FLOTATION
With the RFC , lamella plates come into play – which , due to the Boycott effect , allow the bubbly mixture to segregate very efficiently , preventing any loss of air bubbles to underflow . This enhanced segregation capability allows the RFC to operate at a very high air fraction and control what is coming out of the overflow in terms of volumetric flow rate . With the application of wash water , you can displace any material that is coming up in the remaining water present in the bubbly mixture to maximise control of the grade and achieve a very high quality product coming out of the overflow .
Finally , a note on another FLS technoogy , CoarseAIR , which is a low turbulence , aerated fluidised bed separator combined with lamella plates based on the REFLUX™ Classifier . The technology is able to float larger particle sizes ( up to about 650 micron ) enabling an increase in target grind size and offering significant sustainability and process benefits . It provides excellent efficiency through improved resource utilisation – not only in terms of air , water and energy but of the mineral resource itself .
Christodoulou : “ CoarseAIR is developing quite well , we are doing a lot of lab scale testing at our Salt Lake City Technology Center and have seen very good performance in an industrial mineral application and the technology has a lot of potential in areas like phosphate and potash . Based on that we expect to start site trials at
pilot scale in early 2025 . We have also have run a couple of significant lab test programs in copper where we are seeing good recoveries of coarse particles that are available in the feed , achieving a low tailings grade with good upgrade ratios . So from a lab perspective we are seeing the results that we would have expected .”
He added on commercialisation that the design of the larger size CoarseAIR machines is virtually complete , so we are now talking to customers about a suitable site for pilot or small industrial scale testing in a partnership arrangement . The most likely initial and lowest risk application for CoarseAIR is in tailings retreatment to scavenge coarse particles lost during conventional flotation . “ But the biggest bang for your buck would be in a split flotation circuit where would have fines reporting to conventional flotation or RFC and the coarse particles reporting to CoarseAIR . Then you can start looking at more power savings in the grinding circuit plus quicker water recoveries and better performance in the finer circuit . Plus less overgrinding of material and therefore less ultrafines .”
But what differentiates it to other CPF options ? “ CoarseAIR is based on the REFLUX Classifer , which already has quite a large installed base in various commodities . The inclusion of the inclined channels or lamella plates gives a high tolerance to the presence of any fine material
that would ordinarily by hydraulically misplaced to the overflow . So we are seeing better upgrade ratios than other CPF options in the market .”
NovaCell reaches pilot stage with Capstone after Pinto Valley study
The NovaCell is a novel froth flotation machine , exclusively available from Australiaheadquartered Jord International , which was invented by Laureate Professor Graeme Jameson . Its value lies in that it recovers valuable particles over a wider particle size range . Thus , coarse and fine valuable particles that were previously lost to tailings using traditional technologies , such as mechanically agitated flotation cells , can now be recovered by one machine , potentially increasing the plant production .
Targeting coarse particle recovery in the flotation circuit also allows for greater flexibility in the comminution circuit , potentially reducing the specific energy consumption , the greenhouse gas ( GHG ) emissions per tonne of valuable component , and improving the dewatering rates in mineral processing circuits . To investigate these NovaCell benefits , samples from an existing copper operation were studied under laboratory conditions . In this case study , the response of plant feed and tailings material from Capstone Copper ' s Pinto Valley mine , located in Arizona , USA , to NovaCell was investigated . The plant throughput is roughly 58 000 t / d , with a
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