Study of selective collecting capacity and mechanism of novel collector PPB1 in the separation of cerussite and smithsonite

Abstract

The study investigated a novel hydrophobic, selective, low-toxicity, and low-cost sulfhydryl collector, PPB1 for the flotation separation of cerussite and smithsonite, analyzing the underlying separation mechanism. Micro-flotation experiments indicated that efficient flotation separation of cerussite and smithsonite could be achieved at pH 8, with a PPB1 dosage of 200 mg·L⁻¹, and without the addition of depressants or pre-sulfurization. PPB1, as a collector, exhibits excellent selectivity for cerussite and can obtain cerussite concentrate with a recovery of over 90 % from artificial mixed minerals and raw ores. Zeta potential and contact angle measurements on pure minerals revealed that PPB1 exhibited stronger adsorption on the cerussite surface, thus significantly altering the potential and increasing the hydrophobicity of the cerussite surface. FT-IR, XPS analyses and DFT calculations indicated that the sulfhydryl group of PPB1 formed a thiol-metal bond with Pb sites on the cerussite surface by stable chemical adsorption, but without interaction with the smithsonite surface, showcasing its high-selectivity.