The heavy media cyclones at Argyle Diamonds are subjected to
extremely abrasive service conditions and have been the subject
of a development program from the time the first ore was treated
in the AKl processing plant. In the past ten years the cyclones
have been re-engineered from a standard DSM design, in which
some components would only last four days, to the current
Argyle design in which the minimum component life is 175 days. Development has focused upon the elimination of turbulence in
the cyclone and combating unavoidable abrasion through the use
of appropriate wear materials.