Sampling and Controls

Abstract

The first and most obvious reason for sampling is to acquire information about the ore entering the plant for treatment. The second is to inspect its condition at selected points during its progress through the plant so that comparison can be made between the optimum requirements for efficient treatment and those actually existing, should these not coincide. The third is to disclose recovery and losses, and to learn how to improve the former and reduce the latter. Just as in military circles reconnaissance before the fight, information during the fight, and a conference on “the lessons of the scheme” are essential to intelligent control, so, translated to the civil field, does the mill superintendent look ahead, keep his finger on the pulse of his charge, and hold “post-mortems” on such failures as high tailing loss and poor concentrate. “What’s gone is past”, but knowledge of the reason for failure is the first step toward preventing its repetition.