Enhanced flotation performance and adsorption mechanism on (0 0 2) crystal plane of fine muscovite powder

Abstract

Muscovite crystal has anisotropy, the flotation performance is determined by the adsorption of collectors on its specific crystal plane. This study focused on the adsorption mechanism of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS) used as muscovite collectors on its (002) crystal plane. The flotation experiment showed that SDS has better flotation efficiency than SDBS. The adsorption behavior on the muscovite (002) crystal plane was demonstrated by contact angle, infrared spectrum tests, molecular dynamics simulation and XRD test. The results indicated that SDS had lower adsorption energy with muscovite (002) crystal plane, and was more likely to adsorb on the muscovite (002) crystal plane. What’s more, the reduction degree of the strength of the (002) crystal plane after SDS was lower than that of SDBS. It clearly proves the superiority of SDS on the adsorption of the muscovite (002) crystal plane, and provide a new idea for the muscovite flotation.