A simheuristic algorithm based on Simulated Annealing for the optimization of the production of a crushing circuit

Improving processes in industry is key to increasing production efficiency and reducing operating costs. This work proposes an algorithm based on Simulated Annealing to maximize the production of a crushing circuit in an iron ore plant. The proposed algorithm integrates a simulator of the plant's real process, allowing for a more accurate analysis of operational performance. In order to validate Simulated Annealing, six instances from the literature were used which reflect real operating scenarios in an iron ore plant. The results of the developed algorithm were compared to those of an Iterated Local Search algorithm from the literature proposed for the same problem. The Simulated Annealing algorithm was able to find all the best known solutions with less computational time and less variability. Therefore, these results show the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm in optimizing the crushing circuit.