Testing a Wet Grid Ball Mill With Your Own Ore
A buyer's guide to planning a demonstration and acceptance test for a wet grid ball mill using the buyer's actual ore, with practical questions for the RFQ and test protocol.
Before accepting a wet grid ball mill, require a demonstration on your own ore rather than a generic sample. Ask the supplier to run a batch at a defined feed size, pulp density, and grinding time, then report product size distribution and throughput. Because ore hardness and liberation behavior vary, a test on your material is the only practical way to judge whether the mill suits your circuit.
Use the demonstration to compare operating variables. How does the mill behave at different ball loads up to the stated maximum grinding-ball load of 1.92 t? What is the effect of changing pulp density or feed rate on product fineness? For reference, the catalog lists a 900 × 1,800 mm cylinder, 22 kW motor, and 0.9 m³ effective volume; treat these as reference values, not guarantees for a supplied unit.
Define acceptance criteria in advance: sampling points, measurement methods, and the minimum batch size that gives a representative result. Ask whether the test mill matches the proposed configuration, and request the test report with raw data.
Before requesting a quote, confirm with the supplier what ore quantity and feed preparation the test requires, how results will be reported, and whether the demonstration unit matches the offered mill's dimensions, power, and volume.