The phosphate ore beneficiation process is mainly based on flotation technology, and there are four types of commonly used beneficiation agents, namely collectors, foaming agents, regulators, and inhibitors. Here are the roles played by these four types of reagents in phosphate ore flotation, as well as the names of common reagents.
Action mechanism of collector: improve the surface hydrophobicity of minerals to be floated, more effectively and selectively only firmly adsorb the surface of specific target minerals, and firmly adhere to the foam surface, and float together with the bubbles to form mineralized foam products.
Phosphate ore flotation includes positive flotation and reverse flotation. Generally, fatty acid anionic collectors (such as OT-8, WHM-P1, etc.) are used for flotation of phosphate and carbonate minerals.
In reverse flotation, amine cationic collectors (such as ether amine, fatty amine, polyoxyethylene amine, etc.) are used to flotation silicate type gangue minerals. In addition, there are also some amphoteric collectors (such as α- Amino aromatic phosphonic acid, dodecyl-N-carboxyethyl-N-hydroxyethyl imidazoline, etc. are used for flotation of phosphorus ores.
Action mechanism of inhibitor: It is mainly adsorbed on the mineral surface to form a hydrophilic film, which can prevent or weaken the adsorption or action of non target minerals on collectors in foam, and enhance the hydrophilicity of mineral surface.
Foaming agent action mechanism: In foam flotation, bubbles are not only the interface of selective separation of various minerals, but also the carrier and transportation tool of hydrophobic particles. The role of foaming agent is to promote a large number of moderate and stable foam in the pulp, so that hydrophobic minerals can float smoothly.
There are usually no special requirements for foaming agents in phosphate ore beneficiation, similar to other mineral foaming agents, such as 2 # oil, 4 # oil, ether alcohol oil, etc.
Mechanism of action of regulator: A pH regulator used to adjust the acidity and alkalinity of mineral pulp. The pH regulator of mineral slurry mainly affects the surface electricity of minerals, the dissolution of lattice ions, and the dissociation of reagents to adjust the interaction between the collector and minerals.
The regulator in phosphate ore dressing agent can be divided into four kinds: activator, inhibitor, medium regulator, dispersant and flocculant. Carboxymethyl cellulose, citric acid, etc. are often used in the beneficiation process of phosphate ore to suppress dolomite and calcite in phosphate ore. Water glass, sodium silicate, etc. are commonly used to suppress silicate minerals in phosphate rock. Alkanolamide can be used as an activator for TS collection of colloidal phosphate ore and dolomite. Commonly used medium adjustment agents include lime, NaOH, etc.
The above are four types of beneficiation reagents commonly used in the flotation process of phosphate ore. The correct selection of reagents is related to the recovery rate, concentrate grade, and beneficiation indicators, which may seem insignificant but are actually crucial. Therefore, when selecting, it is necessary to refer to the results of phosphate ore beneficiation tests and make the correct choice.
