ENGINEERING, OPERATING AND PEOPLE (HUMOROUS) LESSONS TO BE LEARNED

摘要

More is Not Always Better The tendency when a circuit is not working is always to add more reagents. Most of us who have been operators remember the thickeners with too much flocculant or another circuit that has too many reagents in it. In the heat of the moment, this lesson is oftentimes overlooked. It is scary to cut back when a reagent is not working but there is many times an optimal addition range. Sometime, none is actually better. The cost of adding a reagent to a circuit, such as soda ash to a flotation circuit, cannot be justified unless the value of the results justify the addition. If it is not cost effective, there is no point in doing it. Teamwork is Essential One of my colleagues was sharing a story about an operation he worked in where animal glue was added to a circuit. One particular supervisor experienced a problem so, thinking that more is better, the increased the addition rate. My colleague, as the process engineer, had a real conflict because he knew that too much of the reagent was being added and advocated that the addition be reduced. Since the engineer was in an advisory position only, he did not have the authority to authorize the changes. Eventually, the circuit was in such a mess that changes had to be made and the engineer was able to get the animal glue addition rate reduced. He commented that he was able to make his point and prove that he had been right when the plant performance improved but he also "made an enemy for life."