Quantitative study on the selective depressing effect of polysaccharides on some polar minerals

Abstract

This study presents a systematic summary on the depressing effect of polysaccharides on some polar minerals, revealing that the order of their depressing strength on some polar minerals was primarily associated with the surface properties of the minerals, showing a limited correlation with the structure of polysaccharides. Subsequently, the selective depressing mechanism of polysaccharides on polar minerals was quantitatively explained from the perspective of acid–base interaction mechanism, and a criterion system for determining the depressing effect of polysaccharide on minerals was proposed. Specifically, it was found that the hydroxylation reaction of metal sites on mineral surface was a prerequisite for polysaccharide adsorption. Under the above–mentioned conditions, the selective depressing effect of polysaccharides on these minerals with different metal sites could be assessed through a parameter system in which the ion potential φ of surface metal sites served as the primary determinant, and the solubility product constant of metal hydroxides played a secondary role. In cases where minerals shared identical surface metal sites, the selective depressing effect of polysaccharides was analyzed by comparing the coordination numbers of these sites. Specifically, minerals with a higher number of coordinated surface metal sites tend to show a weaker response to depressing effect of polysaccharide. Consequently, this study theoretically elucidated the selective depressing effect of polysaccharides on polar minerals, and the criterion system proposed in this study outperforms the prediction results based on the isoelectric point (pHiep). These research findings have important guiding significance for a deeper understanding of the selective depressing mechanism of polysaccharides and the regulation of flotation.