Abstract
Polyethylene oxide (PEO) is an efficient flocculant for various minerals including coal, quartz and phyllosilicates. However, it is rarely used in coal flotation process. In this research, the flotation of coal with the addition of PEO was investigated. It was found that PEO could worsen the flotation performance if it was used solely. In the presence of sodium hexametaphosphate, however, PEO could improve flotation performance significantly. The combustible matter recovery was increased while the ash content was reduced when the PEO dosage was lower than 5 g/t. The tube settlement and floc observation experiments of coal and hydrophilic minerals indicated that PEO flocculated coal mainly through hydrophobic interaction whereas it flocculated kaolinite mainly through hydrogen bonding. The presence of (NaPO3)6 hindered the flocculation of hydrophilic minerals due to the enhancement of electrical double layer repulsion so coal was selectively flocculated. As a result, the particle size of coal was enlarged and its collision efficiency with bubbles was increased.
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