Abstract
Beneficiation of a rare earth element (REE) ore from heavy mineral (HM) sands by particle size classification in conjunction with high-intensity magnetic separation (HIMS) was investigated. The HM sands of Nea Peramos, Kavala, Northern Greece, contain high concentrations of REE accommodated mainly in silicate minerals, such as allanite. However, the potential of the Northern Greek placer for REE exploitation has not been fully evaluated due to limited on-shore and off-shore exploration drilling data. Characterization of the magnetic separation fractions using XRD and bulk ICP-MS chemical analysis showed that the magnetic products at high intensities were strongly enriched in the light REE (LREE), relative to the non-magnetic fraction. Allanite and titanite are the major host mineral for REE in the magnetic products but mainly allanite controls the REE budget due its high concentration in LREE. SEM/EDS and ICP-MS analysis of the different particle size fractions showed LREE enrichment in the fractions −0.425 + 0.212 mm, and a maximum enrichment in the −0.425 + 0.300 mm. The maximum enrichment is achieved after magnetic separation of the particle size fractions. Mass balance calculations showed that the maximum REE recovery is achieved after magnetic separation of each particle size fraction separately, i.e., 92 wt.% La, 91 wt.% Ce, and 87 wt.% Nd. This new information can contribute to the optimization of beneficiation process to be applied for REE recovery from HM black sands.
Highlights
Heavy mineral sands are coastal deposits of resistant dense minerals that locally form economic concentrations of the heavy minerals
The major heavy minerals contained in the studied sands are amphibole (Mg-hornblende and pargasite), magnetite, titanite, allanite-epidote, and hematite (Table 2)
Monazite, cheralite, ilmenite, rutile, thorite, apatite, xenotime, baryte, and sulfides were identified as minor constituents by Scanning electron microscopy (SEM)/energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS) analysis
Summary
Heavy mineral sands (or black sands) are coastal deposits of resistant dense minerals that locally form economic concentrations of the heavy minerals. They serve as a major source of titanium worldwide with main minerals rutile and ilmenite and, in some cases, show high accumulation in rare earth elements (REE) and Th [1]. REE are considered as “critical metals” for the European Union economy due to the vast application in a variety of sectors, a complicated production process as well as political issues associated with the monopoly in supply from China, especially the supply of heavy rare earths [2,3,4].
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