Z. Aktas et Et. Woodburn, THE EFFECT OF NONIONIC REAGENT ADSORPTION AND FLOTATION PERFORMANCE OF 2 LOW-RANK BRITISH COALS, Powder technology, 83(2), 1995, pp. 149-158
In the froth flotation of ultra-fine particles, the recovery and purit
y of the final product obtained depend largely on the froth structure,
which in turn is affected by reagent adsorption on the solids. In thi
s study, ultra-fine particles (5 mu m size fractions) of two low rank
British coals were used in the flotation tests. The tests were carried
out using only one of two different non-ionic reagents; diacetone alc
ohol and 2-ethyl hexanol. The froth structure can be changed significa
ntly by addition of reagent. It was observed that when the froth struc
ture changes from a spherical to a polyhedral structure that the flota
tion performance changes significantly. Previous measurements of the i
nternal pore distributions showed marked differences between the Rawdo
n and Bickershaw coals. Also the flotation performance of each coal di
ffered significantly according to the reagent used. It is postulated t
hat the differing behaviour of the coals can be attributed to the frac
tional amount of the total reagent adsorbed on the interior pore surfa
ces.