Solid-Liquid Separation

Roytec Global

ROYTEC GLOBAL is a South Africa-based company specializing in Liquid/Solid Separation technologies for the Mining and Industrial sectors. Founded in 2001 by a group of engineers with over 150 years of combined experience in the field, Roytec is a privately-owned company, ensuring accountability and a passion for service. We pride ourselves on honoring our commitments and continuously improving our technologies.

Roytec has made significant progress in the development of Thickeners and Clarifiers to meet the current demands of processing plants, with a goal of reducing total capital costs through technology use. Our range of thickeners and clarifiers is custom-designed for each specific case, according to the end user’s process requirements.

To achieve optimal performance and efficiency for our clients, we developed the Roytec NexGen™ Thickener Program to enhance thickener performance, reduce flocculant consumption, achieve high underflow densities, improve overflow quality, and enable high levels of automation—all through the use of modern process practices.

The main innovations of the Roytec NexGen™ program are the revolutionary RADFLOW™ feedwell and the ETAQ™ auto-dilution pump system.

Roytec Thickeners

Robust, reliable, and efficient best describe the Roytec thickener range, tailored to meet the requirements of any processing plant.

Thickener units are available up to 90m in diameter, with various designs including side or center pier support bridges, hydraulic or electric drive systems, and integrated rake lifting and automation systems. Tank designs are available in both welded and bolted segments for ease of site assembly, as well as concrete designs.

The Roytec thickener range is designed to operate under the harshest plant conditions.

Custom Thickening Solutions

Roytec has extensive knowledge in thickening applications and continuously partners with clients to ensure the best available solution.

We specialize in the following thickener technologies:

• High Rate
• Conventional
• High Density / Paste
• Deep Cone (with or without rakes)
• Pin Bed and Dynamic Bed Clarifiers

We use a combination of design approaches, including established mechanical and process principles along with proprietary iterative design software, to arrive at the optimal design configuration for each unit.

Tank designs use dynamic 3D models and adhere to international best practice codes such as SANS, API, and others.

The use of dynamic 3D models ensures an integrated design.

Counter-Current Decantation (CCD) Circuits

Roytec thickeners are widely used in CCD applications. The recovery of soluble value species is maximized through a combination of high-efficiency mixing stages, feed dilution, underflow density optimization, and circuit control.

Our designs include intermediate pump-mixer stages, allowing all CCD circuit stages to be installed at the same elevation, significantly reducing civil and installation costs.

We have experience in both acidic and alkaline circuits for the recovery of metals like copper, cobalt, uranium, and gold/silver.

Drive & Rake Mechanism

The drive system and rake mechanisms are supported by a bridge configuration, which can be full-span or half-span. For large diameter units (+45m), the mechanism is usually supported by a central column.

Drive units are hydraulic or electric and include a complete instrumentation package to ensure drivetrain protection and plant safety. Fully automated rake lifting is standard on Roytec thickeners.

Our drive train design ensures all gears and bearings have an operational life of over 100,000 hours. All mechanical components are from European brands with solid local support and service on all continents.

Control

A fully instrumented and integrated control system allows plant feedback for continuous monitoring and optimal operation, including:

• Rake torque level monitoring
• Automatic rake lift and lower
• Rake position indication
• Mud bed level indication
• Feed density and flow monitoring
• Underflow density and flow monitoring
• Overflow turbidity measurement
• Bed pressure measurement
• Feedwell settling rate monitoring
• Flocculant dosage rate control
• Visual and audible alarms
• System temperature and oil level measurement

RADFLOW™ Feedwells

Our revolutionary RADFLOW™ feedwell is designed for optimal energy dissipation.

Feed enters through an upper tangential zone and discharges downward into a set of vertical vanes where eddy currents form and collide with incoming flows. This results in highly effective energy dissipation and uniform, balanced, and calm discharge characterized by a restricted radial solids component.

Key benefits:

• Excellent energy dissipation
• Reduced tangential and radial turbulence
• Improved feed/flocculant mixing
• Lower torque operation
• No blockages or obstructions in the feedwell

ETAQ™ Dilution Pump

The ETAQ™ pump is a radial inlet/outlet self-dilution pump specially designed for high-volume, low-head operations.

The ETAQ™ pump draws overflow from the thickener surface and pumps it to the RADFLOW™ feed stream to achieve the perfect feed dilution level, ensuring optimal flocculation.

Pinned Bed & Dynamic Bed Clarifiers

Roytec is a global leader in solution clarification using Deep Cone Clarifiers of the Dynamic Bed (DBC) type, and Pinned-Bed Clarifiers (PBC) with filtration media, producing high-quality overflow and/or high-density underflows.

Both technologies combine feed pretreatment with a portion of recycled underflow, coagulant, and inorganic flocculation.

Roytec clarifiers deliver consistent and reliable operation, with total suspended solids (TSS) reduction down to values below 10 ppm.

Common Applications for DBC and PBC Clarifiers:

• PLS clarification for Copper and Zinc
• Merrill Crowe process solution clarification (Ag-Au)
• Mine water clarification
• Polishing of process equipment seal water