Optimizing froth surface area throughout the flotation circuit has a critical impact on the process performance. Launders are an essential part of any flotation cell and with the correct design and orientation for specific application, optimal performance can be achieved. This article describes the launder improvement project undertaken at Hudbay Minerals Inc.’s Constancia copper concentrator, located in southern Peru. Each rougher line was upgraded by installing center launders in the last three out of seven Metso Outotec TankCells e300. Installation of the center launders took place in two stages. The first set of three center launders was installed in rougher line 1 during June 2019 and the second set of three was installed in November 2019. The staggered installation allowed for the evaluation of the metallurgical performance of line 1 relative to line 2. The results showed the implementation of the new launder design yielded a statistically significant recovery increase of 0.70 percent for copper (Cu) and 1.4 percent for molybdenum (Mo).
