Separation of enargite and tennantite from non-arsenic copper sulfide minerals by selective oxidation or dissolution

Selective oxidation of minerals was investigated as a means to separate by flotation the copper sulfide minerals of chalcocite, covellite and chalcopy rite from the arsenic copper sulfide minerals of enargite and tennantite in mixed mineral systems. It was found that a separation of these minerals co uld be feasible after selective oxidation of their surfaces in slightly aci dic pH conditions, or after oxidation and selective dissolution of the surf ace oxidation products with a complexant in basic pH conditions. (C) 2001 E lsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.