Surface characterization and new tools for research

In the selective separation of mineral phases by flotation, surface chemistry is the principal determinant of the average contact angle for a specific mineral phase in flotation pulp. The average contact angle is, in turn, the principal determinant of the bubble-particle attachment efficiency in the overall collection efficiency from which the flotation rate constant can be determined. The recovery and selectivity in sulfide flotation is ultimately dependent on the relative rate constants of the different mineral phases. The average contact angle is not only mineral specific, based on a statistical average of the mineral particles in that phase, but also the contact angle for each particle is an average of hydrophobic and hydrophilic areas across the particle surface.