Study of gold ore processing by flotation methods

Abstract

The article deals with the studies of gold-bearing ore benefication by flotation methods. The object of the study is a low-sulfide gold-quartz type of ores with the following petrographic composition: quartz – 90 %, quartz-chlorite schists – 10 %. The ore from this deposit consists of the weathering crust rocks including iron-mica rocks with veins and spots of granoblastic quartz. The purpose of the research is to develop an optimal flotation regime for obtaining sulfide gold-bearing concentrate. The influence of ore size, reagent mode, flotation redistribution structure, and flotation time on operations was recorded during the experiment. The paper presents the results of studying the chemical composition of the ore by the method of silicate and optical emission analysis. The flotation process used butyl potassium xanthate as a collector and a combination of pine essential oils as a foaming agent. The Hancock concentration efficiency criterion was determined based on a series of experiments. The following technological indicators of ore processing were identified: gravity concentrate with the gold grade of 1165 g/t with the yield of 0.3 % and the recovery of 73.74 %; flotation concentrate (after purification II) with the gold grade of 68.9 g/t with the yield of 1.52 % and a recovery of 22.05 %. Its silver content was 15.9 g/t. The total gold recovery was 95.79 %, with the yield of 1.82 % and the gold grade of 249.9 g/t. The gold grade in the flotation tailings was 0.19 g/t.