Physical separation in dense media
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Separation in dense media uses a liquid medium in which the components to be separated are immersed. This medium can be water, an organic liquid (exclusively in laboratory), brines (calcium chloride or zinc type salts) or a clay, sand, magnetite or ferro-silicon based suspension, where the suspension behaves as a pseudo-fluid. The media cover densities of 1.0 over 3.0, this latter being adjusted to an intermediate value to those constituent elements for separation with an accuracy of 0.05. Heavier elements sink in the medium, while lighter elements float and are therefore recovered separately.
CTP performs separations at laboratory scale in liquid in order to study the potential of the technique or to assess the liberation meshes (size by density assays). It has a pilot dynamic drum unit which enables testing the technique using suspensions.
Technique | Medium | Density | Capacity | Particle size |
Heavy liquid | ZnCl2 Bromoform Polytungstate | 1-3.3 | 1...2 kg/h | 75 µm to 20 mm |
DMS drum | Water Slurry Sand Magnetite Ferro-silicon | 1-2.9 | 1-5 t/h | 10-80 mm |
