Improved Flotation of High-Clay-Content Gold Ore Using Fenugreek Polysaccharide Gum as the Depressant
Due to the influence of the clay minerals, the grade of the concentrate from a gold concentrator in Northwest China is low, which significantly compromises product valuation and market competitivenes. This study evaluated the industrial potential of fenugreek polysaccharide gum (FGM) as a depressant to enhance the flotation through pilot-scale testing. Results showed that the FGM system effectively upgraded the concentrate grade by 4.7 g/t, while slightly increasing recovery by 0.37%. The application of FGM has generated an additional $1.715 million profit over the past two years. These findings suggest that FGM holds significant potential for large-scale industrialization in the flotation of high-clay-content sulfide ores.
Authors
- Zhen Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7560-8251)
- Wenpu Zhang
- Mengyao Zhou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-1951-1016)
- Zhiyong Gao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0219-1077)
- Qiang Deng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0664-5419)
- Xiaohui Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3769-2325)
- Kaile Zhao
Institutions
- Southwest University of Science and Technology (CN)
- Central South University (CN)
- Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (CN)
- Bureau of Geology and Mineral Exploration and Development of Guizhou Province (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Minerals
- Published
- 2025-04-25
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/min15050446
- Primary Topic
- Minerals Flotation and Separation Techniques
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan
- Department of Science and Technology of Sichuan Province
- Kunming University of Science and Technology
- National Key Research and Development Program of China