780 XXXI International Mineral Processing Congress 2024 Proceedings/Washington, DC/Sep 29–Oct 3
mixture of 35%CW and 65%RDW for the last year. The
objective of these changes was to represent the gradual
evolution of water quality (makeup and process water)
throughout the period.
At the beginning and end of each DDCT, flotation
batch tests were carried out to evaluate the effect of the
water, original and resulting, on the metallurgical perfor-
mance of each mineral.
RESULTS
Effect of Water Quality on Metallurgical Performance
Figure 4 shows the results of the batch tests (at 12.5 min)
using different water qualities for the five minerals. It was
observed that the recovery of minerals with fast kinetics,
FA and FB (Figure 4a), decreases when water has low and
high amounts of ions (desalinated and tap water, and sea-
water, respectively). The highest recoveries were observed
for process water, Mix 1 (80% RDW +20% SW), and Mix
2 (35% RDW +65%SW).
On the other hand, the recovery of minerals with slow
kinetics, SA and SB (Figure 4b), also decreases when the
water has low and high amounts of ions, but all the recov-
eries are lower than those of fast minerals. The mineral SA
showed the strongest decrease of recovery for water quali-
ties with low amounts of ions.
The mineral FS (mixture) in Figure 4a showed a behav-
iour similar to that of FA and FB, although it is composed
of all the other minerals (FA, FB, SA, and SB) in differ-
ent proportions. This shows that there is synergistic effect
between fast and slow minerals, causing a higher recovery
for the mixture.
Figure 3. Procedure for the Dissolution/Dilution Cycling Test (DDCT)
(a) (b)
70
72
74
76
78
80
82
84
86
88
90
92
94
96
98
100
FA
FB
FS 40
45
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90
95
100
SA
SB
Figure 4. Cu recovery with different water qualities: (a) fast minerals and mixture, and (b) slow minerals
Cu
recovery
(%)
Cu
recovery
(%)
mixture of 35%CW and 65%RDW for the last year. The
objective of these changes was to represent the gradual
evolution of water quality (makeup and process water)
throughout the period.
At the beginning and end of each DDCT, flotation
batch tests were carried out to evaluate the effect of the
water, original and resulting, on the metallurgical perfor-
mance of each mineral.
RESULTS
Effect of Water Quality on Metallurgical Performance
Figure 4 shows the results of the batch tests (at 12.5 min)
using different water qualities for the five minerals. It was
observed that the recovery of minerals with fast kinetics,
FA and FB (Figure 4a), decreases when water has low and
high amounts of ions (desalinated and tap water, and sea-
water, respectively). The highest recoveries were observed
for process water, Mix 1 (80% RDW +20% SW), and Mix
2 (35% RDW +65%SW).
On the other hand, the recovery of minerals with slow
kinetics, SA and SB (Figure 4b), also decreases when the
water has low and high amounts of ions, but all the recov-
eries are lower than those of fast minerals. The mineral SA
showed the strongest decrease of recovery for water quali-
ties with low amounts of ions.
The mineral FS (mixture) in Figure 4a showed a behav-
iour similar to that of FA and FB, although it is composed
of all the other minerals (FA, FB, SA, and SB) in differ-
ent proportions. This shows that there is synergistic effect
between fast and slow minerals, causing a higher recovery
for the mixture.
Figure 3. Procedure for the Dissolution/Dilution Cycling Test (DDCT)
(a) (b)
70
72
74
76
78
80
82
84
86
88
90
92
94
96
98
100
FA
FB
FS 40
45
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90
95
100
SA
SB
Figure 4. Cu recovery with different water qualities: (a) fast minerals and mixture, and (b) slow minerals
Cu
recovery
(%)
Cu
recovery
(%)