USE OF ION EXCHANGE RESIN FOR PROCESS WATER TREATMENT

摘要

In flotation plants, water from tailing is generally recirculated with some fresh water as make up water. Water chemistry is influenced by the type of minerals in ore, reagent scheme and environmental conditions. Reducing concentration of some of the ions, which adversely affect flotation performance and operation, is usually more beneficial for flotation performance than complete cleaning. In this paper, use of ion exchange resins as an economical and practical method for decreasing concentrations of problematic anions in the process water was investigated. The adsorption tests with synthetic plant water samples were performed using a laboratory scale column filled with anionic resin. The results showed that surface modification of the resin from Cr to OH form was essential. Following adsorption stage, regeneration of the resins using an alkaline solution was investigated for multiple use of resins for water treatment. A strong base type ion exchange resin was found very effective for decreasing concentration of anions, particularly sulphates and thiosulphates. It was concluded that partial cleaning of process water can be done effectively for water treatment in flotation plants.