A full-scale study on the recovery of ultra-fine and low-grade barite and pyrite using an agitated reflux classifier

• The full-scale agitated reflux classifier was manufactured and successfully tested. • The equipment successfully achieved the co-enrichment of barite and pyrite. • The equipment is energy-efficient and environmentally friendly. The agitated reflux classifier (ARC) is capable of efficiently separating particles based on density differences. This device has been demonstrated to be effective in the separation of various minerals with density contrasts and has already undergone successful pilot-scale testing for the recovery of ultra-fine and low-grade barite and pyrite. Building upon the pilot-scale experiments, this study presents the full-scale structural design and operational study of the ARC. Results indicate that for a feed material with BaSO 4 grade of 22.62 % and an Fe grade of 9.27 %, a single-stage enrichment using the full-scale ARC yields a concentrate with an average BaSO 4 grade of 44.16 % and an Fe grade of 18.28 %. The corresponding BaSO 4 and Fe recoveries reach 83.16 % and 84.02 %, respectively. Sieve analysis of the products reveals that the full-scale ARC performs well in separating material coarser than 0.016 mm, while losses in the − 0.016 mm fraction are the primary cause of reduced overall recovery. These findings confirm that the full-scale ARC enables efficient co-enrichment of ultra-fine and low-grade barite and pyrite.