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Iron Oxide Ore Mineralogy and Its Plant Flotation Circuits Nodal Analysis Simulation and Comparison

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Abstract

Mining operations usually provide ore of varying characteristics. At the Donganshan Sintering Plant, the ore is a low-grade, complex, hard-to-separate carbonate containing iron ore, and a two-step flotation circuit was previously developed to overcome the negative impact of the carbonates on the reverse flotation process. However, with the further expansion in the mining operations, it was difficult to maintain a highly efficient flotation process. Thus, the mineral liberation analyzer (MLA) was utilized to conduct an in-depth process mineralogy investigation. MLA showed that the main useful minerals in this ore are magnetite/hematite of 45% total iron, and the main gangue mineral is quartz of 29.97%, followed by 2.55% chlorite and 1.48% ankerite with about 0.03% siderite. Accordingly, flotation circuit modification was mandatory by eliminating the direct flotation process used prior to reverse flotation. Therefore, two-step and reverse flotation circuits were balanced using nodal simulation, and the two circuits produced 48.91% and 49.45% yield, 65.03% and 65.22% total iron grade, and 70.96% and 72.08% total iron recovery, respectively. Thus, reverse flotation is comparable with two-step flotation by 0.54%, 0.19%, and 1.12% higher yield, grade, and recovery, respectively. In addition, the process flow sheet was not only simplified but it also enhanced the performance with reduced reagent consumption.

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The datasets generated and/or analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to institutional roles and confidential conditions but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Mining Engineering, University of Science and Technology Liaoning, Anshan, 114051, Liaoning, China

    Ying Hou

  2. School of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo, 255049, Shandong, China

    Ahmed Sobhy

  3. Minerals Technology, Central Metallurgical Research and Development Institute, Helwan, Cairo, 11421, Egypt

    Ahmed Sobhy

  4. Faculty of science, Zagazig University, Zagazig, 44519, Egypt

    Samah Abdel Aziz

Authors
  1. Ying Hou
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  2. Ahmed Sobhy
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  3. Samah Abdel Aziz
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Correspondence to Ahmed Sobhy.

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Hou, Y., Sobhy, A. & Abdel Aziz, S. Iron Oxide Ore Mineralogy and Its Plant Flotation Circuits Nodal Analysis Simulation and Comparison. JOM 75, 4771–4781 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-023-06122-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-023-06122-9

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