Evaluation of conventional and emerging geometallurgical models for specific energy prediction in a Brazilian gold mine
Lorena Campolina Milan Lucrécio; Leonardo Junior Fernandes Campos; Andreia Bicalho Henriques; Douglas Batista Mazzinghy
Abstract
Geometallurgy integrates geological, mining, and metallurgical information to improve operational predictability and support mine planning. In comminution, productivity models are used to estimate throughput and specific energy consumption based on ore characteristics. Traditionally, the Bond Work Index (BWi) is employed for this purpose; however, its applicability to SAG-Ball mill circuits is limited. This study compares conventional and recent geometallurgical models for predicting specific energy consumption in a Brazilian gold operation using operational data collected between January and July 2023. The evaluated approaches included the Bond, Bond (Valle), SMC, SPI-based, operational throughput models, and a new proposed model. Model performance was assessed using statistical metrics and the percentage of predictions within ±10% of the measured values. The SPI (2001) + Bond model achieved the best overall performance, with 81.9% predictions falling within the acceptance interval, followed by the new proposed model (78.7%). The results demonstrate that local calibration has a greater influence on predictive accuracy than the complexity of the model, highlighting the importance of calibrated geometallurgical models for improving performance forecasting and mine planning.
Keywords
References
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Submitted date:
06/23/2026
Accepted date:
08/01/2026
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