Theoretical basis for optimal collector concentrations and pulp pH values during flotation of sulfide-free minerals

A hypothesis that associates optimal conditions of mineral flotation with a zero charge of their surface is put forward. This hypothesis serves as a basis for a methodology to obtain and verify quantitative physical-chemical models for a minimal necessary concentration of a collector during flotation of sulfide-free minerals. These models may be of use for upgrading engineering processes of flotation and as a job for the concentration plant automation systems. __________ Translated from Fiziko-Tekhnicheskie Problemy Razrabotki Poleznykh Iskopaemykh, No. 2, pp. 89–99, March–April, 2006.