Innovative Gravity Separation for Sustainable Utilization of Mineral Resources

摘要

Recent technological breakthroughs have paved the way for commercializing an innovative gravity separation device, the packed column jig (PCJ). This paper presents three case studies of PCJ use for processing tailings/byproducts from the phosphate industry. Pilot testing of PCJ on a high-silica phosphate tailings recovered 87% of the P_2O_5 value with over 50% removal of silica. The world's phosphate industry generates over 150 million tons of phosphogypsum (PG) annually. The phosphate companies are under great pressure to find uses for PG quickly. Use of PG as construction materials could reduce PG accumulation dramatically. A combination of gravity separation using PCJ with flotation produced an upgraded PG acceptable for many construction uses, with soluble P reduced from 0.89% to 0.04% and whiteness increased from 39 to 87. Encouraging lab testing results prompted pilot testing evaluation of PCJ to remove dolomite from waste dolomitic phosphate pebbles in Florida, USA.