Coal mine application demonstrates the advantages of electro-hydraulic valve actuation

25/02/2013


Coal mine application demonstrates the advantages of electro-hydraulic valve actuation

Mount Thorley Warkworth (MTW) is an integrated operation of two adjacent open cast mines in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales, Australia, supplying international and domestic markets with semi-soft coking coal and thermal coal.

Rotork has supplied valve actuators for the pipework delivering water to the north and south coal processing (washing) plants from a new 2 GL (gigalitre*) dam source. This project has included an actuator for a pipeline supplying water to a new Water Cart Fill Point for routine dust suppression operations. Each water cart fill is made up of 120 tonnes of water, delivered at a pressure high enough to overcome a 10 metre rise in the height of the pipework at the point of delivery.

The specification for the actuator to operate the isolation valve on the Water Cart Fill Point was very demanding, calling for a solar powered, 24 VDC SIL-rated electric fail safe actuator, capable of closing a 500 mm butterfly valve in 10 seconds. Rotork has been able to satisfy all these criteria with a standard Skilmatic Pro electro-hydraulic product solution.

These self-contained electrically powered actuators - comprising integrated control module, hydraulic manifold and a power unit consisting of a motor, hydraulic pump and reservoir - offer flexibility and customisation to suit specific applications. Utilising an integral spring mechanism to provide the most reliable means of positioning valves to a pre-determined safe position, they have been specifically designed for use in critical fail safe applications. 

Skilmatic Pro actuators combine the simplicity of electrical operation with the precision of hydraulic control and the reliability of mechanical fail-safe action. With the recent incorporation of a new intelligent control and monitoring system, the actuators provide an ideal solution for two position, safety shutdown or precise modulating control applications.

The benefits of reliable valve actuation are combined with advanced HMI, monitoring, data logging, diagnostic and communication technologies utilising Rotork’s non-intrusive Bluetooth® Setting Tool. The Pro options include the ability to provide a valve signature profile as an integral part of commissioning data. Using the Setting Tool, the actuator configuration, valve operating profiles and data logger files can be transferred from the field and to a standard PC for storage and analysis as part of predictive maintenance routines.

 * 1 GL = 1 million tonnes