Recent developments in mineral processing techniques

Complete utilization of raw materials, improving the efficacy of comminution to reduce energy consumption as well as fines and to improve liberation, and continuous improvement of physical separation processes are some of the challenges facing the mineral processing industry. Adopting gravity concentration processes to treat fines is perhaps the major task for mineral engineers. Introduction of Bartley-Mozley table and multi-gravity separator are typical examples. Magnetic separation has seen many innovations. In the near future superconducting magnetic separators will be used industrially. Introduction of column flotation has greatly enhanced the grades and recovery. Dissolved air flotation and electroflotation show promise for fine particle treatment. Application of online instrumentation and control of mineral processing unit operations has helped in stabilizing mineral processing circuits. Meanwhile, recent developments in bio-technology are currently being exploited in hydrometallurgical operations, particularly in the bacterial oxidation of copper sulfides and sulfide gold ores. It is claimed that certain micro-organisms could also be used to enhance the performance of conventional mineral processing techniques.