Abstract
The recovery of molybdenite diminishes with a reduction in particle size, which causes serious resource waste and financial loss. In this work, 1-dodecanethiol (NDM) was explored as an auxiliary collector to enhance the flotation of molybdenite fines. The flotation performance and adsorption mechanisms were revealed by micro-flotation tests, Zeta potential, contact angle, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Economic and environmental risks were assessed by industrial-scale flotation tests. The micro-flotation tests showed that NDM was more effective in improving the recovery of the −20 μm grade compared to the −38+20 μm grade. Zeta potential and contact angle results indicated that NDM significantly enhanced the hydrophobicity of the finer-grained molybdenite surface. XPS and DFT calculations revealed that water molecules acted as a significant barrier to kerosene adsorption, and NDM overcame this limitation by selectively adsorbing on the edge of molybdenite. The economic and environmental assessment indicated that NDM increased monthly product profits by $319,283.38 and was environmentally friendly, which can be extensively employed for mineral sources with similar mineralogical properties.
Published Version
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