Herein, alumina foams were prepared from particle-stabilized foams, fabricated by direct foaming methods, that varied according to the concentration of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). To confirm the formation mechanism of pore structures in alumina ceramic foams with varying SDS concentrations, the adsorption density, contact angle, ζ-potential, and surface tension of the alumina particles dispersed in SDS were analyzed. Additionally, model analysis was performed to confirm the interaction between alumina and air bubbles by applying the extended Derjaguin–Landau–Verwey–Overbeek model. The attachment of alumina particles to bubble surfaces at different SDS concentrations affected the pore structure of the ceramic foams; this confirmed that the attachment was significantly affected by the electrostatic interaction energy rather than hydrophobic interaction. Therefore, the pore size and connectivity of alumina foams could be controlled by varying the electrostatic interaction energy between alumina particles and air bubbles, which is determined by the SDS concentration.

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The aim of this study is to diagnose and optimize a closed multistage gold ore flotation circuit in an operational industrial plant. Linear circuit analysis (LCA), a partition-based model, and a mass balance model using flotation first-order kinetics are employed to diagnose the current process. The result shows that the current circuit operates with high recovery but the gold grade of the final concentrate is low owing to the low buoyancy ratio. Hence, several alternative circuits with different streamlines and cell arrangements are proposed and simulated using LCA and a mass balance model. The result suggests that if the current process is changed to an alternative circuit in which the floated product stream of the rougher bank is changed, then the gold grade of the concentrate can be improved by 128%. Finally, the current circuit is optimized by changing it to an alternative circuit. This study provides a methodology for adapting the simulation of optimization for the flotation circuit of an industrial plant via LCA and mass balance simulation.