Molybdenite Flotation Process and Main Flotation Equipment
Shandong Xinhai Mining Technology & Equipment Inc.
Xinhai provides ore processing plant and full set equipment: Ball mill, Hydrocyclone, Flotation, Washing plant, CIP, CIL
Molybdenum has high melting point, boiling point, hardness and density, so it is a good conductor of electricity and heat. It is often used in the production of alloy additives, stainless steel, tool steel, temperature-resistant steel, etc. According to the excellent natural floatability of molybdenite, flotation method can be used for treatment . With the continuous development of mineral processing technology, the production scale of the processing plant continues to expand, which promotes the continuous development of flotation technology and equipment. The following will introduce you to the flotation process of molybdenum ore and main flotation equipment.
Non-polar hydrocarbon oils such as kerosene and diesel are usually used as collectors during molybdenite flotation , and pine alcohol oil is used as a foaming agent for flotation. If only a foaming agent is added during flotation, the concentrate can also be flotated.
Generally, molybdenite raw ore is crushed and ground to a suitable particle size, and qualified molybdenum concentrate can be obtained through rough processing and several beneficiations. However, molybdenite is soft and easily adheres to the surface of gangue mineral particles during the grinding process , easily causing over-crushing. In addition, due to the good natural floatability of molybdenite, even if the particle size reaches 0.6mm, as long as 1% of the molybdenite is exposed on the surface, it can float out smoothly. This will easily cause gangue minerals to enter the concentrate. Therefore, molybdenum ore beneficiation is often adopted the process of coarse grinding and rough processing. The coarse concentrate produced by rough processing will be returned to the grinding system for re-grinding to fully dissociate it, and then be refined, that is, using stage-grinding and stage-processing process.
According to the working principle, flotation equipment can be roughly divided into three categories: mechanical flotation equipment, flotation columns, and reactor/separator flotation equipment. Mechanical flotation equipment is equipped with a stirrer, while flotation columns are flotation equipment without mechanical agitators. This article will focus on the first two types of molybdenite flotation equipment.
Mechanical agitation flotation machines can be divided into two types according to different aeration methods: mechanical agitation self-aspirating type and mechanical agitation aeration type. The difference between these two flotation machines lies in the different inflation methods. The self-aspirating flotation machine sucks air into the pipeline through the negative pressure generated by the rotation of the impeller. The air enters the slurry through the pipeline, thereby completing the flotation inflation process . The inflatable flotation machine relies on an external fan to inject air for flotation. Compared with the gas-filled flotation machine, the disadvantage of the self-aspirating flotation machine is that the aeration volume is insufficient and the flotation efficiency is lower.
The basic structure of a flotation column is roughly a cylinder at the top and a cone at the bottom. An inflator is installed at the connection between the cone and the column. The slurry is fed from the upper part, and the air enters the inflator through the annular air chamber and the inflation duct. The bubbles entering the slurry from the inflator spread evenly along the entire section of the cylinder, and slowly rise through the downward flowing slurry. During this convection process, particles and bubbles collide and come into contact, allowing bubbles to selectively adhere to particles. The particle-carrying bubbles rise to the liquid surface and gather to form a foam layer, which overflows or is scraped out to obtain the hydrophobic product. The hydrophilic particles and slurry are discharged from the bottom of the column together.
领英推荐
The characteristics of the flotation column separation process are:
① Since the air is supplied by an external compressor and passes through the aerator, it can ensure that a sufficient amount of air enters the slurry and the bubbles can be dispersed evenly.
② The operation control of the flotation column is achieved by regulating the air volume, so the air volume has a great influence on the work of the flotation column.
③The aerator is a key component of the flotation column , which directly affects the amount of aeration, the degree of bubble dispersion and the working efficiency of the flotation column.
Compared with traditional flotation machines, flotation columns have the following advantages:
① The foam layer thickness, bubble size, and bubble number are easy to control and the flotation process is simple.
② In general, the molybdenum processing stage requires 8-12 times with a flotation machine, but only about 3 times with a flotation column;
③ The environment in the flotation column is good for the dynamic collision between bubbles and mineral particles and the static separation of bubble particle combinations, which is conducive to the separation of fine-grained or micro-grained molybdenum ore.
④ The flotation column is easy to realize automatic control, so it is more suitable for the beneficiation of molybdenum ore .
At present, the flotation equipment in molybdenum ore concentrators is still mainly mechanical flotation agitation machine . In the roughing and scavenging parts, the inflatable mechanical agitation flotation machine is mainly used, and in the processing part, the self-aspirating mechanical agitation flotation machine is mainly adopted. Some large mineral processing plants have begun to successfully apply flotation columns in industrial production and have achieved good technical and economic indicators. The flotation column is more suitable for use in the processing part, which can effectively improve the grade of molybdenum concentrate and the mineral ore recovery rate.