FU Kai-bin1,2, QIN Tian-bang1, TANG Peng-cheng1, XU Xin1, WANG Bin1
(1. Key Laboratory of Solid Waste Treatment and Resource Recycle, Ministry of Education, Mianyang 621010, China;
2. State Key Laboratory of Mineral Processing, Beijing 100160, China)
Abstract: The elemental content, mineral constituent, occurrence mode and grain size of the embedded main minerals have been investigated by using modern analytical techniques including X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (XRF), chemical analysis, x-ray diffractometer (XRD), and optical microscope, etc. to identify properties of ores of the Waji copper deposit in Sichuan Province in order to formulate reasonable plans for beneficiation and metallurgy processes. The results show that the ores contain main valuable element of Cu, with Cu grade of 0.84%, and associated elements of Au and Ag with Au and Ag grades of 0.29 g/t and 7.93 g/t, respectively. The ores, which are mixed ores with low oxidation rate, contain main metallic minerals of pyrite and chalcocite, minor metallic minerals of chalcopyrite, bornite, digenite, malachite, covellite and hematite, and gangue minerals of quartz, dolomite, feldspar, calcite, and so on. Very fine sized Cu-bearing minerals are mostly distributed in the pore, edge and surface of gangue minerals in form of cryptocrystalline aggregate. According to ore properties, the sulfide flotation was used to process the ore. Through the closed-circuit process of one rough processing, one refined processing, and three times scavenging, which yields a copper concentrate productive rate of 3.34%, the obtained copper concentrate has the Cu grade of 21.61% with the Cu recovery of 85.93%. Comparing with the current production indexes on site, the copper recovery rate is increased by 5.49%.
Keywords: secondary copper sulfide; process mineralogy; chalcocite; flotation
ACTA MINERALOGICA SINICA Vol. 39, No.3, 2019, page 305-310
