Mineralogical effects on the dense medium separation of low grade nickel sulfide ore

Abstract

Dense medium separation (DMS) is a method often used to upgrade base metal sulfide (BMS) ores before their main processing stage, with varying results achieved for different ore types. The process makes use of the density differences between the BMS minerals and the lower density silicate/carbonate gangue minerals, using a separating medium of density between the two ore components. The separation is accelerated using a dense medium cyclone (DMC) to form two products: overflow (tailings) and underflow (concentrate). The purpose of DMS is to reject large quantities of gangue upfront, resulting in reduced time, energy and costs associated with processes such as milling and flotation. Preconcentration of ores using physical methods such as DMS is becoming an important consideration as lower grade ores are mined, to increase the feasibility of mining such ores. Two nickel sulfide deposits were chosen as case studies in order to understand differences in DMS efficiency for different ores. The first is the Main Mineralised Zone (MMZ) of the Nkomati Nickel deposit in Mpumalanga, South Africa, which is part of the Uitkomst Complex. The Phoenix deposit is also considered, and forms part of the Tati greenstone belt in eastern Botswana. Both deposits are magmatic Cu-Ni-PGE (platinum group element) deposits with similar sulfide mineralogy and pentlandite as the main nickel host. A process mineralogy approach was used to evaluate samples of both ores, describing the differences in the mineralogical properties within the overflow and underflow of each ore in order to understand the extent to which individual properties affect the separation.