Experimental Study And Mechanism Discussion On Flotation Separation Of Smithsonite And Calcite

Smithsonite is one of the main zinc oxide minerals,and carbonate minerals such as calcite are common gangue minerals.The two minerals are similar in nature,so it is difficult to conduct flotation separation.For this reason,this paper studies the flotation separation of smithsonite and calcite,and studies the basic flotation behavior of smithsonite and calcite by means of single mineral flotation test,artificial mixed flotation test,solution chemistry calculation,zeta potential test,infrared spectrum test and adsorption measurement,etc.Effects of inhibitors and metal ions on flotation behavior of smithsonite and calcite:Flotation behavior mechanism of smithsonite and calcite.It has important guiding significance and academic value for the development of zinc oxide mineral flotation mechanism and new technology.The single mineral test shows that when sodium oleate is used as collector,the flotation range of smithsonite is 6.5⁸.5,calcite is better in the whole ph range of the test,and it is better in alkaline condition.Under certain conditions,sodium hexametaphosphate,sodium humate and carboxymethyl cellulose can make smithsonite and calcite appear larger floatability difference.The metal ions Ca²⁺,Mg²⁺,Zn²⁺slightly activated smithsonite in neutral condition,and strongly inhibited smithsonite at ph 8.5.the inhibition order was Ca²⁺>Mg²⁺>Zn²⁺,and Zn²⁺activated smithsonite under strong alkaline condition.Ca²⁺had little effect on calcite,Mg²⁺inhibited calcite and Zn²⁺activated calcite.Under neutral conditions,a certain amount of sodium humate can make the flotation recovery of smithsonite and calcite greatly different after the action of Ca²⁺and Mg²⁺.A certain amount of carboxymethyl cellulose can make the flotation recovery rate of smithsonite and calcite different after Zn²⁺treatment,which is beneficial to separation.The artificial mixed ore experiment shows that the method of using combined inhibitor is better than that of using sodium humate as a single inhibitor.When sodium humate and carboxymethyl cellulose?10mg/L+3mg/L?were used as combined inhibitorsflotation separation was realized more effectively.The reason why sodium oleate has good collecting effect on smithsonite and calcite is that sodium oleate has chemical adsorption on the surface of smithsonite and calcite.The reason why sodium humate strongly inhibits calcite and has little effect on smithsonite is that sodium humate chemisorbs on calcite surface but not on smithsonite surface.The activation or inhibition of flotation of smithsonite and calcite by Ca²⁺,Mg²⁺,Zn²⁺is related to the dominant components of metal ions in the solution equilibrium system,the adsorption mode of metal ions on the surface of smithsonite and calcite,and the adsorption amount of metal ions on the surface of smithsonite and calcite.