Minerals Engineering, Vol. 10, No. 3, pp.

255-264, 1997
© 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd
Pergamon Printed in Great Britain. All rights reserved
Plh S0892--6875(97)00002-2 0892-6875/97 $17.00+0.00

THE APPLICATION OF ROCK MECHANICS PARAMETERS

TO THE PREDICTION OF COMMINUTION BEHAVIOUR

R.A. BEARMAN, C.A. BRIGGS and T. KOJOVIC

JKMRC, University of Queensland, Isles Road, Indooroopilly 4068, Queensland, Australia

(Received 25 September 1996; accepted 3 December 1996)

ABSTRACT

A wide range of test methods are available to the rock mechanics engineer in order to
assess rock strength. The application of these test techniques to the prediction of
comminution behaviour is investigated. Previously test methods that rely on inducing
tensile .failure have been found to correlate well with power consumption and product
grading from crushing machinery. Building on this previous work the point load, fracture
toughness and Hopkinson Pressure Bar core based tests are examined in relation to
breakage. The application of these testing techniques to the prediction of comminution
behaviour has tremendous potential if the rock strength parameters can be linked to a
measure of breakage.

The measure of breakage used in this study is the drop weight apparatus developed at the
Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre. The A, b and tlO parameters provided by
the drop weight test describe the ore-specific rock breakage in the context of
comminution. This approach has been successfully used in the simulation and optimisation
of numerous crushing and grinding circuits. As such this paper seeks to investigate the
relationship between the parameters of tensile based tests and those of the drop weight
test. Given the expense of obtaining drill core samples it is essential that the samples
yield the maximum amount of information. Early indications suggest that this technique
will enable data required for comminution plant design to be obtained from core samples.
©1997 Elsevier Science Ltd

Keywords
Comminution; crushing

INTRODUCTION

Rock characterisation in terms of the response of rock to loading has been approached in two distinct ways
with the method of investigation relying on the end-use of the data. In the mining or rock mechanics sector
rock tests are undertaken on specimens of known geometry under strictly defined loading conditions. The
aim of these tests is to define the ultimate strength and response of the test piece under these controlled
conditions. The measures are many and varied, but primarily the quantities of interest are compressive
strength, tensile strength, the elastic properties (i.e. Young's Modulus, Poisson's Ratio) and physical
properties (i.e. density, porosity). This data is typically applied in areas including mine design and rock
mass eharacterisation.

Presented at Minerals Engineering '96, Brisbane, Australia, August 26-28, 1996

255
256 R.A. Bearmanet al.

The strength values obtained by the rock mechanics engineers are used in much the same way as materials
data is used to deign civil engineering structures. The values give the engineers an envelope of strengths
to work within to assess the global response of rock to loading.

In comminution the purpose is to break rock to given sizes. This goal has led to the development of tests
that address the relationship between the applied energy and the resultant size or surface area.

Attempts to link the rock mechanics and comminution approaches to strength and breakage have flourished
over the last ten years. Berry et. al. [1] undertook a variety of standard strength tests and attempted to link
these to the performance of a laboratory scale jaw crusher.

Traditionally when discussing how rocks break in comminution machines owners and operators refer to
a rock property described as "toughness". It was not until 1989 that a test for toughness was standardised.
The fracture toughness test as it is now known developed out of the discipline of Linear Elastic Fracture
Mechanics (LEFM). The implication of LEFM is that for any given material a critical value exists for the
stress intensity factor at a crack tip. Above this critical value catastrophic crack extension will occur. This
critical stress intensity factor is known as the fracture toughness.

In LEFM terms there are fracture toughness values for different modes of failure i.e. pure tensile, shear
and torsion, and there are also corrections to the base value that account for non-linearity.

The work of Bearman et. al. [2] involved the examination of the relationship between rock strength
parameters and power consumption and product size in crushing. The main outcome of this work was that
the tensile based strength parameters showed a highly significant correlation with crusher performance.

One approach that has elements of both comminution and rock mechanics style tests is the use of the
Hopkinson Pressure Bar (HPB). Bourgeois et. al. [3] detailed the work of the Comminution Centre, Utah,
and how the apparatus had been used to examine rock breakage in milling. Briggs and Bearman [4], [5],
expanded on the use of the HPB and applied the method to comminution in crushing.

In this paper the various approaches to characterising rock breakage are examined and the inter-
relationships between the methods are explored.

COMMINUTION TESTS

Single particle tests to determine the comminution behaviour of rock can be separated into pendulum and
drop weight based tests. The twin pendulum test relies on the particle being broken between an input
pendulum released from a known height and a rebound pendulum. The drop weight test differs in that the
particles are placed on a hard surface and struck by a falling weight. Both these approaches have been used
extensively in the field of comminution.

The JKMRC has specialised in the application of these test methods since the work of Narayanan and
Whiten [6] highlighted their use in the field of comminution modelling. Recent developments at the JKMRC
have seen the twin pendulum being replaced by the drop weight apparatus.

The drop weight apparatus is seen to have several advantages including:

• extended input energy range compared to the twin pendulum devices,
• shorter time span of operation compared to the pendulum test,
• extended particle size range,
• ability to conduct particle bed breakage studies.

The standard drop weight device is fitted with a 20kg mass, which can be extended to 50kg. The effective
range of drop heights is 0.05 to 1.0m, which represents a wide energy range from 0.01 to 50kWh/t (based
on 10-50ram particles).
Following sample preparation the mean mass of each set of particles to be broken is calculated. Based on
 Prediction of eomminutionbchaviour 257

the required specific input energy for each test, the height from which the drop weight is to be released
is determined using the relationship below:

hi= -mxE~ (1)

0.0272×M a

where:

hi initial height of the drop weight above the anvil (cm)

m mean mass of each set of particles (kg)

Md mass of the drop weight (kg)
Eis specific input energy (kWh/t)

Typically 10ram is added to the calculated drop height for each test. This ensures that the required final
specific comminution energy is obtained, since after breaking a particle the drop weight is brought to rest
at a height above the anvil. The average offset can be measured for each sample of particles broken, in
which case the applied energy is

Eis= O.0272 xMdx(hi-hj') (2)

m

where:
hf average height at which the drop weight comes to rest above the anvil.

The results from the drop weight tests provide an energy/input size/product size relationship. This
relationship is analysed using a set of curves to describe the size distribution produced from breakage
events of increasing size reduction or energy input.

The descriptor employed in this approach is the t parameter. Each product size distribution curve is
normalised with :respect to the input size to give percentage passing figures for various fractions. Therefore
tl0 is the percentage passing 1/10 th of the original feed size and t2 is the percentage passing xh of the
original feed size.

The tl0 parameter is the most often quoted parameter. Typically in a crusher tl0 is 10 to 20%, whereas
in a tumbling mill values in the range 20 to 50 % are expected.

To make use of this description of ore breakage the marker points t2, t4, t25, t50 and t75 are stored in a
matrix form against tl0. This same data can be represented graphically as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 is a powerful graph as each vertical line (or value of tl0) represents an entire cumulative percent
passing mass size distribution.

The tl0 value is related to the specific comminution energy by the equation:

t l O=A ( l -e -e,.Ecs) (3)

where:

tlO percentage passing 1/10 th of the initial mean size

Ecs specific comminution energy (kWh/t)
A,b ore impact breakage parameters
258 , R.A. Bearmanet at

The 'A' parameter represents the theoretical limiting value of tl0, whilst "b" is the slope of the tl0 versus
Ecs graph.

Using this approach to comminution the key factors are tl0, Ecs A and b. The relation of these parameters
to other measures of rock strength are examined later.

100. , , [
90 _....-.-"W

80 . . . .

--e--t75
+t50
~ lk - - t25
8
g. --~--tlO
~t4

| --e--- t2

0 10 20 30 40 50
tlO (%)
Fig. 1 Size distribution parameter t versus tl0

ROCK MECHANICS TESTS

The mechanical and physical properties of rock can be quantified using a variety of standard tests.
Bearman [7] undertook an extensive study of the strength characteristics of twelve rock types used in
quarrying and the correlation of strength with crusher performance. The mechanical and physical properties
measured covered a wide range and included:

Specific Gravity * Fracture Toughness

Uniaxial Compressive Strength * Brazilian Tensile Strength
Point Load Strength * Young's Modulus (static and dynamic)
Poisson's Ratio * P & S wave velocity
Schmidt Rebound Hardness * Aggregate Crushing Value (ACV)
Aggregate Impact Value (AIV) * 10% Fines
Bulk Modulus * Modulus of Rigidity
Water Absorption

Of the correlations obtained the most significant proved to be those involving the tensile based properties;
fracture toughness, Brazilian tensile strength and point load strength.

Typically the relationships were of the form shown in Figures 2 and 3.

The strength of these empirical relationships indicated that there should be an underlying fundamental
connection between breakage in comminution and rock strength. Bearrnan began to explore this point and
produced relationships linking fracture toughness and point load index to Pendulum Power (a parameter
from the JKMRC twin pendulum tests).
 , Prediction o f comminution behaviour 259

1.8-

1.6-

1.4"

i2 1.2-
o 1
3.
E 0.8 2.75
C 2.5
o ->5
0 0.6
|
0.4 Fracture Toughness
(M N/m'l.5)
0.2
£

40 45 50
Closed Side Setting (mm)

Fig.2 Power consumption versus closed side setting versus fracture toughness in full scale cone crushing

60-

50-

E 40-
E
o - 2.75
gk 30- ~ 2.5
2.25
2
20 1.75 Fracture Toughness
~ 1.5 (MN/m^I.5)
10- 1.25
1
O- 0.75
10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 0.5
Closed :Side Setting (mm)
Fig.3 Product size (P80) versus closed side setting versus fracture toughness in full scale cone crushing
260 R.A. Bearmanet aL

HOPKINSON PRESSURE BAR

To study the breakage properties of rock materials a Hopkinson Pressure Bar was constructed at the Centre
for Mining Technology and Equipment (CMTE). The bar is similar to the Ultra-Fast Load Cell (UFLC)
that has been successfully used at the University of Utah to analyse the breakage function for ball mill
modelling. The purpose of the bar is to allow the measurement of both the force and the energy required
to initiate catastrophic failure in rock specimens. The bar constructed at the CMTE was specifically
designed to simulate the energy levels commonly found in commercial cone crushers.

The Hopkinson Bar consists of a horizontally suspended steel bar 6.4m long to which a rock specimen is
attached at one end. The rock sample is then impacted and compressed by the collision of the impact bar
(1.2m in length). The force experienced by the rock is equal to the magnitude of the forces experienced
by the ends of the two bars during the collision. This force propagates as a longitudinal strain wave down
the impact and Hopkinson bars. The strain wave is measured by a strain gauge bridge arranged on both
bars. Therefore the force on the rock can be resolved and the exact force at which failure occurs is
measured as a sudden release of force in the strain signals in the bars. The impact bar is mounted on linear
bearings and is attached to a linear spring mounted at the opposite end to the bar. The impact bar is set
by compressing the spring a known amount, determined by the adjustable release mechanism. This allows
accurate and repeatable energies to be applied to the rock. When the impact bar is released the end of the
bar, which has a series of narrowly spaced black and white lines attached to it, passes an optical sensor
that measures the velocity of the impact bar just prior to impact. The measurement of the velocity of the
impact bar just prior to impact allows the input energy to be calculated. The integration of the force-time
profiles from both the Hopkinson and impact bars allow lost strain energy to be subtracted from the input
energy so the actual energy responsible for breakage can be calculated.

To date the Hopkinson Pressure Bar has been used to examine many features of rock breakage, including:

the definition of the force to first fracture,

• variation in apparent strength with sample shape,

• the use of irregular test particle,

• the definition of the critical energy,

• material competency,

• the energy-fines production relationship,

empirical relationships between the particle strength from the HPB and the
tensile strength, fracture toughness and tl0 test parameters.

To put the Hopkinson Pressure Bar into context it provides a unification of the traditional comminution and
rock mechanics approaches, whilst providing a level of detail not previously available.

PREDICTION OF COMMINUTION CHARACTERISTICS FROM CORE SAMPLES

Core samples from exploration boreholes constitute a considerable financial investment for mining
companies. It is therefore not unreasonable to expect these samples to provide as much information as
possible. Routinely these samples can provide input to rock mass eharacterisation, ore reserve prediction
and deposit delineation. It is far more unusual for these samples to yield data on the comminution
behaviour of the rock.

Core samples provide problems in terms of the quantity of material available for testing. In terms of the
 , Prediction o f ¢omminution behaviour 261

drop weight style: test the quantity of core is simply insufficient.

In terms of the rock mechanics tests direct measurements can be made of the fracture toughness, Brazilian
tensile strength and point load index. Of these tests the point load test is the only one which can be
undertaken in the field, although further work by Bearman has shown that the point load test apparatus can
be used to provide highly accurate estimates of fracture toughness. The relationships derived by Bearman
[8] are as follows:

Diametral Core Based Samples

K/C- (35.97;<P) (4)

D 1.5:5

Axial Core, Irregular Lump

29.80×P
K,c (5)
(W×D) 0"775

where:

KIC mode I fracture toughness (MN/m 1.5)

P applied force at failure (kN)
D distance between load application points (mm)
W width of specimen (mm)

Once a value for l~acture toughness has been obtained this must then be linked to comminution behaviour.
In this case highly significant correlations have been achieved between fracture toughness and the drop
weight parameters A and B and hence tl0. Figures 4 and 5 show the relationships between fracture
toughness and the parameters A and b.

9 t

1 • ,I, •
00 •, •
0
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5
I~C (MN/m^I.S)

Fig.4 Plot of the breakage parameter b versus fracture toughness

262 R.A. Bearman et aL

6O0

500

400

3O0

200

100
0 ~
eo 40

0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5

K]C (MN/m^I.5)
Fig.5 Plot of the product A.b versus fracture toughness

The relationships for the estimation of b and the product A.b are given below:
b = 2.2465 x KIC-1-6986 (6)
A.b = 126.96 x KIC-1-8463 (7)

Once A and b have been determined these can be substituted into equation (3) along with a specific
comminution energy, to give a value for tl0.

Additional information can also be obtained by using the HPB to investigate the energy utilisation (Figure
6) and the rock stiffness (Figure 7). In the case of the energy and stiffness these quantities are being

! ! ! !

Tolal Energy into Rock

1.5
(1 . s 8 J)

1.0
Energy at Failure

0.5

0.0

i . I , I , I , I
O. 0 0 0 0 0.0002 0.0004 0.0006 0.0008

Displacement (m)
Fig.6 Energy utilisation in breakage using the Hopkinson Pressure Bar
 , Prediction of comminutionbehaviour .263

integrated into an approach which is aimed at the development of a fundamental crusher model suitable for
machine design. The implication of this is that the performance of existing crushers can be determined and
alterations can be made to the design given the energy/stiffness characteristics of the rock.

Eff(e1ct5~kN/
i~A9m)1
5OO0 ! i l l !
Poak Force at Major Failure
(4.2 kN)
Stiffness
-

4000

3OOO

2000
C>

1000

I , I , I i I , I
O.OOOO 0.(XX32 0.0004 0.0006 0.0008

Displacement (m)

Fig.7 Determination of the effective stiffness and peak force at fracture

The ability to determine the material competency of a rock type from a core sample is also highly
significant. Material competency can be defined in terms of the critical energy levels of the material. The
critical energy is the point at which material will break or sustain damage.

CONCLUSIONS

There are two distiinct ways of characterising materials for the purpose of predicting performance in full
scale comminution equipment. Firstly to perform standardised tests and assume that the particular test best
reflects the pre-dominant process that is occurring in the comminution equipment. Secondly to mimic as
much as possible the process on full or pilot scale and to measure the variations in performance of different
rock types. This paper addresses the former and shows the usefulness of this approach particularly in
simulation and control methods. The advantage of performing independent testing methods is that they are
quicker and are not machine specific. The paper has shown that tests which are predominately interested
in indirect tensile tests have the most useful correlations with comminution performance.

It is not surprising that a correlation exists between particular tensile tests and the drop weight tester as the
method of breakage is similar. The ability to obtain the breakage parameters A and b from limited core
samples is highly significant. The use of this data is two-fold, firstly, the breakage data can be used to
predict tl0 values for given energy input per unit mass. Secondly the A and b parameters can be used in
the traditional JKMRC modelling approach to predict the performance of various forms of comminution
equipment, typically, crushers, AG/SAG mills and ball mills.
264 R.A. Bearmanet al.

REFERENCES

. Berry, P., Dantini, E.M. & Massacci, P., Influence of Mechanical Characteristics of Rock on
Size Reduction Processing, Proc. Mineral Processing and Extractive Metallurgy, Beijing, IMM,
15-26 (1984).
. Bearman, R.A., Barley, R.W. & Hitchcock, A., Prediction of Power Consumption and Product
Size in Cone Crushing, Minerals Eng., 4,No. 12, 1243-1256 (1991).
3. Bourgeois, F., King, R.P. & Herbst, J.A., Comminution - Theory and Practice Symposium, Ed:
Kawatra S.K., SME, Littleton, Col., Chap. 8, 99-108 (1992).
4. Briggs, C.A. & Bearman, R.A., The Assessment of Rock Breakage and Damage in Crushing
Machinery, Proc. Explo '95, Brisbane, Australia, AuslMM, 167-172 (4-7 Sept. 1995).
5. Briggs, C.A. & Bearman, R.A., An Investigation of Rock Breakage and Damage in Comminution
Equipment, Minerals Eng., 9,No. 5,489-497 (1996).
6. Narayanan, S.S. & Whiten, W.J., Determination of Comminution Characteristics from Single
Particle Breakage Tests and its Application to Ball Mill Scale-Up, Trans. IMM, 97, Section C,
Cl15-C124 (1988).
7. Bearman, R.A. The Application of Rock Mechanics Parameters to the Prediction of Crusher
Performance, Ph.D. Thesis, Camborne School of Mines, (1991).
8. Bearman, R.A., The Use of the Point Load Test for the Rapid Estimation of Mode I Fracture
Toughness, Submitted to the Int. J. Rock. Mech. Min. Sci. & Geomech. Abstr. (1996)