Objective function for automatic control of a mineral ore grinding circuit based on multiple size measurements of the final ground product size from hydrocyclone classifier overflow streams

A mineral processing system, comprising:

• a grinding and classification stage configured to receive control signaling and grind and classify ore into ground particles having a ground particle size;
• a hydrocyclone battery having at least one hydrocyclone with a hydrocyclone classifier overflow pipe, configured to receive the ground particles, and provide a hydrocyclone classifier overflow stream from the hydrocyclone classifier overflow pipe having overflow particles with different particle sizes;
• at least one particle size measurement device arranged on the hydrocyclone classifier overflow pipe of the at least one hydrocyclone in the hydrocyclone battery, configured to sense different overflow particles having the different particle sizes flowing in the hydrocyclone classifier overflow stream, and provide particle size measurement signaling containing information about multiple particle size measurements of the different overflow particles having the different particle sizes flowing in the hydrocyclone classifier overflow stream;
• and
• a controller having a signal processor or processing module configured to:
• receive signaling containing information about a relationship between the multiple particle size measurements of the different overflow particles having the different particle sizes flowing in the hydrocyclone classifier overflow stream, and about a floatable fraction that defines a particle size range of different floatable particle sizes of different floatable particles that can be recovered by the at least one hydrocyclone in the hydrocyclone battery;
• and
• provide the control signaling containing information to control the ground product size of the ground particles provided from the grinding and classification stage to the at least one hydrocyclone in the hydrocyclone battery, based upon the signaling received.