Ural State Mining University (Ekaterinburg, Russia):
Kozin V. Z., Head of Chair, Doctor of Engineering Sciences, Professor, gmf.dek@ursmu.ru
Komlev A. S., Senior Researcher, Candidate of Engineering Sciences, tails2002@inbox.ru

Metal balances are recorded at all concentrators. In actual practice, plants use adjusted balances with zero discrepancies in metal quantities, but never use the product balance as a tool for assessing plant performance in terms of its output and metal flows. This article provides a general formula for the discrepancies in the product balance, as well as formulas for calculating metal masses and relative random errors. A relative random error formula for the discrepancies is also given, covering the relative random errors in establishing metal masses in all plant’s products. The paper provides a detailed example of compiling and calculating product balance discrepancies at a copper-zinc processing plant for four metals. A list of initial documents required for compiling the balance is indicated, a summary table is given for the receipt, release, and accumulation of all metals at the plant. An example calculation of allowable discrepancies is given for the metals under consideration. The causes for the large allowable discrepancies are indicated, being the error of indirect concentrate weighing at storage for zinc and balance calculation based on accumulated ten-day samples for gold and silver. The actual discrepancy exceeds the permissible absolute value only for copper. It has been shown that the plant needs to check for unaccounted mechanical losses and to improve sampling by the mass fraction of moisture in the ore and in the concentrates stored. General recommendations are proposed on the use of product balances to improve metal sampling and accounting systems at concentrating plants.
The study was carried out with the support of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation No. 0833-2023-0004 in accordance with the state assignment for the Ural State Mining University.

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