SELECTIVE FLOTATION OF MI CA FROM PEGMATITES

by J. S. Browning and R. B. Adair

The laboratory bat ch a nd cont i nuous flotation pilot
plant t e s t s demonst rat ed t he t echni cal f easi bi l i t y of
recovering hi gh gr ade mi ca concent rat es from wea-
t hered mi ca pegmatite or e s of Alabama and Georgia.
The r esear ch i ndi cat ed t hat combinations of ani oni c
and cat i oni c col l ect or s may b e us e d effect i vel y for
flotation of f i ne size mi ca from weathered pegmatite
ores.
In cont i nuous t est s, concent r at es containing 98.5%
mi ca were obt ai ned from t he Georgia pegmatite ore;
t he Alabama pegmatite ore concent rat es cont ai ned
98.4% mica. The recoveri es were 91 a nd 89% r espec-
tively.
INTRODUCTION
T
he principal u s e s of f i ne ground mica ar e a s a fil-
l er i n wallboard joint cement, a s a fi l l er and sur-
f ace coat i ng for roofing, a s an ingredient in pai nt s,
and i n oi l well drilling mud. Th e mineral h a s other
us e s in t he manufacture of rubber, wallpaper, pl as-
t i cs, welding rods, el ect r i c i nsul at i on, hous e i nsul a-
tion, and t ext i l es, and a s an annealing agent in metal
treatment.
In recent years, more than 99% of t he domest i c mica
produced h a s been s cr ap and fl ake mica (mica which
doe s not meet speci f i cat i ons for s heet mi ca and is
used for producing fi ne ground mica). Ther e h a s been
a continued i ncr ease i n mica production for sever al
years, t he 1963 production of scr ap and fl ake mica
totaling 117,251 tons.'
Ground mica is obtained primarily by crushi ng and
milling pegmat i t es and s chi s t s . To a l es s er ext ent ,
mica is produced a s a byproduct of kaolin washing
and fel dspar and spodumene flotation operations. Th e
pr ocesses used i n recovering mica by crushing and
milling pegmat i t es ar e generally simple, consi st i ng
of vari ous combinations of al t ernat e roll cr usher s and
trommel s cr eens t hat separ at e t he mica and gangue
at screen sizes coar ser than 6-mesh. As t he s e proc-
esses ar e desi gned t o recover only coar s e mica, high
J. S. BROWNING and R. B. ADAIR are respectively
Supervising Research Metallurgist and Research Metallur-
gist, Tuscal oosa Metallurgy Research Center, Bureau of
Mines, U. S Dept. of the Interior, University, ALa
TP66F28. Manuscript Octobei 27, 1965. AIME Annual
Meeting, February 27 to March 3, 1966, New York, N. Y.
Di scussi on of thi s paper submitted i n duplicate prior to
December 15. 1966 will appear in AIME Transactions,
March 1967 and AIME Transactions, 1967, vol. 238.
l os s e s in t he plant r ej ect s ar e common. Lar ge ton-
nages of t ai l i ngs from t he crushi ng and screeni ng
pl ant s have been accumulated in a number of ar eas.
Methods for t reat i ng such products were developed by
t he Bureau of Mines i n 1941,2 but have not been
generally applied. More recently, mica flotation re-
search ha s been completed and published by t he
Bureau of mine^.^ Th e s e methods required complete
removal of 150- to 200-mesh mat eri al s from t he flota-
tion feed with consequent f i ne mica l os s es .
Lat er, t he Bureau of. Mines i nvest i gat ed methods for -
recovering f i ne s i z e mica from pegmatite or e s after
desliming sufficiently t o remove clay materials, but
not s o drast i cal l y a s t o remove t he fine sands.
Thi s report summarizes t he r esul t s of t he s e st udi es.
The pr ocess developed was effect i ve on pegmatite
or es from two l ocat i ons and should be appl i cabl e t o
t he commercial treatment of other mica-bearing peg-
matite or es and f i ne r ej ect s that have been accumu-
l at ed at vari ous mica-milling operations.
DESCRIPTION OF ORES
Th e or e s used in t he investigation were obtained
from t he Dixie Mines, Inc., Heflin, Alabama, and t he
Ruberoid Corporation, Hartwell, Georgia.
Th e sampl e from Alabama contained muscovite and
quartz, with a high percent age of clay, and minor
amounts of biotite, kaolin, limonite and tourmaline.
Th e mica i n t he or e wa s essent i al l y al l minus 4-mesh
in s i z e and wa s f r ee of at t ached mineral grains.
Th e Georgia sampl e contained muscovite and quartz,
with minor amounts of biotite, kaolin, and limonite.
The mica i n t he ore, which wa s essent i al l y al l minus
4-mesh, wa s liberated.
Pet rographi c anal ys es of t he two sampl es ar e given
i n Ta bl e I.
THE ANIONIC-CATIONIC
MICA FLOTATION METHOD
Pr evi ous i nvest i gat ors2 l 3 have reported t hat com-
pl et e desliming of mica or es a t 150- t o 200-mesh wa s
required prior to flotation with cat i oni c col l ect or s t o
obtain sat i sfact ory s el ect i ve separation of t he mica
from t he other mineral components. Numerous t e s t s
were made a t t he Tuscal oosa Metallurgy Research
Cent er t o determine if some reagent combination
could b e used t o sel ect i vel y float finer s i z e mica
without complete desliming. Th e investigation l ed t o
development of a pr oces s using a simple reagent com-
Society of Mining Engineers SEPTEMBER 1966 - 277
Tabl e I. Petrographic Anal yses of Alabama and
Georgia Mi ca Ores
Mineral Anal ysi s, Weight - Percent
Ore Musco- Kao- Bio- Limo- Tourma-
Locati on vi t e Quartz tin t i t e ni t e l i ne Cl ay
- - -
Alabama 16.5 35.5 3.0 3. 0 0.5 0.5 41.0
Georgia 15.0 73. 0 2.5 2.0 1.5 - 6. 0
bination that gave a s good or better recovery of mica
and grade of concentrate than obtained i n t he com-
pletely deslimed process; in most cas es recovery and
grade were superior.
Briefly described, t he process included conditioning
the finely ground ore pulps at 35 t o 40% sol i ds with
sodium carbonate and calcium lignin sulfonate and
floating the mica with a combination of anionic and
cationic collector^.^^^^^ The separation was not
particularly sensitive to pulp pH; excellent mica
recoveries were obtained in a pH range of 8.0 to 10.5.
The function of the sodium carbonate i s to retard
flotation of the gangue minerals and control the pH of
the pulp. The exact mechanism of t he retarding action
of the sodium carbonate i s not known. It seems prob-
able, however, that i t s effectiveness may be due to
removal and dispersion of slime coatings on the
mineral surfaces.
The mechanism of the retarding action of the lignin
sulfonate has not been definitely determined. It seems
probable, however, that selective adsorption of t he
lignin sulfonate at gangue mineral surfaces effec-
tively prevents adsorption-attachment of t he collec-
tor at t hese surfaces. On the other hand, mica parti-
cl es being relatively devoid of adsorbed lignin sul-
fonate are free to react with collector and are thus
made floatable.
The lignin sulfonates are effective slime dis-
persants and may ai d flotation by assi st i ng in proper
removal and dispersion of slime coatings on the
mineral surfaces.
Anionic type reagents, such a s oleic acid and com-
binations of oleic and linoleic acid, were found to be
the most effective collecting agents for floating mica.
Increased selectivity in the presence of sl i mes was
imparted to anionic collectors by incorporating small
amounts of cationic amine acetate collecting agent s
in the system.
The most effective ratio of anionic and cationic
collector for mica flotation was 2 to 3 part s fatty
acid to 1 part of cationic collector. Any appreciable
change in the ratio decreased both t he grade and re-
covery of mica.
EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS
Laboratory Batch Tests: Batch flotation t es t s were
undertaken to determine conditions for separating
mica from the gangue minerals. Resul t s of preliminary
t est s using varying quantities and types of reagents
led to adoption of the following procedure:
The t est sample was ground in a laboratory rodmill
using Tuscaloosa City tapwater which had about 45
parts per million equivalent calcium carbonate total
hardness. The sample was st age ground in the pres-
ence of sodium hydroxide to aid in dispersing and re-
moving clay slimes and screened on a 28-mesh screen
until the screen oversize contained only pure mica.
After grinding, the sample was partly deslimed by
decanting to remove some of the clay slimes from the
pulp. The pulp was conditioned at 40% sol i ds in a
mechanical - agitation flotation cell for 5 minutes
with sodium carbonate and calcium lignin sulfonate
for dispersion of the pulp and retardation of gangue
minerals. Fat t y acid was then added a s a collector,
and conditioning was continued for another 5 minutes,
followed by an additional 1 minute conditioning with
amine. Thi s was followed by flotation of the mica.
The mica rougher concentrate was cleaned three times
to yield a final mica concentrate.
Summarized results of the t es t s showing the grade
of concentrate and mineral recoveries of the pegma-
Tabl e II. Laboratory Fl otati on of Mi ca Pegmati te Ores
Mi ca
Anal y- Di stri -
Weight, sis, bution,
Product percent percent percent
Georgia ore
Oversize mica 7.2 100.0 48.3
Flotation concentrate 6. 1 97.4 40. 3
Composite concentrate 13.3 99.2 88.6
Middling 4.2 14.8 4. 0
Tailing 76.2 1. 3 6.7
Slime 6.3 2.0 .7
Composite 100.0 14.9 100.0
Alabama ore
Oversize mica
6. 4 100.0 40.6
Flotation concentrate 7. 3 97.8 45.2
Composite concentrate 13.7 98.8 85.8
Middling 6.2 16.8 6. 6
Tailing 40.6 2. 0 5.1
Slime 39.5 1. 0 2. 5
Composite 100.0 15.8 100.0
Con- Con- Con-
di - di- di -
Rod- tion- tion- tion-
mi l l e r 1 e r 2 e r 3
Reagents, lb per ton of ore
Sodium hydroxide 1.5 -
- -
Sodium carbonate - 2. 0 -
-
Calcium lignin sulfonate - 2. 0 -
-
Fatty acid (ol ei c + linoleic) - - 0.8 -
Amine (stearyl t oleyl) - - - 0.4
Conditioning time, minutes - 5 5 1
Pulp pH -
- 9.2 9.1
278 - SEPTEMBER 1966
TRANSACTIONS
t i t e or e s from Alabama and Georgia ar e given i n
Tabl e 11.
Continuous Flotation Tests:
GEORGIA ORE-Small s c a l e cont i nuous pilot plant
t e s t s were made of t he or e t o confirm t e s t s dat a ob-
tained i n t he bat ch laboratory flotation investigation.
The plant flowsheet t hat was used in t est i ng t h e
Georgia or e i s shown in Fi g. 1. Capaci t y of t he plant
was about 150 l bs. of dry feed per hour.
Th e minus 4-mesh or e was f ed t o a Humphreys spi r al
t o partially concent rat e t he mica and remove a l ar ge
part of t he quartz. In addition t o rej ect i ng over 63%
by weight of t he or e with a l o s s of only 5% of t he
t ot al mica, t he spi ral al s o rej ect ed most of t he
limonite in t he ore. T h e spi ral operation upgraded t he
mica content of t he or e from 15 t o over 38%.
Th e spi ral rougher concent rat e was dewatered and
wet-ground i n a rodmill equipped with a 30-mesh trom-
me1 screen. Th e grinding was adj ust ed t o t he point
where t h e trommel over si ze consi st ed of pure mica.
Th e mi nus 30-mesh trommel undersi ze was deslimed
by a two-stage desl i mi ng operation t o remove cl ay
slimes. Th e or e aft er grinding and desliming cont ai ned
about 20% minus 200-mesh. Th e pulp then pas s ed to
a conditioner where t he reagent s for pH control,
quartz depressi on, and t he fatty aci d a s t he mica
collector were al l added. Th e pulp from t he condi-
I
t
Underflow
7
I t
Ov e r f l owc - - Bowl rake c l os r ~ l ~ c r
Amine
Vibmtingr----Toiling- Flolotnon cel l s
Pl us 50-
mesh
, o, l , ng Minus 50-
mesh F I o ~ a ~ i o n cel l s
toiling 3-stage cleaning
1 1
4
Mica concbntrole
Fi g. I-Fl owsheet for Recovery of Mica from Georgia Peg-
matite Ore.
Tabl e Ill. Results of Continuous Flotation Tests For
Recovery of Mica From Pegmatite Ores
Mica
Analy- Di stri-
Weight, sir, bution,
Product percent percent percent
Georgia ore
Trommel oversi ze mica
Flotation concentrate
Composite concentrate
Flotation tailing
Hydroseparator overflow
Composite spiral concentrate
Spiral tailing
Composite feed
Alabama ore
Trommel oversi ze mica
Flotation concentrate
Composite concentrate
Flotation tailing
Hydroseparator overflow
Composite primary cl assi f i er
sand
Spiral cl assi f i er overflow
Composite feed
Rougher
Flota-
Condi- tion
Rodmill tioner Cell 1
Reagents, l b per ton of ore
Sodium hydroxide 1. 5 - -
Sodium carbonate - 1. 9 -
Calcium lignin sulfonate - 2. 0 -
Fatty aci d ( ol ei c t l i nol ei c) - .8 -
Amine (stearyl t ol eyl ) - - 0. 4
Conditioning time, minutes - 7 1
Pulp pH - 9. 2 9. 0
tioner flowed by gravity t o a bank of t hree rougher
flotation c e l l s where t he amine col l ect or was added
to t he fi rst cel l . A rougher flotation froth wa s re-
covered and cl eaned t hree t i mes t o produce a finished
mica concentrate. Th e rougher t ai l i ng pas s ed t o a
vibrating screen t o remove t he pl us 50-mesh mica in
t he tailing, which wa s returned to t he rodmill for ad-
ditional grinding. Th e continuous pilot plant t e s t ac-
counted for a recovery of over 91% of t he mica present
in t he feed i n a product containing 98.5% mica. Th e
summarized r esul t s of t he t e s t a r e given in Tabl e 111.
ALABAMA ORE-The flowsheet for continuous
treatment of t he Alabama or e included grinding, cl as-
sification, conditioning, and flotation a s shown in
Fi g. 2.
Th e highly weathered pegmatite ore wa s fed t o a
bowl rake cl assi f i er t o partially concent rat e t he mica
and remove a l arge part of t he cl ay sl i mes. Th e bowl
rake cl assi f i er overflow contained over 35% by weight
Society of Mining Engineers SEPTEMBER 1966 - 279
Mica ore
I
+
Stomge bin
-r
t
Bawl roke ciassifier -+Overflow A To woste
1 -
t
7
30-mesh trammel -Oversize mica
7 Undersize
w
+
Hydroseporotor -Overflow -)To woste
I
Underflow
I
I
-
i
Overflow - Spiral classifier
I
Sodfum corbonate
Lignln sulfonate
Conditioner
Am~ne
-
3-stage rough~ng
Tolling Middling
Flotation cells
T o waste 4.sloge cleaning
7
Fig. 2-Flowsheet for Recovery o f Mica from Alabama Peg-
mati t e Ore.
of the ore with a l os s of only 2% of the total mica.
The desliming operation upgraded t he mica content of
t he ore from 16 to over 25%.
The bowl rake cl assi fi er sand was ground in a rod-
mill equipped with a 30-mesh trommel to produce a
pure mica trommel oversize. The trommel undersize
was deslimed by a two-stage desliming operation.
The ore after grinding and desliming contained about
22% minus 200-mesh. The partly deslimed ore, after
conditioning at 40% solids, was floated to recover a
mica rougher concentrate. The rougher concentrate
was cleaned four times to produce a concentrate con-
taining 98.4% mica, with a recovery of over 89% of
t he total mica. The resul t s of t he continuous t est are
presented in Tabl e 3.
REFERENCES
1
Benjamin Petkof: Mica. BuMines Minerals Yearbook 1963, v. 1,
1964, pp. 813-829.
' ~a me s I%. Normen and R. G. O'Meara: Froth Flotation and Ag-
glomerate Tabling of Micas. BuMines Rept. of In*. 3558, 1941,
14 PP.
~ a me s S. Browning and Thomas L. McVay: Concentration of Fine
Mica. BuMines Rept. of Inv. 6223, 1963, 7 pp.
4 ~ a me s S. Browning, Frank W. Millsaps, and Paul E. Bennett:
Anionic-Cationic Flotation of Mica Ores From Alabama and North
Carolina. BuMines Rept. of Znv. 6589, 1965, 9 pp.
'Frank W. Mlllsaps and James S. Browning: Fatty Acid Fiotation
of Mica. U.S. Pat. pending, No. 320,576.
6
James S. Browning and Ralph B. Adair: Flotation of Mica. U.S.
Pat. pending, No. 390,485.
280 - SEPTEMBER 1966
TRANSACTIONS