2496 XXXI International Mineral Processing Congress 2024 Proceedings/Washington, DC/Sep 29–Oct 3
Over the past decades, several galena depressants have
been developed, which could be divided into inorganic and
organic ones. The inorganic depressants have been applied
as galena depressants for decades and has been widely used
in industry until now,which include potassium dichro-
mate, Phosphorknox, sodium sulfide, sodium hydrosul-
fide and sulfur dioxide(Zhao et al,2018 Pearse et al,2005
Tanriverdi et al,2012).
However, although the traditional lead inhibitor has a
good lead inhibition effect, it is harmful to the environ-
ment and the human body. Such as potassium dichromate
are toxic,which poses a significant environmental contami-
nation even at low doses, has been limited due to its serious
environmental pollution(zhao et al., 2021). Furthermore,
the utilization of Nokes reagent, sodium hydrosulfide,
sodium sulfide and sulfur dioxide,which have high toxicity
and strong corrosion by themselves, the preparation and
addition of these depressants on-site is predominant, leads
to potential unpredictable issues, such as the toxic gases
of hydrogen sulfide and the harmful working conditions
because of the volatilization of toxic gases release(Peterson
et al., 1986). With increasingly stringent environmental
protection and safety regulations all over the world, efforts
have been made to develop alternative selective depressants
to replace these environmentally unfriendly chemicals(Xu
et al., 2022).
Organic inhibitors, characterized by flexible structures
and low toxicity, have gradually become one of the hottest
topics in recent years. Organic inhibitors commonly clas-
sified into two categories: macromolecular and small-mol-
ecule inhibitors. Macromolecular inhibitors are composed
of multiple hydrophilic and solid-affinity groups, including
natural and synthetic high molecular compounds. These
groups contain functional groups such as -OH, -COOH,
-NH2, and -SO3H, which exhibit strong hydrophilicity and
require lower dosages. Literatures Reported macromolecular
inhibitors include polysaccharides, sodium humate(Wang
et al., 2019 Liu et al., 2016), carboxymethyl cellulose,
starch, cyclodextrin(Qin et al., 2013 Dolivo Dobrovoskii
et al., 1998), polyacrylamide (Wang et al., 2013), polyacryl-
amide-allylthiourea(Zhang et al., 2020), N-thiourea-maleic
acid(Lu et al., 2022), and chrome iron lignosulfonate (Liu
et al., 2020). While Small-molecule inhibitors primar-
ily involve specific structures containing sulfur, nitrogen,
and multiple hydroxy carboxylic acid groups. They include
mercaptoacetic acid derivatives, 5-amino-1,3,4-thiadia-
zole-2-thiol, ASC, O,O-di(2,3-dihydroxypropyl) dithio-
phosphate, 2,3-dihydroxypropyl dithiocarbonate sodium
salt, polyhydroxy phosphonates, and L-cysteine((Lu et al.,
2017 Liu et al., 2020 Lu et al., 2021 Hu et al., 2021
Chen et al., 2005 Piao et al., 2013 Piao et al., 2014 Zhang
et al., 1998 Yin et al., 2019). Small-molecule inhibitors
have lower molecular weights and relatively simple struc-
tures, providing better selectivity.Researches has unveiled
that organic inhibitors achieve molybdenum-lead flotation
separation by chemically adsorbing onto the Pb sites on the
surface of molybdenite(Ma et al., 2016).Although, a lot of
efforts have been focused on the research of organic inhibi-
tors on the selective separation of molybdenite from other
sulfide ores, it is still a challenge to apply these compounds
on a commercial scale. Therefore, there is an urgent need to
develop new, efficient, and environmentally friendly lead
depressants.
This study focuses on Mercaptosuccinic Acid (MSA)
as a novel, environmentally friendly galena depressant,
providing insights into its mechanism and effectiveness in
Mo-Pb flotation separation.
EXPERIMENTAL
Materials
Minerals
Monomineralic specimens of galena and molybdenite,
sourced from Hubei Province, China, were utilized for
this research. Following initial coarse crushing, a meticu-
lous manual selection process was employed to ensure
high purity of the samples, confirmed via X-ray diffraction
(XRD) and multi-elemental analysis. The samples, display-
ing purities of 96.20% for galena and 93.84% for molyb-
denite, were then finely crushed and ground to achieve
a particle size range of –0.074 +0.038 mm, suitable for
experimental testing (See Figure 1 and Table 1 for XRD
results and chemical composition).
32 42 52 62 72 82 92 :2 2
Galena
Molybdenite
Two-Theta (deg)
Figure 1. Result of XRD test of molybdenite and galena
Intensity(Counts)
Over the past decades, several galena depressants have
been developed, which could be divided into inorganic and
organic ones. The inorganic depressants have been applied
as galena depressants for decades and has been widely used
in industry until now,which include potassium dichro-
mate, Phosphorknox, sodium sulfide, sodium hydrosul-
fide and sulfur dioxide(Zhao et al,2018 Pearse et al,2005
Tanriverdi et al,2012).
However, although the traditional lead inhibitor has a
good lead inhibition effect, it is harmful to the environ-
ment and the human body. Such as potassium dichromate
are toxic,which poses a significant environmental contami-
nation even at low doses, has been limited due to its serious
environmental pollution(zhao et al., 2021). Furthermore,
the utilization of Nokes reagent, sodium hydrosulfide,
sodium sulfide and sulfur dioxide,which have high toxicity
and strong corrosion by themselves, the preparation and
addition of these depressants on-site is predominant, leads
to potential unpredictable issues, such as the toxic gases
of hydrogen sulfide and the harmful working conditions
because of the volatilization of toxic gases release(Peterson
et al., 1986). With increasingly stringent environmental
protection and safety regulations all over the world, efforts
have been made to develop alternative selective depressants
to replace these environmentally unfriendly chemicals(Xu
et al., 2022).
Organic inhibitors, characterized by flexible structures
and low toxicity, have gradually become one of the hottest
topics in recent years. Organic inhibitors commonly clas-
sified into two categories: macromolecular and small-mol-
ecule inhibitors. Macromolecular inhibitors are composed
of multiple hydrophilic and solid-affinity groups, including
natural and synthetic high molecular compounds. These
groups contain functional groups such as -OH, -COOH,
-NH2, and -SO3H, which exhibit strong hydrophilicity and
require lower dosages. Literatures Reported macromolecular
inhibitors include polysaccharides, sodium humate(Wang
et al., 2019 Liu et al., 2016), carboxymethyl cellulose,
starch, cyclodextrin(Qin et al., 2013 Dolivo Dobrovoskii
et al., 1998), polyacrylamide (Wang et al., 2013), polyacryl-
amide-allylthiourea(Zhang et al., 2020), N-thiourea-maleic
acid(Lu et al., 2022), and chrome iron lignosulfonate (Liu
et al., 2020). While Small-molecule inhibitors primar-
ily involve specific structures containing sulfur, nitrogen,
and multiple hydroxy carboxylic acid groups. They include
mercaptoacetic acid derivatives, 5-amino-1,3,4-thiadia-
zole-2-thiol, ASC, O,O-di(2,3-dihydroxypropyl) dithio-
phosphate, 2,3-dihydroxypropyl dithiocarbonate sodium
salt, polyhydroxy phosphonates, and L-cysteine((Lu et al.,
2017 Liu et al., 2020 Lu et al., 2021 Hu et al., 2021
Chen et al., 2005 Piao et al., 2013 Piao et al., 2014 Zhang
et al., 1998 Yin et al., 2019). Small-molecule inhibitors
have lower molecular weights and relatively simple struc-
tures, providing better selectivity.Researches has unveiled
that organic inhibitors achieve molybdenum-lead flotation
separation by chemically adsorbing onto the Pb sites on the
surface of molybdenite(Ma et al., 2016).Although, a lot of
efforts have been focused on the research of organic inhibi-
tors on the selective separation of molybdenite from other
sulfide ores, it is still a challenge to apply these compounds
on a commercial scale. Therefore, there is an urgent need to
develop new, efficient, and environmentally friendly lead
depressants.
This study focuses on Mercaptosuccinic Acid (MSA)
as a novel, environmentally friendly galena depressant,
providing insights into its mechanism and effectiveness in
Mo-Pb flotation separation.
EXPERIMENTAL
Materials
Minerals
Monomineralic specimens of galena and molybdenite,
sourced from Hubei Province, China, were utilized for
this research. Following initial coarse crushing, a meticu-
lous manual selection process was employed to ensure
high purity of the samples, confirmed via X-ray diffraction
(XRD) and multi-elemental analysis. The samples, display-
ing purities of 96.20% for galena and 93.84% for molyb-
denite, were then finely crushed and ground to achieve
a particle size range of –0.074 +0.038 mm, suitable for
experimental testing (See Figure 1 and Table 1 for XRD
results and chemical composition).
32 42 52 62 72 82 92 :2 2
Galena
Molybdenite
Two-Theta (deg)
Figure 1. Result of XRD test of molybdenite and galena
Intensity(Counts)