Investigation on flotation separation of chalcopyrite from arsenopyrite with a novel collector: N-Butoxycarbonyl-O-Isobutyl Thiocarbamate

Abstract

The efficient separation of chalcopyrite from arsenic-bearing minerals, especially arsenopyrite, remains a challenge in practice. In this work, a novel reagent of N-Butoxycarbonyl-O-Isobutyl Thiocarbamate (NBOIT) was employed in both single and mixed binary mineral flotation, and it proved to be highly effective for the flotation separation. Furthermore, the role of the pH and NBOIT concentration was evaluated. Additionally, the mechanism of the selective separation was investigated systemically via zeta potential measurements, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. It turns out that the selective chemisorption of NBOIT on chalcopyrite (in the form of Cu-NBOIT complex) over arsenopyrite is ascribed to its the stronger reactivity and the high density of Cu ions on the chalcopyrite surfaces. The XPS analysis results also confirmed the generation of a Cu-NBOIT complex on the surface of chalcopyrite.