Study of Sphalerite Depression during Selective Flotation of Refractory Copper Zinc Ores

"This paper was prepared for presentation at the 16th Canadian Mineral Processor's Annual Meeting, Ottawa, Ontario, Jan. 17 to Jan. 19, 1984.This paper gives an account of the development of treatment procedures for the differential flotation of refractory copper-zinc ores. Special references are made to the effectiveness of various zinc depressants and their combinations.Studies carried out on refractory copper-zinc ores demonstrated that conventional zinc depressants such as cyanide and zinc sulphate were not particularly effective when secondary copper minerals were present in the ore; the flotation activity of sphalerite was enhanced in the presence of cyanide.Among the various zinc depressants evaluated, the following depressant combinations were found most effective: Zn(OH) 2-S02 , 802-CaO, Na2S-Na2S03-S02, Na 2 S-S02 and Na 2S-S0rDS22.The practical application of any of these systems depends on the type of ore treated and other conditions such as pH, levels and points of collector and depressant additions.In this paper the effect of each depressant combination on different ores is described with reference to the selection of collectors."