Scaling Energy Transfer in Ball Mills: A Scale-Agnostic Approach through a Universal Scaling Constant

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Positive side: the authors propose a scaling method based on calculating the energy consumption constant for grinding copper ores in ball mills. The authors obtained positive results for laboratory experiments with mills of various diameters, especially in the case of wet grinding. Multiple factors were taken into account that could affect the energy consumption of grinding - the diameters of the mills and balls, the rotation speed of the mills, the presence and design of lifters, etc. Modern methods of planning and processing experimental data were used.

Negative side: it is advisable to use the values of the internal diameter of the mills in the calculations.

The working area of the A_mill mill can be neglected since it is not comparable to the Aballs' area, which is often exploited by using the mills' soft (rubbered) lining.

Figure 5 can be removed since it does not provide additional information

Figure 7 contains visual information about the movement of the feed in the mill, but it would be better to add at least the rotation speed of the mill to each option (the authors write that it can be calculated). It would be advisable to give the ratio of liquid to solid during wet grinding since this indicator can significantly affect the energy consumption of grinding.

It would be possible to pay more attention to the initial mixture of ores and give its chemical and phase composition, at least in terms of the main components.

The reviewer does not insist on the mandatory use of suggestions for improving the article and leaves them at the discretion of the authors

Author Response

Please see the attachment.

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Comments:

1. Ball milling is a promising technology also widely used in the powder material process for additive manufacturing, ceramic industries, and more. State the statement, "Ball mills are widely used in mineral processing to reduce size and liberate valuable minerals from ores," in more detail.

2. "This study introduces the concept of a scaling constant that aims to replicate energy 55 transfer to ore during milling across different scales."-Is it a novel concept? If so, the words 'novel concept' would be more catchy instead of the word 'concept'.

3. In "Figure 2. Forces Acting on the Ball During Centrifuging at the Highest Point Inside the Mill," it is mentioned that "Fcf is greater than or nearly equal to Fg." Hence, the magnitude of Fg depends on the energy loss due to the impact of the balls with the mill's casing body materials. If the inside of the mill casing is clad with high-quality rubber (like a car tyre), what kind of changes may occur in ball milling efficiency and performance?

4. "Results and Discussion" and "Conclusion" should be clearly separated sections. The conclusion should be concise and presented in a point-wise format.

Author Response

Please see the attachment.

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Round 2

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

ok