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Study on Microwave Heating Order and Electromagnetic Characteristics of Copper and Gold Ores

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Abstract

Microwave heating and grinding experiments were conducted on samples of Hongtoushan copper ore and Dandong gold ore with different particle sizes and forms. The differences between the heating effects observed were then investigated using the electromagnetic characteristics of the bulk and powdered ore samples. The results show that the bulk copper ore experiences a high shielding effect as the microwaves are strongly reflected. The dielectric constant and reflection from a powdered sample are significantly weaker. Microwaves of frequency 2.45 GHz produce an insignificant heating and grinding effect in a cylindrical sample of Hongtoushan copper ore; the heating and grinding effect using a particulate sample is significantly better. In contrast, the heating and grinding effect obtained using a cylindrical sample of Dandong gold ore is better than that obtained using a particulate sample. The reasonable use of microwave heating to process ore is also discussed. Hongtoushan copper ore is suitable for microwave treatment after fine crushing. Dandong gold ore is suitable for microwave treatment before fine crushing. In the latter case, the application of microwaves could be moved forward to the mining process stage before carrying out the other procedures further downstream.

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Abbreviations

λ 0 :

Wavelength of the microwaves in free space

ε′ and ε″:

Real and imaginary parts of the complex relative permittivity

μ′ and μ″:

Real and imaginary parts of the complex relative permeability

D p :

Penetration depth

SET :

Shielding effect

SER, SEA, and SEM :

Reflection efficiency, absorption efficiency, and internal multiple reflection performance

T and R :

Transmission and reflection coefficients

A and A E :

Absorption coefficient and effective absorption coefficient

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Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41827806). The authors are also grateful to Mr. Wenyuan Gao, Mr. Tianyang Tong, Ms. Yongli Li, and Mr. Fude Zhao at Northeastern University, China, for their valuable academic discussions and generous assistance with the laboratory tests. The authors would also like to thank the journal editor and anonymous reviewers for their valuable suggestions.

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  1. Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education on Safe Mining of Deep Metal Mines, Northeastern University, Shenyang, 110819, China

    Feng Lin, Xia-Ting Feng, Gao-Ming Lu, Xiang-Xin Su, Shi-Ping Li & Jiu-yu Zhang

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  1. Feng Lin
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  2. Xia-Ting Feng
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  3. Gao-Ming Lu
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Correspondence to Xia-Ting Feng.

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Lin, F., Feng, XT., Lu, GM. et al. Study on Microwave Heating Order and Electromagnetic Characteristics of Copper and Gold Ores. Rock Mech Rock Eng 54, 2129–2143 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-021-02376-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-021-02376-4

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