Design and application of the integrated intelligent coal washing management and control platform at Wuju Coal Company′s coal preparation plant

The intelligent construction of coal preparation plants faces multiple challenges in areas such as system integration and expansion, data acquisition and analysis, and combination of intelligent systems with production practice. Against this backdrop, in order to address the problems of Wuju Plant, such as over-reliance on manual operations, frequent equipment failures, delayed adjustment of process parameters, and inconsistency of product quality, an integrated intelligent coal washing management and control platform has been developed. The platform comprises four layers: a data access layer, an infrastructure layer, a comprehensive management and control layer, and a decision-making application layer. Its core functions include: standardized data governance, closed-loop control of the dense medium separation process, coordinated control of coal slime thickening and press filtration, full lifecycle equipment management, intelligent prevention and control of workplace environment for safety, centralized intelligent control of coal washing operation. Practice shows that the application of the platform has led to elimination of fixed posts, realization of remote centralized control of all equipment of the plant, and noticeable improvement of washing efficiency; the number of operators per shift has been reduced from 15 to 6, and the overall productivity efficiency has increased to 139 tons per worker; the equipment failure rate has been significantly reduced. The average unplanned shutdown time per day has been reduced from 55 minutes to less than 10 minutes, and the proportion of continuous coal washing time has increased from 65% to more than 90%; the consumption of medium and reagents is effectively reduced, saving 125,000 yuan in electricity, medium, and reagent costs per month; the product quality is stabilized; the density fluctuation of the medium suspension can be controlled within 0.005 g/cm³; the fluctuation of ash of clean coal can be controlled within a range of ±0.5 percentage points; and by introducing environmental monitoring sensors, AI recognition devices, etc., the intelligent perception of environmental risk factors in the coal washing process is made possible. Application of the intelligent platform makes it possible for the plant to significantly improve washing efficiency and great ease the management of the intelligent coal washing system. The study provides a reference for the development of intelligent coal washing plants.