Process mineralogy approach to optimize curing-leaching in vanadiumbearing stone coal processing plants

The purpose of this study is to apply process mineralogy as a practical tool to further understand and analyze the reasons for low leaching rates in the curing-leaching process of vanadium-bearing stone coal and to find a solution or improvement to optimize the leaching index.Using vanadium-bearing stone coal with the V2O5 mass fraction of 0.88%as the research object,the effects of particle size,mineral composition,and sulfuric acid curing on the feed,intermediate,and final products of curing-leaching were analyzed.The main vanadium-bearing minerals in the feed samples included sericite/illite,montmorillonite,kaolinite,limonite,and schreyerite.Through the penetration depth analysis of sulfuric acid,the reason for the high vanadium content in the coarse leaching residue(0.205%V2O5)was found,mainly due to the poor curing effect and incomplete washing after screening.Therefore,thorough washing after sieving and further optimizing the curing process are necessary.The vanadium content of the fine leaching residue(0.078%)was low and the curing-leaching effect was good.However,the vanadium content in the thickened residue(0.296%)exceeded that in the fine leaching residue,which was attributed to the neutralization reaction in the#1 thickener.To solve this problem,the neutralization and thickening processes should be performed in separate equipment.The analysis and detection of key products is helpful for identifying problems and improving the curing-leaching circuit process.

NEW PROGRESS IN MINERAL PROCESSING——REPORT ON FIRST INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON MODERN PROCESS MINERALOGY AND MINERAL PROCESSING

The first International Conference on Modern Process Mineralogy and Mineral Processing, organized by the Nonferrous Metals Society of China and hosted by Beijing General Research Institute of Mining and Metallurgy,was held on September 22-25,1992,in Beijing,China.About 350 scholars and experts from 25 countries and regions showed up at the conference and 130 papers were presented,among them 98 papers are of mineral processing.Some of the papers given in mineral processing are summed up as follows.

Study on washability of microcrystal graphite using float-sink tests

This article presented an experimental research on washability of microcrystal graphite using float-sink tests.Chemical and X-ray analyses showed that graphite,semi-graphite,meta-anthracite,and anthracite existed together in this microcrystal graphite sample;and the intergrowth relationship between microcrystal graphite and gangues was very complicated based on optical mineralogy research.The results of float-sink tests revealed that:for the-25+0.5 mm size fraction,about 68%(by weight)of microcrystal graphite was obtained at the density of 2.0 g/cm^3.and the float product met the standard of commercial grade W65;for the-0.5 mm size fraction,58%(by weight)of microcrystal graphite was floated at the density of 2.0 g/cm^3,which met the standard of commercial grade W70.It can be concluded that microcrystal graphite may be upgraded by dense media separation(DMS)providing a float product using as the raw materials of casting or refractories.

Biooxidation-thiosulfate leaching of refractory gold concentrate

A process of biooxidation followed by thiosulfate leaching of gold from refractory gold concentrate was investigated.Mineralogical studies on the concentrate showed that very fine gold grains(<10μm)were encapsulated in pyrite and arsenopyrite,while the proportion of monomer gold was only 21%.The gold-bearing sample was identified as a high-sulfur fine-sized wrapped-type refractory gold concentrate.The gold leaching efficiency obtained by direct cyanidation was only 59.86%.After biooxidation pretreatment,the sulfide minerals were almost completely decomposed,92 wt%of the mineral particles of the biooxidation residue were decreased to<38μm,and the proportion of monomer gold in the biooxidation residue was over 86%.Meanwhile,the gold content in the biooxidation residue was enriched to 55.60 g/t,and the S,Fe,and As contents were reduced to approximately 19.8 wt%,6.97 wt%,and 0.13 wt%,respectively.Ammoniacal thiosulfate was used for gold extraction from the biooxidation residue of the refractory gold concentrate.The results showed that the optimal reagent conditions were 0.18 M thiosulfate,0.02 M copper(II),1.0 M ammonia,and 0.24 M sulfite.Under these conditions,a maximum gold leaching efficiency of 85.05%was obtained.