Selective flotation of fossil resin from Wasatch Plateau high-volatile bituminous coal

Certain bituminous coals are known to contain appreciable quantities of natural fossil or subfossil resin. Such resinous coals are found in the western US, particularly the Wasatch Plateau coalfield of UT. Some of the seams in this field contain an average of 5% resin. This fossil resin has been recovered by gravity and/or flotation processes since 1929. Resin concentrates thus produced are of low quality and are usually refined by solvent extraction. The purified resins are of commercial importance in the adhesive, coating, rubber, and ink industries, etc. An improved flotation technique has been developed which involves ozone conditioning to selectively float resin from high-volatile bituminous coal. With this flotation process, a concentrate product which contains 95% resin at a recovery of 80% can be obtained in single-stage flotation. By comparison, conventional flotation at 80% recovery produces a concentrate having a resin content of 30 to 40%.