Competitive adsorption of water and collector molecules on sulfide mineral surfaces

Abstract

To study the influence of water molecules on the adsorption behavior of flotation reagents at the solid-liquid interface system, a model of the molecule interaction between sulfide minerals and flotation reagents at the solid–liquid interface system was established based on the density functional theory (DFT). The results of the calculations show that the surfaces of the galena and pyrite are hydrophobic after the adsorption of the xanthate molecules. In addition, using molecular dynamics simulation can positively explain the competitive adsorption behavior occurring between water molecules and xanthate molecules. This study provides some theoretical basis and guidance for the study of the interaction mechanism between flotation reagents and the surface of sulfide minerals under the solid–liquid interface system.