Exploration & Borecore

Exploration & Borecore

Services

Analytical Services for the Coal Industry

Summary

Bureau Veritas is a leading provider of technical testing, shipment certification and support services to the global coal industry. Our global coal laboratory network can provide quality services from production to end use. 

Comprehensive Borecore services are offered in Australia, Africa and South America and Mongolia. Less complex Borecore services are offered at many of our other laboratories.

Bureau Veritas applies a client-focused approach to the delivery of our services, with a core focus and commitment to understanding our clients’ individual business and industry requirements. Our highly qualified and experienced team of technical staff and operators are dedicated to delivering the right solutions and adding value to your business.

Exploration & Borecore Services

COAL PETROGRAPHY & TRACE ELEMENT ANALYSIS

Bureau Veritas petrographic analysis identifies the rank and maceral components of coal for utilisation potential enhancing optimisation of the products commercial value. Additionally, petrographic analysis can also be used for identifying contamination or understanding coal blends. 

Bureau Veritas has a fully established petrographic laboratory. The petrographic laboratory undertakes coal maceral analysis and vitrinite reflectance (rank) determinations with the laboratory also offering coke micro-textural and structural analysis.

Our laboratory offers efficient and timely service at competitive prices and complements the range of coal testing conducted at our laboratories.

COKE OVEN TESTING

Coke making and coke testing is important for the determination of coking coal quality. Coke quality is often tested at exploration stage for feasibility studies, at the time of export for quality assurance and for product blending optimisation studies.

Small scale coke making is commonly used for exploration programs, where sample mass is limited, and for superintending quality assurance purposes, to ensure a coking product is of typical quality. Small scale coke making is also used to investigate blending options and bulk density influences on coking products. Bureau Veritas also conducts hot and cold coke strength testing.

Reactivity testing simulates the reactions that occur to coke in a blast furnace environment. Coke reactivity testing, in the form of the Coke Reactivity Index and the Coke Strength after Reaction (CRI/ CSR), is routinely performed at Bureau Veritas’ Brendale laboratory.

The CRI is a measure of the percentage of loss of coke during reaction with carbon dioxide. The CSR is a measure of the physical strength of the coke after the reaction with carbon dioxide.

Drum testing is performed to measure the abrasion and breakage characteristics of coke. The cold strength testing performed at the Brendale laboratory includes Micum indices and half-Micum indices. 

COAL QUALITY CONTROL

With respect to internal quality control and quality assurance procedures, Bureau Veritas’s quality system includes internal auditing across technical, sectional, training and vertical aspects of the business.

As part of our Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS), blanks, duplicates, standards, CRM’s, are automatically applied to each batch depending on batch size and tested at a frequency higher than the minimum requirements stipulated in the reference standard for that particular test.

Quality Control Charts for each individual test method are monitored and provided to clients on request.  This includes copies of internal and external proficiency testing programs (round robins).

Our tolerance on internal standards is tighter than the minimum requirements stipulated in the reference standard and is documented in control charts for each test method.

The LIMS provides additional data traceability with state of the art auditing functions that allows interrogation of information on operator, date, instrument, method and other parameters.

Compliance with ISO9001 and ISO17025.

Equipment calibration and maintenance schedules are maintained in accordance with our internal policies and NATA Accreditation to ISO17025.

The integrity of results is monitored through our internal quality reports which measure the accuracy of blanks, duplicates, certified reference materials and internal standards.

REPORTING & VALIDATION

Bureau Veritas’ coal technologists have collectively many years of experience in slim and large diameter core program co-ordination, assessment, reporting and validation. Throughout the program, all analysis results will be checked and validated by an experienced coal technologist prior to reporting of provisional and final results. Some examples of result validations include:

  • Results are typical (reviewing data for atypical results)
  • Checking Ash vs Relative Density
  • Checking Ash vs Calorific Value
  • Plotting Rosin Rammler graphs to check size analysis
  • Plotting Seylers graphs to check Ultimate analysis
  • Generating XY graphs to check float sink analysis
  • Checking analysis results against calculated and recombined results

COAL SAMPLING

Our sampling teams are fully qualified and trained in accordance with international standard methods. We offer 24/7, 365 days per year sampling coverage at all major coal ports and rail loading / receival terminals.

This sampling process will vary depending upon exact customer requirements and sampling infrastructure in place, however the procedure below gives a demonstration of existing practises:

  • Sampling is performed by either an automatic sampling plant, or manual sampling in accordance with international standards.
  • Samples are then crushed further and subdivided for analysis as part of the secondary sampling system at the port / rail terminal.
  • Total Moisture and analytical samples are delivered back to the Bureau Veritas laboratory throughout the vessel loading.
  • Bureau Veritas shipping and rail rosters offer 24/7 coverage all year round. We also has several backup samplers available 24/7 for utilisation during multiple berth cargo superintending and train sampling

COAL TESTING & ANALYSIS

In order to successfully define the coal resource, evaluate its potential for development, and plan for optimum mining and blending strategies, a full range of physical and analytical coal testing must be performed.  Bureau Veritas is fully equipped to offer the entire suite of testing parameters, including but not limited to the below:

  • Preparation (crushing, grinding, sizing, drop shatter, wet pre-treatment, etc.)
  • Time release and tree froth Flotation
  • Float/Sink Separation (gravity, using organic liquids)
  • Simulated product (Coking and Thermal Coal and Reject testing)
  • 7kg Coke oven and CRI/CSR and Micum testing
  • Total moisture, Proximate analysis, Total Sulfur, CSN, Ultimate, Co2, Ash Analysis
  • Ash fusion, Calorific Value, Moisture holding capacity, Phosphorus, Trace elements
  • Giesler Plastometer, Dilatometer, CSN, Roga, Gray King
  • HGI, Abrasion Index
  • Petrographics (Maceral Analysis and Vitrinite reflectance)