Introduction to Mineral

Processing
Click to edit Master
•MIME-320
subtitle style
•Extraction of energy resources

•Winter 2013

Based on presentation of
“Introduction to mineral
processing” by Prof J. Finch

1
•
 Rock to Metal:
Extraction Metallurgy

Ore or
ROCK Mining Run of Mine
(ROM)

Extraction METAL

Manufacturin
g
2
•
 Mining

ORE BODY Mining ORE

WASTE ROCK

3
•
Extraction Metallurgy

Mineral
Processi
ng
Hydro- Pyro-
Metallur Metallur
gy gy

4
•
 Mineral Processing

Mineral
Processing VALUABLE
ORE MINERAL

GANGUE

5
•
 Some technical terms
Mineral processing takes place at the
mine site on surface
The mineral processing plant is called

a concentrator, or a mill
The valuable mineral product is the

concentrate
The gangue product is the tailings

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•
 Mineral Processing

Mineral
Ore or Processing CONCENTRATE
Run of Mine
(ROM)

TAILINGS

7
•
Stages

8
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 Size Reduction
or
Comminution
To
prepare ore for mineral
separation

By
reducing particle size to
free
valuable minerals from 9
•
 The need to size reduce

Gangu Valuabl
e e

Mineral

Minerals must first be freed or liberated

10
•
11
•
 Crushing
Divided into stages:

q Primary
q Secondary
q Tertiary- Few application

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 Primary Crushers

To crush ore from very big

size to less than around 10 cm
•
Large, robust machines
•
Principal types:
q Jaw crushers

q Gyratory crushers

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 Jaw
Crusher

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 Jaw
Crusher
•Two jaws, fixed and moving
•Cycle of

breakage/descent/discharge

•Feed opening width – gape

determines top feed size
•Discharge opening width –

set
determines product size
15
•
 Gyratory
Same Crusher
concept but
designed
to crush and
discharge
continuously

16
•
Gyratory Crusher

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 Secondary Crushers:

Crush product of primary crushers

They have lower capacity compared

to primary crusher
Principal types:
q cone crusher
q hammer mills

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Cone Crusher

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Cone crusher

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 The Set

Closed
set Open
Like Gyratory and
jaw crushers
set crusher
Like cone

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 How to control product size
To control the product size from
crushing, size classification is
required
Crushers and classifiers are combined

to form a circuit
Ore or Crusher Size Under-size
ROM Classification Product
Over-size

Circulating Load
• 22
 Size Classification
Process of separating particles into
two streams:
• Over-size particles
• Under-size particles
Main method in crushing circuit
• screening

23
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 Screening

Screens classify
particles based on
probability to pass
through holes of
given size in a
deck
2424
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Screening

25
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Screening

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27
•
 Grinding
Product of crushing is too
coarse for mineral separation,
and grinding is used for
further size reduction

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 Grinding
This additional size reduction
will produce particles fine
enough to liberate the
valuable mineral from the
gangue
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Breakage and liberation

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 A Particle Before Grinding
- Unliberated or Locked

breakage
planes
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Particle is Broken Along Planes

32
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Some Liberated (Free) Particles Produced

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 Particles Types
1) liberated mineral particles

2) locked
particles

3) liberated gangue particles

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 Relating Grind Size to Liberation
Question:
How can we measure the liberation size?

Solution:
By doing mineralography study by some relevant
microscope

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 Particles and Grains
Particl Grain
e s

Microscopic image of the thin

section of rock

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 Observation
Liberation increases as the
particle size is reduced relative
to the grain size
Grain size is the
size of grain of the
valuable mineral

Example:
The grain size of white
mineral is 60 micron
37
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 Grinding
Grinding system: wet, dry
Wet grinding requires

addition of water
Pulp or slurry = water + ore
The main grinding machine is

called a Tumbling Mill

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Tumbling Mill

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 Grinding Media (Charge)
Type

The Tumbling Mill is named

after the grinding media
used:

40
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 Grinding Media (Charge)
Type
 Rod Mill
 Ball Mill
 Autogenous Mill (AG)

– no steel ball
 Semi Autogenous Mill

(SAG) - some steel

balls

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 Rod & Ball Mills
3-6m
2.5 cm 0.5 cm
2-4.5m

2-5.5m

0.5 cm 0.1 cm
2-5.5m

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Rod & Ball Mills

Grinding
Action

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 Rod & Ball Mills

Media Filling:
About 40%

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 Brekage Mechanism

Mechanism: Impact, Nipping and Friction

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Tumbling Motion

46
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 How to control product size
To control the product size from
crushing, size classification is
required
Crushers and classifiers are combined

to form a circuit
Crusher Mill Size Under-size
product Classification Product
Over-size

Circulating Load
• 47
 Size Classification
 Classification in grinding
is a wet process
 The common classifier is a
cyclone (or hydro-cyclone)
 Because of the tangential
feed, a cyclone generates
a centrifugal force that
separates the feed into
two streams
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Cyclone

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 Grinding
Circuits
Open & Closed Circuits:

50
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 Grinding
Circuits
Open & Closed: Rod & Ball Mills

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52
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53
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 Ideal separation

Ideally, the concentrate should contain

100%
54
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Actual separation

55
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Principle of separation

Separation exploits differences in mineral

properties, e.g.

mineral property technique

density gravity
magnetism magnetic
wet ability flotation

56
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Magnetic Separation
Fee The
d Drum
Magnet

Magnetic
Product

Non Magnetic 57
•
Gravity Separation-
Mechanism

58
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 Gravity Separation-
Jig
“Lights”

“Heavies”

Mechanism:
Water Pulsation/ stratification

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 Gravity Separation-
Jig
Jig- Mechanism:
mechanism Pulsation /stratification

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 Gravity Separation-
Heavy media separator

•the light particle floats

•the heavy particle sinks

•The density of liquid could be

increased by adding
Ferrosilicon
•The density of media (liquid)

should be between light and

heavy mineral
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 Gravity Separation-
Cone separator
•Mechanism: flowing film
•Due to lighter density, the lighter particles

would enter to splitter

62
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Gravity Separation-
Cone separator

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Gravity Separation-
Comparison

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 Froth flotation
Definition:

Separation of one type of

particle (mineral) from another by
attachment to bubbles

65
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 Froth flotation
Mixed Minerals

Air
Bubble Separated Minerals

66
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 Froth flotation

Air
Bubble

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 Froth flotation
Question:
Why do some particles remain
wetted (by water), while others
attach to a bubble?
The science of wetting will help answer this
question:
How surface atoms interact with water molecules

68
•
 Wetting
Hydrophilic
Hydrophobic
(water loving) (water hating)

Air
bubbl Water
e Contact

Mineral
miner
remains
al 69
•
 Example

Hydrophobic surface/ teflon Hydrophilic surface

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Simulation

71
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Froth

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 Wetting: Interactions
Surface No bond
O
O H C
H

M
+

Oxide mineral Graphite

hydrophilic hydrophobi
c
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•
 Wetting: Interactions
Sulphide minerals

Step 1- Reaction with oxygen

S
O
Cu + =

74
•
 Wetting: Interactions
Sulphide minerals

Step 2- Reaction with water

+ =

Sulphide minerals: weakly hydrophilic

75
•
 Wetting:
Making a mineral
hydrophobic
Collectors:
Chemical reagents that react
with a surface to convert it from
hydrophilic to hydrophobic

76
•
 Wetting: Collectors
General structure:

hydrocarbon
chain

reactive
head
group

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•
 Wetting: Collectors
An example:

hydrocarbon
chain

head
group
ethyl xanthate

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•
 Wetting:
Making a mineral
hydrophobic
Reaction (adsorption)

mineral
particle

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•
 Wetting:
Making a mineral
hydrophobic
For sulphide
minerals

80
•
Wetting: Making a mineral
hydrophobic
For sulphide
minerals The reaction
(adsorption)
partially coats the
surface with a
hydrocarbon
and the mineral
becomes
hydrophobic

81
•
 Froth flotation
• Flotation is not a chemical process
• Flotation separation is based on surface

properties of minerals

82
•
Inside a froth flotation cell

83
•
84
•
Motion of a particle in a flotation
cell

85
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 Froth flotation Cell Column Cell

Mechanical Cell
Conc.
Conc.
(Coal)
(Coal)
Feed
Feed
Tail.
(Ash)

Concentrate

Tail.
Tailing
Cell bank (Ash)
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87
•
 Dewatering-
Filteration mechanism

88
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 Dewatering-
belt filtration

89
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 Dewatering-
belt filtration

90
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 Dewatering-
Thickening mechanism

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Dewatering- Thickening

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 Recommended Textbook
Wills’ Mineral processing technology : a
•

n introduction to the practical aspects of ore

treatment and mineral recovery

McGill Library
TN500 W54 2006

93
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 Refferences
•Finch,J., Introduction to mineral processing, MIME-
200
•R.O.Burt, Gravity concentration technology, Elsevier,

1984
•N.L.Weiss, SME Mineral processing handbook,

SME,1985

94
•