Research Information System
Canadian Metallurgical Quarterly, 2024 (SCI-Expanded)
This study utilised a Box–Behnken experimental design to examine the influence of various frothers (MIBC, 2-Ethylhexanol, α-Terpineol, and AF-65), dodecylamine (DDA) collector, and microbubbles on coarse quartz flotation performance. The flotation efficiency was evaluated through two key parameters: maximum recovery (R∞) and first-order rate constant (k). The findings revealed that microbubbles substantially enhanced flotation kinetics through synergistic interactions, particularly in combination with aliphatic alcohol frothers. The effectiveness of cyclic alcohol and polyglycol-type frothers varied significantly, depending on microbubble presence, frother concentration, and DDA interactions. While 2-Ethylhexanol achieved the highest recovery (97.71%) in conventional flotation without microbubbles, α-Terpineol exhibited the most pronounced synergistic effect when combined with microbubbles and DDA, reaching 99.71% recovery. In terms of kinetic performance, AF-65 demonstrated exceptional results in the presence of microbubbles and DDA, achieving the highest rate constant of 2.12 min−1. The effectiveness of the bubble bridging mechanism showed considerable variation across different frother types, with aliphatic alcohols exhibiting notable improvements in the presence of microbubbles, particularly at lower concentrations. Although increased DDA concentrations generally resulted in decreased flotation rates, they enhanced overall recovery–an effect that was further amplified by the presence of microbubbles.