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    Processing of China Clay by Super-Conducting High Gradient Magnetic Separation

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    Charith Liyanage
    1. Superconducting high gradient magnetic separation tests on an Indian china clay sample showed that brightness can be enhanced from 72.89% to 79% ISO by optimizing process variables like feed solid content, retention time, and number of passes. 2. A brightness of 79% was achieved with a two pass operation using a 15% solid content slurry, 20 second retention time, and 5 canister volumes of feed. Overall clay recovery was 86.44% across both passes. 3. The tests indicated that iron content could be reduced to around 55% of original levels and titanium dioxide by around 12%, suggesting further brightness improvements may be possible by removing more titanium dioxide.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Processing of China Clay by Super-Conducting High Gradient Magnetic Separation

    Uploaded by

    Charith Liyanage
    50 views6 pages
    1. Superconducting high gradient magnetic separation tests on an Indian china clay sample showed that brightness can be enhanced from 72.89% to 79% ISO by optimizing process variables like feed solid content, retention time, and number of passes. 2. A brightness of 79% was achieved with a two pass operation using a 15% solid content slurry, 20 second retention time, and 5 canister volumes of feed. Overall clay recovery was 86.44% across both passes. 3. The tests indicated that iron content could be reduced to around 55% of original levels and titanium dioxide by around 12%, suggesting further brightness improvements may be possible by removing more titanium dioxide.

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    SUPER CONDUCTION-magnetic separation of china clay

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    108-113

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    1. Superconducting high gradient magnetic separation tests on an Indian china clay sample showed that brightness can be enhanced from 72.89% to 79% ISO by optimizing process variables like feed solid content, retention time, and number of passes. 2. A brightness of 79% was achieved with a two pass operation using a 15% solid content slurry, 20 second retention time, and 5 canister volumes of feed. Overall clay recovery was 86.44% across both passes. 3. The tests indicated that iron content could be reduced to around 55% of original levels and titanium dioxide by around 12%, suggesting further brightness improvements may be possible by removing more titanium dioxide.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    50 views6 pages

    Processing of China Clay by Super-Conducting High Gradient Magnetic Separation

    Uploaded by

    Charith Liyanage
    1. Superconducting high gradient magnetic separation tests on an Indian china clay sample showed that brightness can be enhanced from 72.89% to 79% ISO by optimizing process variables like feed solid content, retention time, and number of passes. 2. A brightness of 79% was achieved with a two pass operation using a 15% solid content slurry, 20 second retention time, and 5 canister volumes of feed. Overall clay recovery was 86.44% across both passes. 3. The tests indicated that iron content could be reduced to around 55% of original levels and titanium dioxide by around 12%, suggesting further brightness improvements may be possible by removing more titanium dioxide.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Processing of china clay by super-conducting


    high gradient magnetic separation
    P. RAGHAVAN, S. CHANDRASEKHAR and S. RAMASWAN1Y
    Re,Srional Resear-c'h Laboratory (CSIR). Trirandrtnnr 695 ON, India

    ABSTRACT
    Super-conchrcrirr^; high gradient magnetic separation tests nrr a typical
    china clay front the wester-rr part of India showed drat the brightness
    of the clay can be enhanced front 72.89c to 79% ISO by srritablsnrarripularurg the process variables. Important variables studied arc
    feed solid content, retention time, production rate (rutmber of canister
    nolurnes), number of passes etc. keeping the magnetic field strerrgilt
    corrstaut. The secondary magnet (wire stool rnatr-ix) and its packing
    volunte were also not changed during these tests. A brightness of 799
    Was achieved is-itlr a two pass operation for 5 canister volume feed
    slurry having 1517c solid content and with retention rime of about 20
    sees. Tire overall clay recovery is 86>44 (94r'7c_for the first pass and 92(4
    for tire second pass). Understandably, the feed solid content of second
    pass wa.s foster than 159% ttrhile the iron (Fe,0) could be reduced 1
    about 559 the reduction in TiO, was about 12% indicating that there
    .still exists scope for- renroyhrg Ti0, front this clerk and enhancing
    brightness further: All the SC-HGMS tests were conducted at Bhabhcr
    Atomic Research Centre, Trombay, Bombay. India.
    Key tb'ords : China chin; 13eaeftviaiion. Super--c-arrdrfcting high gradicrrt nufgfwlic
    separation, 8riglrmess. Retention time

    INTROI)CCTiON
    India has got substantial reserves of china clay spread over almost all the
    states of the Union. Many of these are not exploited optimally since modern
    technologies are not yet incorporated to most of the clay hene iciation plants in
    the country. Many units still employ the Icvigation method which is a timeconsuming hatch operation. More over, discrete ancillary mineral inihotritic; sill
    remain svith the clay thus making the product unsuitable for mans sal tic adLlctl
    applications. Modern processing methods are mostly continuous and utilise;

    P. RAGHAVAN et. al.

    centrifugal size classification, high gradient magnetic separation, ultrallotation,


    oxidative and reductive bleaching etc. by which impurities such as iron,
    titanoferrous and carbonaceous minerals even in ultrafine size range can be
    removed or reduced thus enhancing the brightness of the clay.
    Superconducting High Gradient Magnetic Separation (SC-HGMS) which is
    an important operation in china clay processing flow-sheet is yet to get firm
    footing in our country whereas this is a standard operation in most of the modern
    clay processing plants elsewhere in the world. A high gradient magnetic separator was patented for the first time by S.G.Frantznl^in 1937. Though this could
    develop high gradient, the field was relatively small. In 1955 G.H.Jones21 invented the wet high intensity magnetic separator which could develop very high
    fields up to 20 kG. J. Iannicelli, combined these two properties and along with
    the important concept of retention time he could develop the first high gradient
    magnetic separator (also with high field) which was used for beneficiating kaolin"'. HGMS went through many phases of modification and development from
    1970's to 1990 in magnetics, mechanical designs and more importantly in cryogenics when super-conducting magnets were introduced in place of high powerconsuming, heavy-built conventional magnets. J.H.P. Watson"' gives an informative account of the status of super-conducting magnetic separation in kaolin
    industry. There are many papers dealing with different aspects of HGMS as well
    as SC-HGMS from a number of authors i5A7.11. From an ordinary conventional
    `switch off and on' type batch separator, the equipment and technology has
    grown now to have high field, low weight, low power consuming, continuous
    (reciprocating) separators which can give capacities in the order of 60-100 tons
    of dry solids per hour.
    With a view to introduce modernisation in china clay processing in the country, SC-HGMS tests were carried out on a typical clay sample so as to establish
    the viability of its value addition by this method. Impurities normally removed
    by SC-HGMS are iron, titanoferrous and micaceous mineralsEXPERIMENTAL
    The experimental procedures adopted, equipment and test materials used are
    as follows
    Feed Material
    The feed material is a semi - processed china clay sample measuring 72.5%
    ISO brightness . The raw clay of this sample was collected from north western
    part of India and is subjected to size classifications so as to obtain--80 % particles
    below 2m in the product . The feed clay analysed 0.36%r% FeO, 1.6% TiO, and
    0.39% Na,O.
    109

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    P. RAGHAV4N et. of.

    Reagents
    Sodium hexa meta phosphate (calg=on) 0.4 % with respect to dry ,(lid.
    used as the dispersing agent for the clay in all the tests.
    Water
    Demineralised water was used for the test workEquipment
    i) The super-conducting high gradient magnetic separation test set up of
    BARC, Bombay.
    The system constitutes a feed slurry preparation unit, separator unit and
    the control unit. The feed preparation unit consists of a s.s. tank, a stirrer
    and a slurry pump. The separation unit consists of the magnet, the cryo', enic system, the canister, the wire wool matrix and the necessary pipings and control valves. The control unit consists of all electrical and
    electronic regulators for the ramping and deramping of the magnetii) The brightnessmeter, Color Touch, ISO model of M/s. Technidyne Corporation US for measuring the brightness of product samples.
    Chemical Analysis
    Na2O, Fe7O, and TiO, were determined by standard analytical procedures'
    Na,O was estimated using flamephotorneter whereas others are by cotorimetry.
    PROCEDURE
    The super-conducting high gradient magnet is made ready for operation by
    pouring the required quantity of liquid helium in the chamber and allowing to
    attain the set temperature level. Necessary liquid nitrogen bath is also provided.
    The current is passed through the super-conducting coil so as to energise the
    magnet and to ramp up the Field to the required level (3 tesla). The required
    slurry with a pre-determined solid content is prepared in the feed preparation unit
    by adding the dispersant. The feed slurry is pumped through the canister at a
    specified flow rate from bottom to top while the product clay slurry (nonmagnetics)
    is collected from the top of the separator. Once the feed slurry pumping is over,
    the matrix is rinsed with de-mineralised water in the same direction as the feed
    slurry flow and the resultant material is also collected atom= with the product.
    After the rinsing, the power is switched off so that the magnet gets deramped and
    the field becomes almost zero. Flush water at high volume and pressure is now
    pumped through the canister in the opposite direction to the field flow and the
    impurities (magnetics') are collected from the bottom of the separator. The batch
    IM

    P RAGHAVAN et. al.

    operations are continued in the same fashion by changing the variable as required-

    This preliminary SC-HGMS study was conducted so as to understand the


    behaviour of the impurity minerals in the clay towards the magnetic separation
    and also to establish the feasibility of removal. Important process variables such
    as feed solid content, retention time or the feed solid flow rate, production rate
    or number of canister volumes and number of passes were tried- One canister
    volume measured 226m1. Coarse wire wool of 55 m dia. at 3% packing volume
    was used for all tests. The magnetic field strength was kept constant at 3 tesla_
    The feed slurry was dispersed using calgon (0.4 %) and the pH was maintained
    at-8.0 using sod. carbonate solution. The product (nonmagnetic fraction) slurries
    were thickened by decantation and filtered and dried at 80C and brightness is
    measured. Following variables have been studied.
    Feed solids
    The feed solid content was varied from 7.5 to 15% at constant conditions of
    retention time and canister volumes of slurry. Though the brightness remained
    more or less same for lower solids, the same is found increased for 15%
    (Fig. 1). Due to some design limitations of the set up, higher solid slurries could
    not be fed to the separator.

    w Series 1

    15

    Feed Solids. I

    Fig. 1 : Effect of fee d solid conierr on prrrduct brightness


    Retention Time
    Perhaps the most important operating variable is the retention time. This
    could he varied only in a relatively lower range. Expectedly , the maximum
    brightness gain was for the highest retention time (Fig. 2) that could be given to
    the slurry under the present operating conditions.
    Ill

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    Seriesl
    Brightness, G ISO
    Retention Time, Sec.

    20

    Fig. 2 : Effect of retention time on prodiwi brightness


    Production Rate

    Variation of number of canister volumes fed showed that more than even
    canister volumes reduces the brightness drastically ( Fig. 3). Production rate may
    have to he set pegging around this feed volume.

    Series 1
    Brightness , %ISO

    0.16

    0.29
    0.41
    Volumetric production Rate, m3/hr

    0.54

    Fig. 3 : l;fect ol hrodactton rate wt product hriglrtness

    Number of Passes
    The product of first pass is again Passed through the magnet under similar
    conditions of separation. The brightness increased by another two units indica!
    ing that a second pass is beneficial for removing more impurities from the clay.
    All the tests more or less showed a clay recovery in the range 94-96'% for
    Single pass operations. Due to the relatively love feed solid content. the production rate was eery low i.e.. in the range 0.1 to 0.2 tons/hr of dry solids. The
    chemical analysis of product clay from 2nd pass showed 0. I59 Fe,O, and 1.417(
    112

    P RAGHAVAN er af.

    TiO, which, in turn, indicated that while the iron removal was about 55% that
    of TiO, was a meagre 12%.
    CONCLUSION
    1. SC-HGMS tests clearly showed that the impurity minerals are susceptible for capture and hence the removal can be effected.
    2. While more than half of the iron ( in term of Fe,O,) is removed, the
    capture of TiO, is very minimal. This shows that still higher field and
    gradient may have to he applied in order to effect more of TiO,_
    removal.
    3. The range of many of the operational variables were too small to have
    a realistic feel of the process conditions . Perhaps a state-of- the -art
    machine may give better results.
    ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
    The authors are deeply indebted to Dr. V.C.Sahni , Head, TP & PED and
    Dr. Bhagwat BARC, Bombay for giving permission to work with their
    SC-HGMS unit and also to the engineers viz., Ms. U. Sridhar, Ajoy Singh and
    K.L. Patel who helped us in all the test work. We are also thankful to Mr. N.P.H.
    Padmanabhan, Head, ODS, AMC complex, Hyderabad for his co-operation and
    co-ordination for the test work. We also thank our Director, Dr.G.Vijay Nair
    who has given permission to present this paper.
    REFERENCES
    1. Frantz S.G., (1937), US Pat. 2074085
    2. Jones G.H.. (1955), British pat. 767124 & 768451
    3. tannicelli J., (1976), "High extraction magnetic filtration of kaolin clay; clays and
    Clay", Minerals, vol. 24, p. 64.
    4. Watson J.H.P., (1994), " Status of superconducting magnetic separation in the mineral
    industry"; Minerals Engineering, Vol.7, No. 5/6, p. 737.
    5. Finch J.A. and Leroux M, (1982), "Selecting conditions for high gradient magnetic
    separation "; Int. J. Miner. Process, Vol 9, p. 329.

    6. Shoumkov S. et. a1 . (1987). "High gradient magnetic treatment of kaolin", Interceram,


    No. 6, p. 26.
    7. D'Assumpcao, L.F.G. et. al. (1996). " High gradient magnetic separation of Kaolin
    clay; Minerals and metallurgical processing". August. p. 124.
    8. Knoll F.S., Allen R. and Richards D.. (1997), "Superconducting magnetic separators
    in mineral processing"; Soc. For mining, metallurgy and exploration, Inc.; SME
    annual Meeting; preprint, p. 97.

    113

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