Comparison Between Performance of Fluorite Flotation Under Different Depressants Reagents in Two Pieces of Laboratory Equipment

Abstract

Fluorite is an important industrial mineral composed of calcium and fluorine (CaF2). This mineral is widely distributed through different deposits. However, in most cases, fluorite is tightly associated with gangue, such as calcite and quartz. In this paper, different depressants are tested in the flotation of fluorite in two different laboratory configurations—cell and column. Quebracho tree (QT) was tested as the main depressant in combination with white dextrin (WD), potato starch (PT), carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), and sodium hexametaphosphate (SHMP). The optimum pulp pH of the flotation of fluorite was determined as approximately 9.5–10. The best results are obtained using a combination of quebracho and white dextrin as depressants, reaching 74% of fluorite grade for modified column flotation and 70.5% for cell flotation. Additionally, the metallurgical recovery obtained higher values when the flotation was carried out in the modified column and using the same combination of depressant agents—75% for modified column flotation and 60% for flotation cell.

Investigating the Mechanism of Diethylenetriamine Pentamethylene Phosphonic Acid as a Depressant for Calcite Flotation of Fluorite

“…It has been applied in diverse ways in different industries, including chemical, metallurgy, glass/ceramics, and construction. However, natural deposits of fluorite often contain gangue minerals, such as barite (BaSO 4 ), calcite (CaCO 3 ), and quartz (SiO 2 ) . Among these, calcite is the primary gangue mineral associated with fluorite .…”

“…Its remarkable performance in fluorite flotation is notable. 2,4 In the foam flotation process, the addition of surfactants, such as collectors and inhibitors, is necessary. These surfactants serve to induce or inhibit the hydrophobicity of particles and facilitate the formation of stable foams.…”

“…Foam flotation, a physicochemical technique that employs mechanical agitation, has shown fluorite to be highly effective in selectively separating complex minerals based on their surface characteristics. Its remarkable performance in fluorite flotation is notable. , …”

“…In the foam flotation process, the addition of surfactants, such as collectors and inhibitors, is necessary. These surfactants serve to induce or inhibit the hydrophobicity of particles and facilitate the formation of stable foams . Sodium oleate (NaOl) is a frequently used fatty acid as it possesses excellent harvesting capabilities and is readily available. , However, sodium oleate is not selective for fluorite and calcite.…”

Investigation on the Beneficiation of Fluorite-ore using a mixture of Oleic acid and Palmitic acid via Froth Flotation

“…It is used as a mother compound in the production of hydrofluoric acid, with further industrial applications. Such applications drive the interest towards the purification methods of fluorite because it is found as an ore in nature and co-exists with gangue materials, such as calcite (CaCO 3 ), barite (BaSO 4 ), and quartz (SiO 2 ) [1]. Several beneficiation techniques are used to enrich the purity of fluorite, including gravity separators, magnetic and electrostatic separators, optical sorters, and flotation devices [2].…”