AkzoNobel will present a paper at IMPC 2014, October 20 to 24, proving a new three-component anionic collector for phosphate ore flotation that meets all the requirements for flotation efficacy and sustainability. “We are committed to developing sustainable solutions to meet the needs of the mining industry,” said Odair Lima, Research Chemist at AkzoNobel Surface Chemistry, who will present the paper. “When developing new surfactants for the mining industry, sustainability encompasses not only the environmental profile of the surfactants, but the use of renewable, easily available raw materials; minimal energy consumption and waste, and highly efficient performance.”

AkzoNobel’s portfolio of innovative chemical solutions for mining is a result of more than 50 years of research and development in molecular and surface chemistry, combined with close collaboration with customers and in-depth field experience. The company’s flotation collectors provide optimised solutions for phosphate, calcite, iron, potash, niobium, silicates, graphite, and other minerals.

AkzoNobel draws on its chemistry and process know-how to customise solutions for each individual ore. “We select the best collector based on three principals,” said Luiz Ribeiro, Account Manager for Mining Applications in South America. “First, we consider every ore to be unique; second, every ore is treated in a unique process; and three, customised collectors optimise process performance.”

Other examples of new AkzoNobel flotation collectors are a new etheramine, Lilaflot® D 826M, for iron ore flotation in Chile, and Lilaflot 730 a new collector based on ammonium quaternary salts, for calcite flotation in Brazil. The new collectors enhance metallurgical results and create higher grades of iron ore and calcium carbonate, respectively. In addition, the collectors generate less froth, facilitating flotation plant operation.

For complex phosphate ores, for example, where carbonate minerals are present, it has been difficult to produce high-quality phosphate concentrates. “Traditional fatty acid collectors not only float the calcium mineral apatite but also the other calcium minerals, calcite and dolomite,” explained Ribeiro. “Our collectors float selectively the apatite.”

Ribeiro also emphasised additional solutions AkzoNobel provides the mining industry:

• Expancel® microspheres are used extensively as sensitisers in industrial explosives. They create consistent uniform voids within the explosives that balance density control with such blasting properties as sensitivity to detonation, strength and explosive stability
• Depramin® and Peridur® grades, based on carboxy methyl cellulose (CMC), meet the demands of froth flotation and agglomeration of fines
• Sodium Hydrosulphide (NaSH) is widely used as an efficient copper depressant and ores sulphidising agent
• Marine and Protective Coatings: A complete range of products to protect mining equipment at each stage of the process, from extraction and material handling to processing, smelting and transportation.