Flotation of Uranium from Elliot Lake Ores
W. R. Honeywell Senior Scientific Officer, Hydrometallurgical Section S. Kaiman Head, . Mineralogy Section Extraction Metallurgy Division, Mines Banch, Dept. of Mines & Technical Surveys, Ottawa, Ont.
This paper describes flotation test work conducted over the past several years at the Mines Branch, Ottawa, on the radioactive quartz-pebble conglomerate ores of the Elliot Lake area of Ontario. The purpose of this work has been to produce a uranium flotation concentrate for subsequent leaching operations. The results of earlier investigations are summarized and correlated with the results of mineralogical studies of the ores and flotation products. The results of recent pilot-plant investigations by flotation, as well as by gravity concentration followed by flotation of the gravity tailings, are given. The principal Collector used for uranium flotation was a tall oil fatty acid, and the indicated total cost of all reagents ranged from 21 to 31 cents per ton of ore treated.
Mots Clés:
Concentrate, Concentrates, flotation, Geology and Uranium, pyrite, Quartz-pebbles, sodium silicate, Uraninite, Ore, Ores, Reagents, tailings, uranium
