Industrial machinery corporation Metso expanded its polishing filtration product family with the addition of the Glass Media (GM) filter. The Metso GM filter is designed to remove insoluble organics in battery metals processes by using “very efficient and patented coalescing media”, Metso said.

Through its cost-effective and modular design, the GM filter aims to increase the recovery and recycling of valuable process chemicals.

“The GM filter is an ideal choice when insoluble organics need to be removed and recovered. Thanks to its efficient coalescing media for hydrometallurgical applications, the GM filter can perfect the removal and recovery of insoluble organics at a much higher velocity than the traditional coalescing media,” said Metso Industrial Filtration director Mika Vuorikari.

In applications where an active carbon (AC) filter needs to be used for dissolved organics adsorption from the process, the AC filter’s efficiency and media lifetime can be improved by using a GM filter in front of it, Vuorikari added.

The Metso GM filter is designed for variable sizes of process streams and its modular design makes it easy to expand to meet plant process requirements. It also optimises backwashing with filtered process liquid circulating back to the process, ensuring that water consumption is “kept to a minimum”. The low pumping pressure of the filter also results in lower energy consumption.

Through the combination of dual media (DM) and AC filters, Metso has a complete filtration portfolio for solvent extraction (SX) and electro winning and crystallisation processes.

Further, through in-depth knowledge and experience in the hydrometallurgical industry, Metso can design industry-leading filtration solutions for battery minerals processing, the company added.

Metso has delivered more than 90 DM and AC filters to metallurgical SX processes globally, the company said.

Filtration Technology Centre
Metso also introduced its upgraded Larox PF 60 series pressure filter at the opening ceremony of the new machining unit at the company’s Filtration Technology Centre in Lappeenranta, Finland, in September.

“The new version of the Larox PF 60 series filter marks a step-change in the technological development of tower filters. It significantly improves safety, process efficiency and dewatering capacity in mining and other process industry applications, thanks to its novel technological solutions,” Metso Filtration business line VP Jussi Venäläinen said at the time.

“This upgraded model is fully automated to enable flexible operation for process variations and is future-ready for different plate pack configurations to provide consistent and homogenous filter cake with efficient solids wash.”

The Larox PF 60 series filter is part of Metso’s Planet Positive offering, owing to its advanced features that decrease water and oil use by up to 90% and 75%, respectively. In addition, it can reduce the need for installed electric power by 25%, Metso said.

The filter has a compact and open design, which reduces the floor space required and enables a significant improvement in ease of maintenance. The structure has also been upgraded to meet the latest seismic standards, the company added.

Metso noted that it offers a comprehensive service portfolio, including remote support to ensure optimised lifelong performance.

“The investment into a new machining unit at our Filtration Technology Centre in Lappeenranta goes hand-in-hand with the development of the Larox PF 60 pressure filter and our ambition to offer our customers the best and most responsible filtration technology available,” explained Metso Filtration manufacturing director Tero Tiainen.

“The highly automated machining unit significantly increases our manufacturing capacity and enables the production of high-quality filter components in a safer, more [environment-friendly] manner.”

In addition to the manufacturing of advanced filters used in various process industries, Metso’s Filtration Technology Centre operates a globally unique Dewatering Technology Centre, which is focused on solid-liquid separation.

Metso has carried out more than 14 000 filtration tests and delivered more than 5 000 filters for various applications worldwide, Metso concluded.