Pyrite

Pyrite is the most widely distributed sulfide in the earth’s crust, often coexisting with other sulfides. Pyrite is the main mineral raw material for the extraction of sulfur and the production of sulfuric acid. With Au, Co, Ni, associated elements can be extracted.

The pyrite processing mostly in flotation, flowed by the gravity separation process, and gravity-flotation combination.

Gravity separation process
For ore with simple ore properties, coarser grain size or uneven grain size, a single gravity separation process can be used. General gravity separation equipment, such as pyrite jig, spiral chute, hydrocyclone, shaker tables, etc. can effectively recover pyrite. Simple process, low energy consumption.

Flotation process
Most pyrite resources in China contain alkaline gangue minerals, and the pH of the pulp generally needs to be adjusted to weakly acidic, which results in a large acid consumption during the flotation process, a large amount of collector, unfriendly environment, and severe equipment corrosion.

Gravity-flotation combined process
The process is suitable for pyrite with uneven grain size or friable brittleness. The combined gravity-flotation process is generally rough grinding and classification of raw ore. The separation is carried out by using suitable gravity separation equipment to obtain a part of pyrite concentrate.

Pyrite mining equipment includes cone crusher, jaw crusher, ball mill, magnetic separator, jig machine, shaking table, flotation machine, etc.

In nature, minerals containing copper and zinc are generally divided into copper-zinc-pyrite, copper-containing pyrite, and copper-sulfur ore. In addition to pyrite, the main metal minerals of copper-zinc ore include chalcopyrite, sphalerite, galena, chalcopyrite, etc. The main metal minerals of lump ore are lead-vanadium, copper-blue, limonite, magnetite, etc., their main gangue composition is quartz.

1. Priority flotation of copper and zinc-sulfur mixed flotation and separation

The practice has proved that the use of copper sulfate activation and butyl xanthate as the collector when preferentially flotation of copper can make the zinc-sulfur mixed ore contain 6.5% zinc and 40.29% sulfur, and the recovery rate of zinc and sulfur can reach more than 90% The separation and recovery effect is remarkable. Later, when lime can be used to adjust the pH value of the pulp for sulfur suppression and zinc separation, as the amount of lime increases, the separation effect of zinc and sulfur is getting better and better, and the recovery rates of zinc concentrate and sulfur concentrate are improved. When using zinc to separate zinc and sulfur, the zinc crude concentrate contains 29.28% zinc, the recovery rate reaches 98%, the sulfur concentrate contains 42.86% sulfur, and the recovery rate is 82%.

2. Priority flotation of copper, tailings zinc and sulfur

After the copper concentrate is preferentially selected, the copper tailings directly use lime to adjust the pH of the pulp to suppress sulfur, copper sulfate, and activate zinc minerals. When the amount of lime is greater than 3kg / t, the pulp is alkaline and the pH is greater than 12.2. Copper sulfate is 100g / t, when the butyl xanthate is 60g / t, sulfur can be well suppressed, and the zinc recovery rate is increased to 96%. In this way, the selected coarse zinc concentrate can be refined again two times to obtain zinc concentrate. And zinc tailings can use sulfuric acid or ferrous sulfate and then neutralize the pulp alkalinity slightly, adjust the pH to 11.9-12, copper sulfate 50g / t, and butyl xanthate 100g / t can choose sulfur content 43 % Sulfur concentrate, and the sulfur recovery rate reaches 95%.

3.Single copper selection

Single flotation copper is a kind of beneficiation production by adding zinc inhibitor to abandon metal zinc in raw ore. This method can reduce the grade of zinc in copper concentrate and reduce the production cost, but it also causes the loss of zinc metal in raw ore. As a result of wasting resources, this method is generally used to obtain only copper metal, simplifying the process and reducing costs. This method is not a good way to improve economic efficiency.