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GB2102301A - Solids extraction process - Google Patents

Solids extraction process Download PDF

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Publication number
GB2102301A
GB2102301A GB08122714A GB8122714A GB2102301A GB 2102301 A GB2102301 A GB 2102301A GB 08122714 A GB08122714 A GB 08122714A GB 8122714 A GB8122714 A GB 8122714A GB 2102301 A GB2102301 A GB 2102301A
Authority
GB
United Kingdom
Prior art keywords
process according
aqueous
component
weighting agent
added
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
GB08122714A
Other versions
GB2102301B (en
Inventor
Lee Fisher Robinson
Norman Clark
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Individual
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Individual
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Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Individual filed Critical Individual
Priority to GB08122714A priority Critical patent/GB2102301B/en
Publication of GB2102301A publication Critical patent/GB2102301A/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of GB2102301B publication Critical patent/GB2102301B/en
Expired legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B01PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
    • B01DSEPARATION
    • B01D12/00Displacing liquid, e.g. from wet solids or from dispersions of liquids or from solids in liquids, by means of another liquid
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B03SEPARATION OF SOLID MATERIALS USING LIQUIDS OR USING PNEUMATIC TABLES OR JIGS; MAGNETIC OR ELECTROSTATIC SEPARATION OF SOLID MATERIALS FROM SOLID MATERIALS OR FLUIDS; SEPARATION BY HIGH-VOLTAGE ELECTRIC FIELDS
    • B03BSEPARATING SOLID MATERIALS USING LIQUIDS OR USING PNEUMATIC TABLES OR JIGS
    • B03B1/00Conditioning for facilitating separation by altering physical properties of the matter to be treated
    • B03B1/04Conditioning for facilitating separation by altering physical properties of the matter to be treated by additives
    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B03SEPARATION OF SOLID MATERIALS USING LIQUIDS OR USING PNEUMATIC TABLES OR JIGS; MAGNETIC OR ELECTROSTATIC SEPARATION OF SOLID MATERIALS FROM SOLID MATERIALS OR FLUIDS; SEPARATION BY HIGH-VOLTAGE ELECTRIC FIELDS
    • B03BSEPARATING SOLID MATERIALS USING LIQUIDS OR USING PNEUMATIC TABLES OR JIGS
    • B03B9/00General arrangement of separating plant, e.g. flow sheets
    • B03B9/02General arrangement of separating plant, e.g. flow sheets specially adapted for oil-sand, oil-chalk, oil-shales, ozokerite, bitumen, or the like

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  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Dispersion Chemistry (AREA)
  • Chemical Kinetics & Catalysis (AREA)
  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Geology (AREA)
  • Oil, Petroleum & Natural Gas (AREA)
  • Production Of Liquid Hydrocarbon Mixture For Refining Petroleum (AREA)
  • Extraction Or Liquid Replacement (AREA)

Abstract

Solid components are extracted from aqueous dispersions or suspensions by contacting portions of the aqueous phase with a substantially immiscible organic phase while maintaining an interphase. The solid component has a naturally predominantly hydrophobic surface or a conditioning agent is used to render the solid component at least temporarily hydrophobic. A weighting agent is added to the aqueous or organic phase to increase the density difference between the phases. The process may be used to recover diamonds from an aqueous dispersion or suspension of diamonds and garnets, in which a conditioning agent e.g. oil is used and the weighting agent e.g. stearate-coated iron oxide is added to the aqueous phase. Other uses and other weighting agents (solid and liquid) are disclosed.

Description

SPECIFICATION Solids extraction process This invention relates to the extraction of a solids component from an aqueous dispersion or suspension of solids containing the desired component.
Published G.B. Patent Applications Nos.
2,028,1 72A and 2,049,466A relate to extraction of a solids component from an aqueous dispersion or suspension containing the solid component by contacting the aqueous dispersion or suspension with a substantially immiscible non-aqueous phase. Published Application No. 2,028,1 72A is concerned with the separation of solid impurities from the aqueous phase by contacting the aqueous phase with an organic phase comprising a non-polar organic liquid in the presence of a collector reagent which gives the impurities a hydrophobic surface. The contacting is such as to maintain an interface between the two phases. An interfacial layer is formed containing at least a proportion of the impurities and can be removed independently.
Published G.B. Patent Application No.
2,049,466A on the other hand is concerned with the enhancement of an extraction process for extracting a desired component from an aqueous phase by contact with a non-aqueous phase by the introduction of a deflocculating agent to the aqueous phase. The deflocculating agent acts to reduce the viscosity of the aqueous phase and promote transfer of the component from the aqueous phase. The reduction of viscosity is particularly necessary when dealing with solids in the aqueous phase of particle size predominantly less than 5 microns, especially when working at high solids concentrations of greater than 50% by weight.
Both the above applications ignore the problems which can occur when dealing with solids of larger particle size where the weight of the particles makes it impractical to employ conventional extraction procedures.
According to the present invention we provide a process for the extraction of a solid component from an aqueous dispersion or suspension of solids containing the component comprising contacting the aqueous phase with a substantially immiscible organic phase comprising a non-polar organic liquid by continuously bringing portions of the aqueous and organic phases into contact while maintaining an interface between the two phases and wherein said solid component naturally exhibits a predominantly hydrophobic surface or at least one conditioning reagent is present capable of rendering said component at least temporarily hydrophobic and wherein a weighting agent has been added to the aqueous or organic phase to increase the difference in density between the phases.
Preferably the weighting agent is added to the aqueous phase so that the weighted aqueous phase lies beneath a lighter organic phase. Thus it is usually the cheap aqueous phase which retains the unwanted solids and can be discarded, while the more expensive organic phase can be recycled. The weighting agent may be a liquid such as phosphoric acid or a solid, such as barytes, an iron oxide, ilmenite or a clay mineral or a soluble but heavy salt (such as potassium carbonate and the various brine-forming halides, for example potassium, sodium, magnesium and calcium chlorides and mixtures of potassium chloride with sodium chloride, potassium bromide with sodium chloride, calcium bromide with calcium chloride and zinc bromide with calcium bromide). Alternatively the weighting agent may be added to the organic phase so that it lies beneath the aqueous phase.Suitable weighting agents for the organic phase are organic soluble compounds such as tetrabromoethane or hydrophobic solids such as oleophillic iron oxide or iron filings. Clearly the weighting agent must be chosen so as not to react adversely with the other components of the system.
The organic phase may be any suitable nonpolar organic material such as kerosene, carbon tetrachloride, benzene or paraffin.
The invention is especially applicable to extraction of a component of large particle size, for example material at least 50% of which has a particle size greater than 50 y.
The conditioning reagent capable of rendering the desired component at least temporarily hydrophobic may be any of those discussed in Published Specification No. 79251 69A, such as oleic acid, a long carbon chain amine or a petroleum sulphonate. The conditioning reagent may be naturally present in the aqueous phase, as for example the presence of organic salts in bitumen containing oil sands from which it is desired to extract not only bitumen but also metal values such as nickel, vanadium and titanium.
Alternatively the conditioning reagent may be added to the aqueous or organic phase prior to and/or during the contacting process. It is convenient to add the conditioning reagent before the contacting process so that vigorous mixing conditions can be employed as opposed to the comparatively gentle mixing conditions employed in the contacting process. Alternatively the desired solid component may naturally exhibit a predominantly hydrophobic surface.
The desired component may suitably be collected at the interface between the phases by removing the interfacial layer.
The contacting process is preferably carried out in a multi-compartment rotary contactor, such as that described in U.K. Patent Specification No.
972,035 and U.S. Patent Specification No.
3,649,209 through which the aqueous and organic streams are passed continuously, usually in countercurrent. While an interface between the streams is maintained, portions of one phase are repeatedly transferred into the other phase and vice versa to effect contacting. The use of such a contactor is valuable in that the phases are enclosed and operators are protected from noxious weighting agents such as tetrabromoethane, or reagents such as aqua regia or nitric acid/chlorine.
The present invention may be employed in many different ways.
The present invention is particularly useful in the separation of fine diamonds for industrial use.
Industrial diamonds are obtained from kimberlite gangue and difficulty is encountered in separating the diamonds from garnet which also occurs in kimberlite. Using the present invention, a solid such as stearate-coated iron oxide can be used to weight an aqueous dispersion of kimberlite, previously conditioned by high speed stirring with a small amount of oil as a collector reagent to render the diamonds, and any gold present, hydrophobic, while the garnet remains hydrophillic. If the conditioned kimberlite is then contacted with an organic phase, such as a light oil, in accordance with the invention, the diamonds and any gold present, can be recovered from the interface and separated from the garnet.
The residual gangue in the aqueous phase can be discarded or treated to recover the garnet. The organic phase can be recirculated. While the process is particularly applicable to the recovery of fine diamonds for industrial use, it is contemplated that comparatively large diamonds may be recovered by suitable weighting of the aqueous layer.
Comparatively large particle size mica can likewise be recovered from a clay gangue contaminated with silica using a cetylamine salt as collector to render the mica hydrophobic so that it can be collected at the aqueous/organic interface. It is also contemplated that felspar can be recovered from a quartz using a long chain fatty amine plus hydrogen fluoride as depressant for the silica and refractories such as kyanite recovered from a quartz in comparatively large particle size using a cetylamine salt as conditioning reagent.
Suitable weighting agents such as barytes, ilmenite and iron oxides are used in each case with a suitable immiscible organic phase. The recovery of refractory materials such as kyanite without substantially reducing the particle size is valuable in that the optimum refractory properties are maintained. Oil sands mixtures may also be treated in accordance with the invention. Thus bitumen, dispersed in an oil phase weighted with oleophillic iron oxide, may have contaminating clay removed therefrom. The oil sands contain natural collector reagents such as phenolic, sulphidic and carboxylic acids and salts. The iron oxide may be recovered and reused and the organic phase, freed from clay, further treated to recover bitumen.
The use of the process of the invention involving the increase in density of one phase in the contacting process, also makes it easy to separate the phases after contacting, in a contactor as described in G.B. Patent Specification No. 972,035 and U.S. Patent Specification No.
3,649,209, or in a subsequently used centrifuge.

Claims (14)

1. A process for the extraction of a solid component from an aqueous dispersion or suspension of solids containing the component, comprising contacting the aqueous phase with a substantially immiscible organic phase comprising a non-polar organic liquid by continuously bringing portions of the aqueous and organic phases into contact while maintaining an interface between the two phases and wherein said solid component naturally exhibits a predominantly hydrophobic surface or at least one conditioning reagent is present capable of rendering said component at least temporarily hydrophobic and wherein a weighting agent has been added to the aqueous or organic phase to increase the difference in density between the phases.
2. A process according to claim 1, wherein the weighting agent is added to the aqueous phase.
3. A process according to claim 2 wherein the weighting agent is selected from phosphoric acid, barytes, iron oxides, ilmenite, clay minerals and soluble heavy salts.
4. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the weighting agent is added to the organic phase.
5. A process according to claim 4, wherein the weighting agent is selected from tetrabromoethane and oleophillic iron oxide or iron filings.
6. A process according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the solid component being extracted is of large particle size.
7. A process according to claim 6, wherein the solid component being extracted is of material at least 50% of which has a particle size greater than 50,u.
8. A process according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a conditioning reagent is present.
9. A process according to claim 8, wherein the conditioning reagent is selected from oleic acid, long carbon chain amines and petroleum sulphonate.
10. A process according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the conditioning reagent is added to the aqueous phase before contacting with the organic phase.
11. A process according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the solid component is collected by removing the interfacial layer.
12. A process according to any one of claims 1 to 3 or 6 to 11 wherein the aqueous phase is an aqueous dispersion or suspension containing diamonds and garnet, a conditioning reagent is used to render the diamond component hydrophobic, the weighting agent is added to the aqueous phase and the diamond component is recovered from the interface.
13. A process for the extraction of a solid component from an aqueous dispersion or suspension of solids containing the component substantially as described herein.
14. Solid components extracted by the process of any one of the preceding claims.
GB08122714A 1981-07-23 1981-07-23 Solids extraction process Expired GB2102301B (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB08122714A GB2102301B (en) 1981-07-23 1981-07-23 Solids extraction process

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB08122714A GB2102301B (en) 1981-07-23 1981-07-23 Solids extraction process

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
GB2102301A true GB2102301A (en) 1983-02-02
GB2102301B GB2102301B (en) 1984-08-01

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Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GB08122714A Expired GB2102301B (en) 1981-07-23 1981-07-23 Solids extraction process

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Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2265322A (en) * 1992-03-26 1993-09-29 De Beers Ind Diamond Sorting particles
GB2363999A (en) * 2000-06-28 2002-01-16 Univ Delft Tech Method of separating a particle mixture using a biphasic system

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2265322A (en) * 1992-03-26 1993-09-29 De Beers Ind Diamond Sorting particles
GB2363999A (en) * 2000-06-28 2002-01-16 Univ Delft Tech Method of separating a particle mixture using a biphasic system

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
GB2102301B (en) 1984-08-01

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