Blending and homogenization piles are usually employed for reducing head grade fluctuation at a processing plant. The methodology suggested herein aims at quantifying the variability at various stages in a homogenization system. The chemical parameter evaluated is silica (SiO2) from an iron ore at a granulometry below 0.15mm. This is a highly variable contaminant in iron ore deposits. The results show the expected variance among the grades for various pile sizes. It is demonstrated that the rate of variance decreases as the pile size increases.
Piles; homogenization; variability reduction; iron ore
