HEAVY MEDIUM SEPARATION TECHNIQUE FOR SEDIMENTARY PHOSPHATE ROCK

In this paper, a new technology of using heavy medium separation technique to the benificiation process of phosphate rock is described, taking the test on the phosphate rock from Yi Chang, Hubei province of China as an example. This technique was set up on the new concept of taking the phosphate rock aggregate stripes, not the individual mineral, as recovering unit, which is a significant break-through made in the study. With this technique, some problems existed in the benificiation process of phosphate rock could then be solved, and a large quantity of this kind of phosphorous ore resources could be exploited reasonably and effectively. This is an advancing technique in the world. The pilot tests were carried out with combined flowsheet of heavy medium separation and flotation, and a concentrate grading 31. 49%P₂O₆ and 1. 41% MgO with the recovery of 87.99% was obtained from the crude ore containing 23. 50% of P₂O₅ and 3. 40% of MgO.