# Has Anyone Tried Froth Flotation?



## GoldHappy (Jan 9, 2014)

I've read most of the threads here on the forum concerning froth flotation, but can find very little specific information. I'd love to chat with anyone who's actually done it--the type of oils to use, the intensity of the air flow, the ratio of water to ore to oil, etc. Done a lot of research online, but there is conflicting info. Talked to a company exec at SN Flomin who said the same--much of it is trial and error. They sell the chemicals mostly to labs, and he recommended a lab to go visit and watch them run a sample (at the cost of hundreds of dollars of course), but they aren't within driving distance and aren't going to give any info over the phone or email.

Anyone willing to discuss their process and results? Thanks so much!


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## solarsmith (Jan 10, 2014)

yes Iv done some flotation test... it works ... i am scaling up now with a floatation column . it should produce a very high concentrate.
lets start at the begining... got a mill? ball? rod? can you get it so fine you dont feel much grit at all between 2 fingers?

step 2 condition and ph. condition the slury with copper sulphate and set the ph to what your ore will float best at. sulphide type ores will tend to make the ph run low... you will want to keep it under 9 over 7.
this is not a rule but a general guide. dont use lime the calcium will block some of what your trying to get. also add faty acid oils with a comercial reagent like pax. and many others.

step 3 stir with a paint mixer blade in a drum or tank at 1600 rpm adding air with a small shop vac at the blades. 
step 4 vacume or let the froth over flow to colect.


the concentrate should. even if you did it badly be 3 times the pgm content as what you started with.If you did it well it could be 200 times what you started with. You can stage or repetedly process your concentrate to get a better grade. but doing this will cost you on the recovery % side...
this is a basic set up and there are a hundred ways to adjust and refine to sute your ore... 
the gole is to get the gold to 20 oz or more per ton. so you can sell it as is or do your own direct smelt. (another topic)

dont even get the guys started with saying you want to try to acid leach your cons or your ore. floatation is being used at nearly all mettal mills today.
some are claming 99% recovery.. even have one in the boulder area clames 100% recovery.. good luck Bryan In Denver


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## GoldHappy (Jan 10, 2014)

Hey, thanks, Bryan! Sure appreciate the reply and tips. You mentioned getting the froth up with some type of oil--the guy at SN Flomin told us brake fluid works even better than Pine Oil...what frother are you using, and what are you using as a collector? He mentioned Xanthates, but it's hard to find it to purchase. Have you found anything else that works as a good collector after you get the froth going? He said you need both, or you won't get all the PGM's to rise and be able to capture them all.


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## GoldHappy (Jan 10, 2014)

Bryan, how much copper sulfate are you using and what percentage of water to ore? 

We have hammer mill and are grinding down to about 150 to 200 mesh. Our ore has some clay in it and we've been told we might need a clay suppressant like sodium silicate, have you used that? We're not sure where to find it, but we're going to do some research. 

What kind of fatty acid oils are you using? Are they readily available? We're also not familiar with Pax...is that a collector? Where can it be purchased?

Thanks so much for your help! Oh...and check your messages if you would.


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## GoldHappy (Jan 10, 2014)

Update... went to our local Veterinarian and purchased an 8 oz bottle of Omega 3 fatty acid oil. Got the ore frothing an added a couple drops of the fatty acid and it quits foaming. If it's added first, it coats the top surface and doesn't mix in with the water and ore (even using hot water instead of cool or room temp). Any ideas? Or is this the wrong fatty acid?


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## solarsmith (Jan 10, 2014)

as a test you can run your floatation cell at a ph of 10 or higher. then assay the concentrate.... if you find your gold is gone (not reporting to the concentrate) then it is most likely tied to the pyrite. this is not bad news because you now know to talor your chems and ph to recover the pyrite..
if this is the case you can do a counter float at the end of the process and the tails then becomes the concentrate. just by running at a high ph (depreses pyrite) google ( argo mill froth flotation) and read the artical about how much trouble it was for them to get the floatation system to work for them. and when it started to work they had no idea what it was that made the change happen. I beged a few lbs of pax from a denver lab.
talk about hard to find stuff.

if any on has a lead on floatation reagents there are more that a few of us that would like to know of it.. Bryan In denver


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## GoldHappy (Jan 11, 2014)

Solarsmith, so PAX is the only collector you've tried? Are you mixing it with the ore and water prior to frothing, or after getting your froth going?

What are you using for a frother?

You mentioned using copper sulfate but not how much/ratio?

Water to ore ratio?

Thanks!


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## Highlands Way (May 2, 2019)

Hi Guys. Nice post ! Going to try floatation as well. I live, and mine in the Cripple Creek, Victor gold district. I have Calaverite, and Sylvanite. And have been reading about using Kerosene as a collector, instead of Xanthate. And using Turpentine, or Eucalyptus oil as a frother. Have either of you used these ? And old timers up here, say a slightly acidic PH using dilute H2SO4 is recommended. And what about using Sodium Carbonate to control PH levels ? Any, and ALL advice is greatly appreciated !! And Brian in Denver, we're practically neighbors. Does this refiner in Denver who claims 100% recoveries floating sulfide's have a phone # ? Please, and Thanks !

Matthew


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