1. |
- Bahrami, Ataallah, et al.
(author)
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A geometallurgical study of flotation performance in supergene and hypogene zones of Sungun copper deposit
- 2021
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In: Mineral Processing and Extractive Metallurgy. - : Taylor & Francis. - 2572-6641 .- 2572-665X. ; 130:2, s. 126-135
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The feed of mineral processing plants, usually consist of different minerals from various geological zones, which show different behavior in separation processes. In this research, samples from supergene and hypogene zones were provided to investigate the flotation behavior of copper minerals. Flotation experiments were carried out in three phases of supergene sample, hypogene sample and mixed samples. Based on the results, the recovery rate of the mixed sample was 83.61%, which is 7.63% and 1.79% higher than the recovery of the samples of hypogene and supergene zones, respectively. The concentrate grade values obtained for blended, hypogene zone and supergene zone are 10.32%, 2.81% and 12.37%, respectively. The maximum values of flotation constant and infinite recovery are 0.956 (s−1) and 88.833% for the mixed sample. It was also concluded that the highest amount of k and infinitive recovery were related to supergene zone sulfide flotation which are 0.831 (s−1) and 84.33% respectively.
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2. |
- Abdollahi, Morteza, et al.
(author)
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A process mineralogy approach to optimize molybdenite flotation in copper : molybdenum processing plants
- 2020
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In: Minerals Engineering. - : Elsevier. - 0892-6875 .- 1872-9444. ; 157
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The Sungun copper-molybdenum operation in Iran uses a typical copper-molybdenum flowsheet to produce separate copper and molybdenum concentrates through flotation and regrinding of the rougher concentrates arising from the primary circuit. This site was used as a case study limited to the feed and products of the copper-molybdenum separation circuit, in which process mineralogy might improve the quality of the molybdenum concentrate thorough diagnostic analysis of key flowsheet streams. The undesirable presence of copper in the molybdenum concentrate was identified as a key focus for the investigation by process mineralogy, which has a history of successful process diagnosis. This is because it develops information on minerals, which is far more informative than chemical assays alone. Together with the assays, the mineralogical data inform the investigator of the type and quantity of minerals present, their state of liberation and textural associations, and metal recovery.A key finding was that the appearance of chalcopyrite in the molybdenum concentrate was due to the presence of a chalcopyrite-pyrite texture that avoided the chalcopyrite depression in the molybdenum circuit because of suitable pyrite flotation conditions. Recovery of liberated pyrite to this concentrate also diluted the molybdenum concentrate. The open-circuit format of the regrind circuit also contributed to the unnecessary production of ultrafine particles. This flaw expressed itself as ultrafine losses of molybdenite to the flotation tailings.
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3. |
- Bahrami, Ataallah, et al.
(author)
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Combined Effect of Operating Parameters on Separation Efficiency and Kinetics of Copper Flotation
- 2019
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In: Mining, metallurgy & exploration. - : Springer. - 2524-3462 .- 2524-3470. ; 36:2, s. 409-421
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This study aims to investigate the effects of operational variables on concentrate grade, recovery, separation efficiency, and kinetic parameters of the copper flotation process. For this purpose, the effects of the pulp solids content, collector and frother dosage, and preparation and concentrate collection time were studied using a Taguchi experimental design. The results of statistical analyses indicated that the concentrate collection time and pulp density were the most influential parameters on concentrate grade. Considering copper recovery, concentrate collection time, collector dosage, and pulp density were the most significant variables, in decreasing order of importance. Also, the separation efficiency was mostly influenced by the concentrate collection time. Furthermore, kinetic studies showed that the second-order rectangular distribution model perfectly matched the experimental flotation data. The highest kinetic constant of 0.0756 s−1 was obtained from the test, which was performed with 35% solids content and 40 and 20 g/t collector and frother, respectively. The highest predicted copper recovery of 99.57% was obtained from the test at 30% solids content, and the collector and frother dosages of 40 and 15 g/t, respectively.
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4. |
- Bahrami, Ataallah, et al.
(author)
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Isolation and removal of cyanide from tailing dams in gold processing plant using natural bitumen
- 2020
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In: Journal of Environmental Management. - : Elsevier. - 0301-4797 .- 1095-8630. ; 262
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Gilsonite as a natural occurrence of bitumen and due to the presence of carbon in its structure is a suitable adsorbent for a wide variety of pollutants. In this research, the adsorption of cyanide from the wastewater of gold processing plants using gilsonite were investigated. In this way, the effect of particle size of gilsonite, the weight and mixing time with solution, on the amount of cyanide adsorption have been studied. In addition, in one experiment, the effect of processed gilsonite on its adsorption ability was investigated. Based on the obtained results, the maximum adsorption of 61.64% was obtained in the size range of −1+0.5 and −2+1 mm of gilsonite. With increasing adsorbent weight and mixing time, the cyanide adsorption rate were increased. On the other hand, with the processing of the gilsonite sample, the amounts of adsorption were increased considerably. This study indicated that gilsonite can be used as an isolation and absorbent in the structure and floor of the tailing dumps of mineral processing plants.
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5. |
- Bahrami, Ataallah, et al.
(author)
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Process mineralogy as a key factor affecting the flotation kinetics of copper sulfide minerals
- 2019
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In: International Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials. - : Springer. - 1674-4799 .- 1869-103X. ; 26:4, s. 430-439
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The aim of this study is to apply process mineralogy as a practical tool for further understanding and predicting the flotation kinetics of the copper sulfide minerals. The minerals’ composition and association, grain distribution, and liberation within the ore samples were analyzed in the feed, concentrate, and the tailings of the flotation processes with two pulp densities of 25wt% and 30wt%. The major copper-bearing minerals identified by microscopic analysis of the concentrate samples included chalcopyrite (56.2wt%), chalcocite (29.1wt%), covellite (6.4wt%), and bornite (4.7wt%). Pyrite was the main sulfide gangue mineral (3.6wt%) in the concentrates. A 95% degree of liberation with d80 > 80 µm was obtained for chalcopyrite as the main copper mineral in the ore sample. The recovery rate and the grade in the concentrates were enhanced with increasing chalcopyrite particle size. Chalcopyrite particles with a d80 of approximately 100 µm were recovered at the early stages of the flotation process. The kinetic studies showed that the kinetic second-order rectangular distribution model perfectly fit the flotation test data. Characterization of the kinetic parameters indicated that the optimum granulation distribution range for achieving a maximum flotation rate for chalcopyrite particles was between the sizes 50 and 55 µm.
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6. |
- Bahrami, Ataallah, et al.
(author)
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The effect of grinding circuit efficiency on the grade and recovery of copper and molybdenum concentrates
- 2022
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In: Energy Sources, Part A. - : Taylor & Francis Group. - 1556-7036 .- 1556-7230. ; 44:3, s. 8121-8134
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The efficiency of grinding and flotation process in copper-molybdenum processing circuit, largely affected by performance of thickeners and hydrocyclones devices. The goal of this paper is to investigate the effect of the rate-limiting factors on the performance of these devices and consequently on grinding and separation efficiency of the molybdenum processing circuit. So, a full process mineralogical study have been carried out on outputs of thickeners and hydrocyclone of the molybdenite flotation circuit. According to the results, coarse-grained fractions (>50 μm) of the planar molybdenite will not necessarily be recovered by thickener and hydrocyclones. This is especially true for hydrocyclones when the inlet-load rate is high, i.e., the erroneous discharge of planar molybdenite particles from the overflow of hydrocyclone, as well as their floatability in the thickener overflow, can be attributed to the effect of particle shape and size. This issue harms the grade and recovery of flotation due to the increase in the amount of circulating load (regrinding) and consequently the generation of fine particles (<10 μm) in the hydrocyclone-milling circuit. On the other hand, the almost spherical particles of copper minerals, as well as the nonplanar molybdenite fine-grained particles, are easily removed from the hydrocyclone underflow or settled in thickeners. The introduction of copper mineral particles into molybdenum concentrate and vice versa has reduced the quality of the produced concentrate and undesirable flotation performance.
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7. |
- Bahrami, Ataallah, et al.
(author)
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The Evaluation of Starch-Based Flocculant on the Thickener Operation in the Molybdenum Processing Plant and Competency of Molybdenite Flotation
- 2022
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In: Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration. - : Springer. - 2524-3462 .- 2524-3470. ; 39:3, s. 1255-1266
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The type and dosage of flocculants used in the middle thickener of the copper-molybdenum plant, in addition to adjusting the quality of recycled process water, is very effective on the floatability of molybdenite. In this study, the effect of starch-based flocculant (wheat starch) was investigated on the efficiency of middle thickener and molybdenite flotation, in the molybdenum processing plant. First, sampling from overflow and underflow of the middle thickener in Mo processing circuit (in industrial scale), in the presence and absence of starch, were collected. The polished sections of samples from the overflow and underflow of the thickener were studied in order to determine the effect of starch on particles settling with different shapes. Microscopic studies show that molybdenite plate-like coarse particles are transferred to the thickener overflow (process water) in the presence of starch flocculant, whereas molybdenite fine particles present in the underflow are often needle-shaped. In addition, in terms of grade distribution, the grade of molybdenum in the thickener overflow is higher than that of copper and iron. Then, after sedimentation tests (in laboratory scale) with different concentrations of flocculant, flotation tests were performed on test samples. According to the results from laboratory studies, increasing the dosage of starch from 0 to 1000 g/t increased the recovery of molybdenite flotation and reduced the access of copper minerals to molybdenite concentrate. In this case, molybdenum recovery (in lab tests) is increased by about 5% compared to the case of not using starch. While the increase in the recovery of molybdenum by adding starch to the middle thickener in the industrial scale is about 10%. In higher dosages of starch (2000 g/t), the trend is reversed (in the lab and industrial scale) and molybdenum recovery decreased sharply due to the decrease in contact angle and depression, whereas the amount of copper transferred to the molybdenum concentrate increased.
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8. |
- Kazemi, Fatemeh, et al.
(author)
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The interaction and synergic effect of particle size on flotation efficiency: A comparison study of recovery by size, and by liberation between lab and industrial scale data : [Sinergijski utjecaj djelovanja veličine zrna na učinkovitost flotacije: usporedba laboratorijskih i industrijskih podataka o iskorištenju korisne komponente u koncentratu ovisno o veličini zrna i raščinu (stupnju oslobođenja)]
- 2023
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In: Rudarsko-Geološko-Naftni Zbornik. - : Faculty of Mining, Geology and Petroleum Engineering, University of Zagreb. - 0353-4529 .- 1849-0409. ; 38:1, s. 1-12
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The interaction and synergic effect of particle size on flotation efficiency were investigated by a comparison study between laboratories (size-by-size flotation modes) and industrial scale operational data (whole mixed size fraction). For this purpose, sampling was done from the feed, concentrate, and tailing of the flotation rougher cells of the Sungun copper processing complex (located in the northwest of Iran). In the size-by-size flotation mode (lab scale), the sample was first subjected to different size fractions, and then flotation tests were performed for each fraction. On an industrial scale, the particle size distribution of feed, concentrate, and tailing of flotation of the rougher stage have been analyzed. According to the results, in the case of industrial flotation mode (whole mixed size fraction), the particles with d80=84 μm were more likely to reach the tailing of flotation, and the particles within the size range of +63-180 μm constituted the highest amount of concentrate particles. In lab flotation mode (size-by-size), the maximum recovery was in the size fraction of +40-60 μm. By comparing the two flotation modes of industrial (whole mixed size fraction) and lab (size-by-size), for fractions <45 μm, the industrial flotation recovery was approximately 40% greater than the lab flotation recovery. However, for fractions >125 μm, the recovery trend was reversed and the lab flotation recovery was greater than the industrial flotation recovery. Coarse particle flotation has significant economic and technological benefits. By improving the recovery of coarse particles during the flotation process, the amount of grinding requirements will be reduced and consequently, it will considerably decrease the amount of energy consumption.
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