The Influences of the Air on the Floatability of Minerals

The Influences of the Air on the Floatability of Minerals

Besides oxygen, nitrogen and inert gases, the air also contains carbonic acid gas and water vapor, these air compositions have a certain effect on the ore flotation of flotation machine, and the specific performance are showed in the following three aspects:

1. Minerals show a fresh surface after being crushed, when the fresh surface meet water, it will happen hydration, manifested as hydrophilic. But when the gas adsorption to mineral surfaces, it can weaken the hydration, resulting in preliminary hydrophobic of fresh surface.

2. Air is a mixture of gases. The different gases has different effects on mineral surface, oxygen has larger effect on the mineral surface among them.

3. Oxygen has a certain influence on the preliminary hydrophobic of sulfide ore. But if it last too long, it will cause the mineral surface chang into hydrophilic. But when gas adsorption condition is appropriate, it will cause the hydrophobic of mineral surface, even without adding flotation agent, it can carry on flotating.