Beneficiation of fluorspar by column flotation

Abstract

The amenability of column flotation for the beneficiation of fluorspar wets investigated, and the overall performance of the column flotation was compared to the performance of the existing conventional flotation cells at the plant. It was established that improved grades and recoveries could be obtained by adopting column technology. Acidspar concentrates assaying 97% CaF2, suitable for HF manufacturing, can be produced by adopting two-stage column cleaning in place of multistage cleaning by conventional cells. Similarly, metspar concentrates assaying 90% CaF2, suitable for metallurgical applications, can be achieved in a single-stage cleaning by column flotation. This is an improvement over what is now being achieved using the existing conventional rougher and three-stage cleaning cells in the plant. The number of stages, i.e.,four in the acidspar circuit and four in the metspar circuit, including rougher stages, can be eliminated by adopting a three-column configuration. Thus, the cost of production, the complexity of the circuit and the power consumption cart be effectively reduced with other attendant benefits.