement of mem-bers. My next year will continue to focus on relevance and involvement. This year‟s debate has reinforced my view that Society numbers will not sustain us; it is mem-bers‟ involvement that will determine our future. In the last year it has given me great pleasure to attend a number of excellent technical meetings at Group level as well as the very successful two-day symposium at Not-tingham. As with previous Presidents I have represented our Society at the Arkwright awards; this year I was in-vited to take part in the interviews of candidates. I also attended the 2010 Robens Coal Science Lecture held in London. On the social side of things it has been a fairly busy year including the joint Southern Group and IoM3 Annual Dinner in Sheffield and our not-to-be-missed Christmas event at Bawtry. It is a great honour to serve as your President, but an even greater honour to share the office with members of Council and Group committees who work tirelessly on behalf of our society. It is remarkable that so much is

achieved by what is a relatively small group of people. I would like to take this opportunity to thank those Council and committee members for their support during the last year and, in particular, Andrew Howells our Honorary Secretary and Treasurer. Andrew is a vital part of any successful Presidency and I now join the many Past Presidents who are indebted to him for his guidance, support and friendship . I will close by reiterating a comment I made in my Presi-dential Address last year, in that Council will continue to provide the positive stimulus needed in these times, but it is the membership that must now commit albeit in small ways to Society activities. I ask you to support your Soci-ety and with that support we can all look forward to a positive future.

President’s Comments

Editor‟s Note: At the Society‟s Annual General Meeting on 15th September 2011, Greg Kelley was elected to a sec-ond term as President. The decision to delay the inauguration of Vice President Ian Flanagan had been approved by Council earlier this year to assist Ian with his current work situation. This is not without precedent - four other Presi-dents have served two- year terms in the past. The comments below were made by the President at the AGM.

MES President Greg Kelley

Page 5

Issue 10

What an interesting and enjoyable evening this was for the large audience exceeding 100 that attended this presentation at Forest Hills Golf Club on Monday 14 March 2011. The event was organised by the Midlands Branch of IOQ and started as usual with a complimentary buffet which, together with the availability of a well stocked bar, got proceedings off to a good start. The programme was divided into two sessions, the first a technical presentation on the organisation of the aggre-gate and concrete supply to the various Olympic sites by Aggregate Industries, the second part being an entertain-ing talk by Steve Cram, past Olympic middle distance runner and current BBC athletics commentator. After an introduction by Camella Barbour the IOQ Branch Chairman, Rachel Krzeminski of Aggregates Industries UK Ltd gave a well-illustrated presentation on the £9.3bn public funded Olympic Park project. She gave an excel-lent overview of the venue design and construction identi-

fying some of the main constructions. In addition to the main Olympic (and Paralympic) Stadium, there is the Athletes‟ Village (17,000 ath-letes), Aquatic Cen-tre (17,500 cap), Velodrome (6000 cap), a transferable Basketball Arena (12,000 cap), and a huge Communica-tions Centre to cater for 20,000 broadcast-ers. There are 30 bridges on site and an Energy Centre

utilising gas-fired engines and a 3MW biomass boiler to generate low carbon electricity, and provide 46.5 MW heating capacity and 16MW of cooling through a com-bined cooling heat & power plant (CCHP). Rachel explained the detailed tendering process leading to the award of contracts by the Olympic Delivery Author-ity (ODA) for the supply of aggregates and ready-mix concrete. It was interesting to note that 60% of the em-phasis was on quality of material and delivery whereas 40% was on price. The majority of aggregates were deliv-ered on site by rail and by water to relieve road conges-tion and a purpose-designed ready-mix concrete plant was constructed. The importance of cleaning up contaminated land in the east end of London and the use of recycled and alterna-tive materials for use primarily in the ready-mix concrete

was highlighted. The huge importance put on the sustain-ability and lasting legacy from the Olympics by the Lon-don Organising Committee (LOCOG) was emphasised and contrary to some pessimists the whole project was on schedule for completion within budget ahead of the deadline for 2012. A question period followed Aggregates Industries‟ pres-entation and the interest Rachel had generated in the audience was reflected in the detail and number of ques-tions asked. The second part of the evening was a stand-up perform-ance by Steve Cram, who gave the audience an impres-sion of what the Olympics meant to the athletes and other competitors. Steve set world records in the 1500m, 2000m and mile events in the 1980‟s and won silver in the 1500m at the 1984 Olympics. He gave a series of stories about his experiences throughout his career and the personalities he had com-peted against. He gave a very smooth performance (like his running used to be) much to the appreciation of the audience. He gave a very motivational speech and cham-pioned the importance of competitive sport in schools. Unfortunately the average age of the audience was such that no budding athletes were likely to emerge despite his encouragement, but he asked that everyone give the 2012 London Olympics their full support. It will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to participate. The evening was brought to a close with a sincere and well prepared Vote of Thanks to both speakers by Harry Crowfoot, Treasurer of the Midlands Branch of the IOQ, and much autograph signing by Steve Cram.

Words David Baillie, Photos Mike Gurr & Vic Branfoot

MES Past President’s wife Lynda Gurr bags Steve’s autograph!

Rachel Krzeminski

Joint MES, IOQ, IMMM Meeting hears about the Olympics

Page 6

Horizons

Members of the IOC met in Turkey during the first week of October 2011 to begin the organisation of the XVllth International Coal Preparation Congress which will take place in Istanbul in 2013. Eleven out of the twelve countries represented on the IOC were present, the ab-sentee being the USA due to Dr Bill Kalb‟s illness. Prof. Dr Gulhan Ozbayoglu, Chairman of the IOC intro-duced senior members of the Turkish Coal Industry who gave an overview on the production and usage of both bituminous and low rank coals in Turkey. Total produc-tion of coal and lignite is about 60 mtpa and there are 29 coal preparation plants from 50 to 800tph. Preliminary agreement was reached on a number of important issues – the venue would be Istanbul from 1-6 October 2013, congress would be held in the Cevahir

Convention Centre accommodating both the technical sessions and hotel facilities. Likely cost of registration €750 with a €100 discount for early booking. Timetable was set as March 2012 call for papers: 30 th September 2012 call for abstract closes: late October 2012 meeting of IOC to select papers: 30 th November 2012 authors advised of provisional acceptance: 16th March 2013 final receipt of papers for publication; 30th June final date for early registration. At the meeting delegates had to agree the venue of the XVlllth Congress: Australia, India and Russia had submit-ted requests to host the Congress in 2016. Each made a presentation as to what their particular country could offer. A secret ballot was held; the successful country was Russia, the venue being St Petersburg. Other matters -number of papers, length of presentations, simultaneous translations etc - would be finalised at the next meeting. Delegates took the opportunity to visit a bituminous coal preparation plant at Derekoy – Ciftay near Soma. It was an 800t/h twin plant with two 400t/h three product Wemco Drums with dense medium cyclones for the small coal followed by spirals for the fines. To show what cultural visits were available the party visited Pergamum, Ephesus and Mary‟s house where it is said that Mary lived out her life after the crucifixion.

Words and photo by Douglas Jenkinson

The Society has lost a very good friend and colleague with the death on 8th October 2011 of Dr Bill Kalb. After a great fight he finally succumbed to cancer. Bill was a speaker at our 50th Anniversary celebra-tions at Melton Mowbray in 2008 and again in 2009 at our National Meeting at Raven Hall, Yorkshire. He was always available with his wife Gloria to help and entertain members of the MES on their visits to America. He worked tire-lessly as Chairman of the Organising Committee to make the International Coal Preparation Congress in Lexington in 2010 the great success it was. He was looking forward to helping

with organisation of the next congress in Turkey, but it was not to be. Bill had his own company, TraDet, an independent labo-

ratory that specialised in testing coal and water and in the design and con-struction of thermal coal driers. He will be sadly missed by all his col-leagues around the world and especially the Ameri-can Coal Preparation Soci-ety, who presented the first Presidents Prize to Bill in recognition of his out-standing leadership as Chairman of the IOC. The Society sends its deepest condolences to Gloria and the family.

International Coal Preparation Congress Meeting of International Organising Committee (IOC) in Turkey

Obituary - Dr Bill Kalb By Douglas Jenkinson

Delegates at Mine – Raj Sachdev (India), Oleksandr Yegurnov

(Ukraine), Ahmed Salama (Canada) and Doug Jenkinson (UK)

Page 7

Issue 10

In late September 2011, nine members ventured across the stunning landscape of the North York Moors to the Cleveland Potash Limited mine at Boulby. Located on the northeast coast, halfway between the Tees estuary and the port of Whitby in North Yorkshire, the weather in this part of England can get a bit wild at times, but the visitors enjoyed an unseasonably warm day with brilliant sunshine. CPL Plant Manager Rob McConnell welcomed the visi-tors and thanked them for bringing the sunshine with them. In return, President Greg Kelley presented Rob with a copy of the MES publication “A History of British Coal Preparation”, signed by author John Hillman. The visit began

with a brief introductory presentation by Rob, a graduate of Camborne School of Mines, and a Fellow of the MES.

Originally developed as a joint venture between ICI and An-glo American, the mine started production in 1973. It was bought in 2002 by the Israel Chemicals Limited group, and is now part of ICL Fertilizers Europe. The mine is the UK‟s only Potash mine and, with workings at a depth of up to 1400 metres, it is one of the deepest in Europe. Mining op-erations extend over 5 km under the North Sea. There are

around 900 employees.

The potash-bearing ore seam at Boulby lies on top of a de-posit of rock salt. Roadways are driven in the salt, as it is a more stable tunnelling medium, and then panels of the ore are extracted using continuous mining machines in a stress relieving system of pillar and stall working. By driving road-ways on different days to mining potash ore, the mine is able to produce 1 mtpa of rock salt. Most of this is used in

the UK for winter de-icing.

Rob outlined the main features of the processing plant that separates impurities from the potash ore, which is wound from the 1100m deep shaft and delivered to the plant at an average 380tph. About 3mtpa is wound, yielding 1mtpa pot-

ash products.

Following impact crushing and rod milling, the feed is de-slimed in primary and secondary cyclones before passing to the froth flotation circuit. Three banks of conventional flotation cells are employed as rougher, cleaner and re-cleaner stages. These enrich the potash to over 90% KCl. Tails from the cleaner and recleaner stages are deslimed in tails cleaner cyclones, with the underflow passing, together with the underflow from tertiary desliming cyclones, to a Jameson flotation cell. The froth from this unit is heated to 95°C and passed through vertical crystallisers. This re-sults in a product of 98.5% purity, which is mixed with the dried flotation product. Some of the combined product is

converted to granular grade by a compaction circuit (most farmers prefer this easier-handling product).

The final products are 55% Granular MOP (muriate of potash - KCl), 30% Standard MOP, and 15% Soluble MOP for Industrial use and liquid agricultural fertiliser. Raw potash salt is also crushed and screened to produce about 35 ktpa of Sylvinite, a fertiliser used by sugar beet growers. The majority of products are transported by rail to storage

and distribution points on Teesside.

Rob conducted the visitors on a tour of the plant to see many of the systems described in his presentation, including the plant feed system, the screening crushing and milling system, the desliming and flotation circuits (conventional and Jameson), the slimes thickener, the crystallisation plant, and the final product outloading system. He also took them to see the plant‟s SCADA system, housed in the original hard wired control room with the mimic dis-

play boards still installed but now redundant.

Back in his office, Rob fielded questions arising from the visit, then Northern Group Chairman John Sowter gave a warmly supported Vote of Thanks to Rob for an excellent and interesting visit. The visitors then travelled to nearby Runswick Bay to enjoy a fish and chip supper at a hos-telry known to the Northern Group Chairman (very good

it was too, John!) before making their journeys home.

Words and photos by Peter Cooper Fish and chip supper at Runswick Bay!

Northern Group get Fertilised!

President Greg Kelley presents Rob McConnell with a signed copy of “A History of British Coal Preparation”

Horizons News, News, News.

15 members of Council gathered on 11 July 2011 at the Stables Conference Centre, High Melton, Doncaster, for an important meeting. After dealing with the usual business of the Society, Council sat to discuss the future organisa-tional structure of the Society. This subject had been discussed on several occasions in recent years in response to the continuing decline in membership numbers and involvement. President Greg Kelley asked for presentations to be made on the three main options available.

Brian Everitt, Past President and Chairman of Policy & Finance Committee, took to the podium first and gave an elo-quent statement supporting disbandment of the current Group structure, recommending that all events be organised by an “Events Committee” appointed by Council. Using a PowerPoint Presentation, he outlined how this arrange-ment would work and reduce the workload on the activists who currently run the Society.

Immediate Past President Peter Cooper had also prepared a PowerPoint presentation, and he explained the ration-ale behind the recommendation of the Working Group that he had chaired; this was to simply replace the current three British Groups with one “UK Group”, appointed by the membership, to be responsible for organising local events, and operating in line with current Group procedures.

Andrew Howells, Past President and Honorary Secretary /Treasurer, said that he supported the Working Group rec-ommendation, but only when and if change became absolutely necessary. There had been a small recovery in Southern Group, and whilst they were able to function he believed that we should stay as we are, though he did add that Council needed to address the position of Scottish Group which had effectively ceased to function.

The President thanked the three presenters for their ef-forts and opened the debate on the options. After a stimu-lating exchange which clearly showed that opinions were split, the President suggested that perhaps the decision on whether and how to reorganise should be deferred to sometime in the future. He called for a vote on this pro-posal, and those present voted 10:4 in favour of deferral, with one abstention. It was also agreed that a small team should arrange a meeting with the Scottish Group to dis-cuss their situation and report back to Council.

So, Council having decided that the organisational struc-ture, at least for now, would remain unaltered, the meet-ing closed.

Words Peter Cooper Photos Vic Branfoot

Council Discusses Reorganisation

Page 8

Council members discussing the options

The President and the Honorary Secretary/Treasurer

Page 9

Issue 10

Every year for the last umpteen years, on the Thursday before the clocks go back, a group of old friends and colleagues have met for lunch. Originally set up by Mac Manackerman, the occasion brings to-gether Plant Managers and Area personnel from the former British Coal Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Areas, with contractors and suppliers of coal preparation plant equipment and consumables; though over the years a few “foreigners” have joined in. For many years the event was held at the Jug and Glass in Nether Langwith, but current

organisers John Radford and Oliver Dodd decided a couple of years ago to move the lunch to the Hostess at Sookholme, near Mansfield Woodhouse. So it was that twenty six diners turned out on the 27th October 2011. Num-bers have diminished over the years; sadly one regular missing this year was Arthur Atkinson (see obituary below). However, it was good once again to see Ray Swift, Ron Nunn, Reg Smith, Alan Spencer, Colin Scargill Doug Shuttleworth, Mac Manackerman, Doug Jenkinson, Keith Wood, Ber-nard Fawthrop and Jeff Abbott. As usual, a good meal was provided at a reasonable cost, and those present en-joyed their annual chance to get together over a pint or glass of wine to reminisce about old times, catch up on cur-rent circumstances, and generally “put the world to rights”. Thanks once again to John Radford and Oliver Dodd for

making the arrangements, and long may it continue!

Obituary - Arthur Atkinson By John Hillman

Arthur Atkinson, who died on the 7th September 2011, was a member of the Society for more than 50 years, and in that time contributed a number of papers on the many coal preparation plants he designed or commis-sioned. He was almost invariably at the forefront of any lively debate in the early days of the Society's meetings, particularly on the relative merits of the various separa-tion processes. Arthur's scorn for the limitations of the barrel washer was legendary! After leaving school in Carlisle at 15 years of age in 1943 Arthur started an apprenticeship at a local engineering works, during which he obtained his HNC in Mechanical Engineering by part-time study. In the late 1940's he joined ACCO Ltd (later to become Simonacco). He be-came part of a group of young engineers recruited by Walter Wallace, the MD, all of whom went on to become

well known in the world of coal preparation. Whilst at ACCO, Arthur was engaged in the development of auto-matic jig control, and spent time at PIC in France; PIC being the most advanced designers of jigs at that time. Arthur left ACCO in 1964 to join Don Valley Engineering in Doncaster as Managing Director, where he developed their business beyond the manufacture of machines and equipment into coal preparation plant design and con-struction. In 1974 he left Don Valley to form his own com-pany, ASV Engineering Ltd, as a vehicle for the design and contract management of the 800 t/h dense medium plant at Durnacol in South Africa. At ASV, Arthur under-took a wide range of coal preparation projects over the next 13 years, the last major one being the process de-sign for the 800 t/h plant at Harworth Colliery in 1985. Arthur Atkinson will be remembered as an enthusiast who enjoyed robust technical discussions always tem-pered with an infectious chuckle,. Our sympathy goes out to his wife, Vera, sons Ian and Clive, and their families.

Friendly Lunch at the Hostess

Ralph Hewitt & Ron Nunn

Ray Swift & Reg Smith

Danny Smith & Mac Manackerman

Barry White & Oliver Dodd

Peter Longden & John Radford

Words and photos by Peter Cooper

Horizons

On a remarkably warm early October London evening, the Society had its usual strong representation at the 60th Annual Robens Coal Science Lecture mounted by BCURA at The Institute of Physics. Present at this special occasion were National Presi-dent Greg Kelley, and Past Presi-dents Ian Flanagan, Andrew Howells and John Hillman. Hon. Archivist, Vic

Branfoot, acted as reporter.

The speaker was Mr Brian Ricketts, Secretary-General of EURACOAL - the European Association for Coal and Lignite. Mr Ricketts began by paying tribute to past presenters of the Robens Lecture. He went on to provide a fascinating history of EURACOAL in its various guises since 1950, and listed the Past Presi-

dents of the Association.

Mr Ricketts noted that pro-coal argu-ments of today are much the same as they had been during the last sixty years. He pointed out, however, that a major difference is that the age of coal subsidies was no more in the UK, and that it would soon be the same on the continent, stressing the problems which cheaper imports

posed for the industry.

Mr Ricketts stressed that we are NOT about to run out of energy. He stated that we have resources - mostly in the form of coal and lignite - which would be sufficient for at least 87

years.

In respect of EU member states, Mr

Ricketts displayed a map which showed that six possessed coal re-sources; nine had lignite, including a massive resource in Germany. He noted that 60% of the EU‟s consump-tion of solid fuels came from indige-nous sources but he observed that

coal had “few friends in Brussels”.

One illustration showed that, whereas coal usage in the EU and the USA had flat-lined between 2000 and 2010, China‟s usage had increased markedly. Mr Ricketts noted that China had become an importer of coal because its transport infrastruc-ture could not cope with its desired levels of domestic production. Mr Ricketts observed that China now consumes more than 50% of the world‟s coal usage and five times the EU level of consumption. He added “in respect of energy production, coal is now the fuel of choice amongst the

emerging nations”.

Just as this writer was beginning to think that Mr Ricketts, in his wish to

promote hard coal and lignite, was turning a blind eye to environmental matters, Mr Ricketts then addressed this issue in some detail. He stated that “carbon reduction had been „easy‟ thus far because of the decline in industry and because of the switch from coal to gas and renewables”. Now, observed Mr Ricketts, it was becoming „hard‟ to make further pro-gress. He did not appear to be opti-mistic. He stated that if, by 2050, the EU had met its targets this would rep-resent only 7% of world carbon pro-duction; the rest of the world was pat-

ently not following the EU‟s lead.

Mr Ricketts listed EURACOAL‟s rec-ommendations on „what should hap-

pen next‟ and these included:-

Energy storage is vital to security, including expansive coal stocks

being held at power stations.

A programme of power plant renewal

and modernisation is essential.

Support must be provided for CCS

demonstration power plants.

In conclusion, Mr Ricketts observed that a balanced energy mix is “a win-ning policy”, enabling reactions to be made to significant changes in prices

and the availability of supply.

Finally, Mr Ricketts juxtaposed Presi-

dent George Bush‟s statement that,

“The world is addicted to oil” with his

own assertion that, “The world is ad-

dicted to coal (.. but doesn‟t know it)”.

Words and photos by Vic Branfoot

Page 10

BCURA 2011 Robens Coal Science Lecture

President Greg Kelley flanked by Vice-President Ian Flanagan and Hon. Sec./Treasurer Andrew Howells outside the Institute of Physics , London.

“Back Row Boys” Vic Branfoot, John Hillman, Greg Kelley and Ian Flanagan

BASF Performance Products PLC Mining Chemicals. PO Box 38, Low Moor, Bradford, BD12 0JZ Telephone: 01274 417000 Fax: 01274 417075 www.basf.com

Issue 10

Parnaby Cyclones Chilton Industrial Estate

Chilton Co Durham DL17 0SH

Tel: 01388 720849 Fax: 01388 721415

www.parnaby.co.uk

Technical & Social programme 2011 - 2012

28th September 2011 Cleveland Potash, Technical Visit Mr Rob McConnell, Plant Manager 13th October 2011 A one day Symposium UK Minerals - Engineering Innovation for a sustainable future Yew Lodge Hotel, Kegworth 19th October 2011 Monckton Coke & Chemical plant

Technical Visit and Presentation

9th December 2011 Christmas Dinner & Dance Crown Hotel, Bawtry, Doncaster 19th January 2012 Hopley Lecture, Charles Deveraux (Joint mtg SMMMI) Crossrail, Willesley Park Golf Club 7th February 2012 Beneficiation of Industrial Sands (Joint mtg IoQ Yorkshire) Mr Thomas Baumann,AKW Bridge Inn, Wetherby 21st March 2012 Ffos y Fran Operations update Mr James Poyner, Miller Argent UK Coal HQ, Harworth 2nd April 2012 Subject & Venue to be advised (Joint mtg IoQ Midlands) Leicestershire 21st April 2012 Mining&Minerals Industry Dinner&Dance Holiday Inn Hotel Sheffield

April/May 2012 Northern & Southern Group AGM‟s 27th July 2012 Yorkshire Golf Day Styrrup Golf Club, Doncaster

Unit 3 Craggs Industrial Park Morven Street Creswell Worksop Nottinghamshire S80 4AJ Tel: 01909 722239 Fax: 01909 724411

Norec Ltd Fallbank, Dodworth, Barnsley S73 3LS Tel: 01226 730440 Fax:01226 730688 www.norec.ltd.uk

Tel: 01427 890455 Mob: 07810 205065

Page 11

Merchandise

A Message from the Editor

As reported in issue 9 of Horizons, I have been co-opted onto the Editorial board of the

Newsletter to assist Sarah and Ian Flanagan. With Sarah settling in to life at University,

and Ian still busy globetrotting for BASF, I volunteered to produce this issue myself. The

drawbacks of this for the reader are twofold - one, my efforts will not give as professional

a result, and two, you get to see my ugly mug again instead of the lovely Sarah!

Anyway, here is Issue 10, and I hope you enjoyed the content. I am indebted to Greg Kel-

ley, Douglas Jenkinson, John Hillman, David Baillie, Mike Gurr and Vic Branfoot for their

contributions, and to my son Jeff for IT help when I got stuck!

As always, we would welcome contributions from other members. I hope that some of you

out there will be less reticent about telling me (rather than Sarah) what you don‟t like or what you‟d like to see - plenty

of you used to tell me what you thought back in my British Coal days! So come on, let‟s hear from you. Please re-

member there is a dedicated e mail address for all items connected with the Newsletter and that is:

newsletter@fdcgroup.co.uk

Regards Peter Cooper

Page 12

Horizons Issue 10

A History of British Coal Preparation by John Hillman, hardback

£20 members, £35 non-members

The Minerals Engineering Society has a number of products which can be purchased by contacting :

Andrew Howells C Eng HFMES Honorary Secretary / Treasurer Minerals Engineering Society 2 Ryton Close Blyth, Worksop S81 8DN Tel: 01909 591787 Mob: 07720 546174/07510 256626 Web: hon.sec.mes@lineone.net

Coal Preparation Text Books

The Minerals Engineering Society has obtained from The Australian Coal Preparation Society copies of their Coal Preparation Monographs for sale in the UK and Europe. There are seven hardback volumes covering the following topics: Back-ground to Coal Preparation, Materials Operations, Coarse Coal Benefici-ation, Fine Coal Beneficiation, Dewa-tering, Plant Engineering and Opera-tions Management. For prices of individual volumes, or for a complete set of seven volumes, including postage and packing within the United Kingdom, contact Andrew Howells as shown above.

History of the Minerals Engineering Society 1958-2008, paperback. £15 including UK p&p

Minerals Engineering Society Ties

Available in Red, Blue, Green and Brown, £5 including UK p&p