OPTIMIZATION AND CONVERSION OF FLOTATION REAGENTS TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE CHEMICALS SOLUTIONS

摘要

The mining industry is facing the challenge of optimizing its processes at a time when natural resources such as water and energy have limited availability and the ore bodies are getting more complex. In this scenario, new technologies need to be developed to enable truly sustainable solutions; considering the social, environmental and economical aspects. To achieve this goal, mineral processing, especially the flotation processes, are evolving into new developments on the mechanical, operational and chemical aspects. Typically the mechanical and operational aspects are limited by physical constraints and subject to significant capital investments; however by optimizing the chemical components, greater benefits can be achieved with very little or no investment. Cytec has developed new chemistries such as the MAXGOLDTM, through the FLOTATION MATRIX 100TM process, that can replace aged chemistries like xanthates while delivering better metallurgical performance in the flotation of precious and base metals, in addition to having a more environmentally friendly profile. An overview will be given using examples to highlight industrial scale the application of FLOTATION MATRIX 100TM process and the new reagents.