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Advances in Physical Separation of Gold, Iron Ore and Rare...
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Advances in Physical Separation of Gold, Iron Ore and Rare Earth Minerals

A special issue of Minerals (ISSN 2075-163X). This special issue belongs to the section "Mineral Processing and Extractive Metallurgy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2024) | Viewed by 5231

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Ozan Kokkilic

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mining and Materials Engineering, McGill University, 3610 University, Montreal, QC H3A 0C5, Canada
Interests: physical separation; dry gravity separation; flotation; wastewater treatment; rare earth
Dr. Pengbo Chu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mining and Metallurgical Engineering, Mackay School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, University of Nevada, Reno, NV 89557, USA
Interests: mineral processing; critical minerals; carbonation in mineral processing; space mining; virtual reality in mineral processing education
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Firat Burat

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mineral Processing Engineering, Istanbul Technical University, Istanbul 34469, Turkey
Interests: gravity separation; flotation, waste management; rare earth
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues

Recently, the production of metals from both primary and secondary sources has dramatically increased due to the potential supply risk of strategic raw materials such as gold, iron, and rare earth elements. As is well known, physical separation has been one of the most important methods for separating different minerals based on their gravity, magnetic susceptibility, electrostatic conductivity difference, etc. Based on the liberation sizes and complex structure of target minerals, new research, applications, and control systems are required to focus on these conditions and provide a solution for the enrichment of minerals by physical methods.

In this regard, the challenges are not only about the aforementioned reasons but also include the usage of water, energy, and costs of the grinding conditions which need to be adjusted for obtaining suitable particle sizes and liberation. Thus, considering those factors, new researchers by means of theoretical to lab-scale and even plant-scale applications will provide solutions developed by the mineral processing community. 

The purpose of this Special Issue is to focus on the latest ideas, new methods, processes, and information in the production of gold, iron ore, and rare earth elements from a variety of sources using physical enrichment methods. The papers that discuss all the abovementioned challenges and offer solutions for the selective separation and comprehensive recovery of metals are invited for this Special Issue.

We are pleased to invite you to submit your work.

Dr. Ozan Kokkilic
Dr. Pengbo Chu
Dr. Firat Burat
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Minerals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • physical separation
  • mineral processing
  • gold
  • iron
  • rare earth elements
  • sustainable recovery of metals
  • impact of particle morphology (shape, roughness, and surface properties) on beneficiation
  • key challenges related to gravity, magnetic, and electrostatic separations

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 3505 KiB  
Article
Comparative Study on the Effect of Pyrophosphate and Tripolyphosphate on the Flotation Separation of Arsenopyrite and Muscovite
by Yunlou Qian, Mengyao Zhou, Yongde Zhang, Sayfidin Safarov and Zhen Wang
Minerals 2024, 14(8), 785; https://doi.org/10.3390/min14080785 - 31 Jul 2024
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Abstract
The aim of the study was to compare the effects and mechanism of tetrasodium pyrophosphate (TSPP) and sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP) as dispersants on the selective flotation of arsenopyrite from muscovite. The results of single-mineral flotation showed that the recovery of arsenopyrite was 81.4% [...] Read more.
The aim of the study was to compare the effects and mechanism of tetrasodium pyrophosphate (TSPP) and sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP) as dispersants on the selective flotation of arsenopyrite from muscovite. The results of single-mineral flotation showed that the recovery of arsenopyrite was 81.4% when no dispersant was added. The recovery of arsenopyrite slightly decreased with increasing dosage of TSPP. When the dosage of STPP was 6 × 10−5 mol/L, the recovery of arsenopyrite was only 28.6%. Neither of the dispersants had significant influence on the muscovite flotation (<10%). However, in a mixed-mineral system, the recovery of arsenopyrite dropped significantly, and then under the action of dispersants, its recovery back up. The RPM results showed that the dispersion effect of TSPP was superior to that of STPP. The electrokinetic potential showed that the potential change value of muscovite with TSPP was −17.37 mV, while that of muscovite with STPP was −8.33 mV (pH = 8). The adsorption of TSPP onto muscovite was stronger than that of STPP. FTIR and XPS analysis confirmed that dispersants exhibited chemical adsorption with the Al atoms on muscovite and that dispersant STPP exhibited stonger adsorption than TSPP on arsenopyrite, which was consistent with flotation experiments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Physical Separation of Gold, Iron Ore and Rare Earth Minerals)
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0 pages, 2822 KiB  
Article
Gravity Separation Tests of a Complex Rutile Ore
by Zhenxing Wang, Yongxing Zheng, Xiang Huang, Xiangding Wang, Jieli Peng and Zhe Dai
Minerals 2024, 14(1), 68; https://doi.org/10.3390/min14010068 - 5 Jan 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1402
Abstract
The complex rutile ore containing TiO2 and ZrO2 exhibited a high economical value. To effectively recover TiO2 and ZrO2 from the raw sample, a complete gravity separation process including a spiral chute and a shaking table was proposed. Chemical [...] Read more.
The complex rutile ore containing TiO2 and ZrO2 exhibited a high economical value. To effectively recover TiO2 and ZrO2 from the raw sample, a complete gravity separation process including a spiral chute and a shaking table was proposed. Chemical constituents, phase, liberation degree and size distribution were firstly characterized by XRF, chemical analyses, XRD, EPMA-EDS and screening to understand the mineralogy. Then, two stages of spiral chute separation tests were performed to treat the complex rutile ore. A rough zircon concentrate containing 33.18% ZrO2 was obtained after the first-stage spiral chute and a rough rutile concentrate containing 56.77% TiO2 was obtained after the second-stage spiral chute. To further improve the grade and recovery of ZrO2 and TiO2 in the rough products obtained by spiral chutes, shaking table tests were performed. A zircon concentrate containing 42.65% ZrO2 and a rutile concentrate containing 61.75% TiO2 were obtained. For the tailing of the first-stage spiral chute, a rutile product assaying 57.50% TiO2 was obtained, and the tailing was directly discarded as waste after the shaking table tests. Moreover, the distribution regularities of ZrO2 and TiO2 in the products were further revealed by XRD analyses. Finally, a closed-circuit beneficiation process was proposed to treat the complex rutile ore for achieving comprehensive and effective utilization. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Physical Separation of Gold, Iron Ore and Rare Earth Minerals)
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26 pages, 12212 KiB  
Article
Physical Separations for Rare-Earth Beneficiation of the Nechalacho Deposit
by Christopher Marion, Justin Paris, Tassos Grammatikopoulos, Ronghao Li, Ozan Kökkılıç, Ray Langlois, Neil A. Rowson and Kristian E. Waters
Minerals 2023, 13(12), 1521; https://doi.org/10.3390/min13121521 - 5 Dec 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1114
Abstract
The rare-earth elements (REEs) are strategic metals which are indispensable to the development of modern defence systems, electronic applications, and green technologies. The growing economic and strategic importance of these sectors, coupled with uncertainty in the global supply, has led to the development [...] Read more.
The rare-earth elements (REEs) are strategic metals which are indispensable to the development of modern defence systems, electronic applications, and green technologies. The growing economic and strategic importance of these sectors, coupled with uncertainty in the global supply, has led to the development of many new deposits around the world. Many of these deposits, such as the Nechalacho deposit, are complex and contain multiple rare-earth element-bearing minerals (REMs) for which there is limited processing knowledge. This study explores a physical-separations-based flowsheet to beneficiate the Nechalacho deposit, which employs a spiral concentrator to preconcentrate the ore at a relatively coarse particle size (d80 = 120 μm), before further size reduction (d100 = 53 μm) and separation using a Mozley laboratory shaking table and two stages (low- and high-intensity) of magnetic separation. QEMSCAN was used to understand the effectiveness of each stage of separation and provide recommendations to improve the process. Although optimisation would be required, the results demonstrate that the physical-separations-based flowsheet could be an effective method of beneficiation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Physical Separation of Gold, Iron Ore and Rare Earth Minerals)
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21 pages, 4793 KiB  
Article
Descriptive Process Mineralogy to Evaluate Physical Enrichment Potential of Malatya/Kuluncak Rare Earth Ore through MLA
by Burakhan Ersoy, Mehmet Umut Beşirli, Selim Topal, Belma Soydaş Sözer and Fırat Burat
Minerals 2023, 13(9), 1197; https://doi.org/10.3390/min13091197 - 12 Sep 2023
Viewed by 1397
Abstract
Rare earth elements (REE) are indispensable for industries such as magnetic, phosphorus, metal alloys, catalysts, ceramics, glass, polishing and defense systems due to their unique physical and chemical properties. Currently, China is the largest supplier in the world, accounting for production of more [...] Read more.
Rare earth elements (REE) are indispensable for industries such as magnetic, phosphorus, metal alloys, catalysts, ceramics, glass, polishing and defense systems due to their unique physical and chemical properties. Currently, China is the largest supplier in the world, accounting for production of more than 95% of the world’s rare earth oxides (REO). To reduce the influence of China on the REE market, some countries have started to develop their own national strategies for the production and use of REE-bearing resources. Within the scope of this study, particle size, chemical, MLA, XRD, and SEM-EDS analysis were performed for material characterization, and shaking table, centrifugal, and magnetic separations were carried out for the beneficiation of Malatya/Kuluncak rare earth ore. The XRD analysis indicated that the representative sample consisted of major minerals such as albite, calcite, montmorillonite, muscovite, titanite, kaolinite, clinochlore, and aegirine. Parisite, bastnaesite, Zr-REE-Silicate, Fe-REE-Oxide, and Ca-Ti-Nb-REE-Oxide were detected as REE-bearing minerals by MLA. The chemical analysis resulted in a ∑REO grade of 3628 g/t, and the ore consisted mostly of light REEs. According to the results of the gravity separation for the coarsest fraction, about 11.3% by weight of the total feed was concentrated as a heavy product with 6437 g/t ∑REO content. As a result of magnetic separation, magnetic products with 5561 g/t and 6013 g/t ∑REO were obtained as coarse and fine fractions, respectively. Finally, the characterization studies and enrichment results were correlated, and very important and meaningful indications about the behavior of REE-bearing minerals were obtained. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Physical Separation of Gold, Iron Ore and Rare Earth Minerals)
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