Enhanced the recovery of micro-fine molybdenite via an alkyl xanthogenic based collector: synthesis, performance, and mechanism

To address the technical bottleneck of declining hydrophobicity in finely ground minerals that leads to low recovery of traditional hydrocarbon oil collectors, this study utilized computational simulations to design and synthesize a novel collector. Simulation calculations showed that dodecyl xanthogenic acid (DXA-C12) had a comprehensive adsorption effect on both the “basal” and “edges” of molybdenite. Micro-flotation tests showed that DXA-C12 had significant flotation advantages for micro-fine grained molybdenite compared with the traditional kerosene and xanthate combined collector. DXA-C12 interacted with the “basal” and “edges” of molybdenite through hydrophobic and chemical forces, respectively. The DXA-C12 carbon chain drove the interaction with the “basal” and adsorbed in a tiled form. In contrast, C=S supplied electrons to the Mo atoms in “edges”, forming adsorption in an upright form. For the actual micro-fine grained molybdenum ore with a particle size of −38 μm accounted for 97 % and Mo grade of about 4.00 %, using DXA-C12 as the collector could obtain the concentrate with Mo grade and recovery of 39.099 % and 99.68 %, respectively. The study provided a novel collector for micro-fine grained molybdenum ore, and had an important reference significance for the development of other new types of collectors.