The present invention relates to a collector composition containing 80 to 100 wt % of at least one alkylethermonoamine, less than 20 wt % alkyletherdiamine, all wt % based on total weight of all amine components, and wherein the alkylethermonoamine contains between 60 and 93% isotridecyl(C13)etherpropylamine, 5 and 30% of isododecyl(C12)etherpropylamine, 0 and 10% of isoundecyl(C11)-etherpropylamine, 0 and 10% of isodecyl(C10)etherpropylamine, 2 and 10% tetradecyl(C14) etherpropylamine, all % being based on total weight of alkylethermonoamine and the use thereof in a process to treat iron ore.

The present invention is directed to a method for selectively recovering a sulphide mineral from an ore applying a collector being an alkylated triphenyl phosphorothionate. Further, the present invention is directed to the use of said alkylated triphenyl phosphorothionates to separate a target mineral from iron sulphide and/or silicate gangue.

Methods for niobium concentration from a carbonatite host rock are presented. A basic process for niobium mineral concentration involves performing niobium mineral flotation, on a sufficiently liberated ore slurry, using at one least aromatic hydroxamate collector; and at least one lead salt as a performance modifier. A more optimized process further includes dispersion. A further optimized process includes: magnetic separation, dispersion, sulphide removal, fine suspended particle removal, and niobium cleaner flotation stages. The use of one of number of tested lead salts during flotation improves the yield, and lowers the cost as a significantly lower amount of the collector is required. The process is useful for recovering a variety of species of niobium minerals such as fersmite, pyrochlore, columbite, fergusonite, niobium-containing rutile, and niobium-containing ilmenite.

Disclosed herein are methods and systems for recovery of ancylite, a rare earth mineral comprising strontium carbonate, from rare earth ore. In many embodiments, the disclosed methods and systems provide for recovery of greater than 50% of the ancylite from an ancylite containing ore. In many embodiments, the ore is subjected to flotation in the presence of an acid, for example a hydroxamic acid, such as octanohydroxamic acid. The ore may also be subjected to magnetic separation, for example wet high intensity magnetic separation.

Depressants comprising a moderately oxidized polysaccharide having about 0.05 to about 4.5 mmol of anionic charge per gram at a pH of about 6 to about 7, or about 0.2 to about 5 mmol of anionic charge per gram at a pH of about 10 to about 11.2, are provided. Also disclosed are processes for enriching a desired mineral from an ore comprising the desired mineral and gangue, wherein the process comprises carrying out a flotation process in the presence of one or more of the depressants.

A flotation arrangement for treating mineral ore particles suspended in slurry includes a primary flotation line with a rougher part and a scavenger part. Overflow of at least one rougher primary flotation cell is arranged to flow directly into a rougher cleaner cell. Underflow from a first rougher cleaner flotation cell is combined into overflow from a rougher primary flotation cell downstream from the rougher primary flotation cell from which the first rougher cleaner flotation cell receives primary overflow; or into combined overflows from rougher primary flotation cells downstream from the rougher primary flotation cell from which the first rougher cleaner flotation cell receives primary overflow; or into overflow from an additional rougher cleaner cell which receives primary overflow from at least one rougher primary flotation cell downstream from the rougher primary flotation cell from which the first rougher cleaner flotation cell receives primary overflow.

The present invention relates to a compound obtainable by reacting an N-acyl neutral amino acid or a salt thereof, or an N-acyl neutral amino acid oligopeptide or a salt thereof with a monohydroxy monocarboxylic acid or a salt thereof. This compound is useful as a collector in a process for froth flotation of non-sulfidic ores, especially phosphate ores. The invention also relates to a method which comprises the steps of a) conditioning a pulped phosphate ore, wherein the phosphate ore comprises a calcium phosphate mineral or a mixture of such minerals, and gangue minerals, with an effective amount of a calcium phosphate mineral collector reagent, which is the above-mentioned compound, and optionally other flotation aids and b) performing a froth flotation process to recover the calcium phosphate mineral(s).

A flotation arrangement for treating mineral ore particles suspended in slurry. The arrangement includes a primary line including at least two primary flotation cells, a first secondary line, and a second secondary line downstream of the first secondary line. In the arrangement, underflow from a secondary line is arranged to flow to the last of the at least one primary flotation cells from which the primary overflow was received, or to a primary flotation cell downstream of the last of the at least one primary flotation cells from which the primary overflow was received. The disclosure further relates a use of a flotation arrangement, to a flotation plant and to a flotation method.

A flotation arrangement for treating mineral ore particles suspended in slurry includes a primary flotation line with a rougher part including at least two rougher primary flotation cells and a scavenger part including at least two scavenger primary flotation cells, and a secondary flotation line including at least two secondary flotation cells. A first secondary flotation cell is arranged to receive primary overflow from the at least one rougher primary flotation cell, and a further secondary flotation cell to receive primary overflow from the at least one further rougher primary flotation cell. The further secondary flotation cell is arranged in fluid communication with a previous secondary flotation cell, and underflow from the first secondary flotation cell is arranged to flow into the further secondary flotation cell, or arranged to be combined with secondary underflow of the further secondary flotation cell.

Selective polysaccharide agents or flocculants comprise one or more types of polysaccharides comprising one or more types of pentosan units. Also disclosed are processes for enriching a desired mineral from an ore comprising the desired mineral and gangue and/or other minerals, wherein the process comprises treating the ore in an aqueous medium with one or more selective polysaccharide agents or flocculants comprising one or more types of polysaccharides comprising one or more types of pentosan units.