Document Type : Original Research Paper

Authors

• Asghar Azadehranjbar ¹
• Shahrzad khoramnejadian ²
• Alireza Pendashteh ³
• Saeidreza Asemi Zavareh ²

¹ Department of Environment, Damavand branch, Islamic Azad University, Damavand, Iran .

² Department of environment, damavand branch, islamic azad university, damavand,iran

³ Department of Water and Environment, The Caspian Sea Basin Research Centre, Guilan University, Rasht, Islamic Republic of Iran.

Abstract

Mining and minerals extraction and purification are critical in today’s world. However, these processes may have negative consequences on the environment. Xanthates which are essential in the floatation process are found to be significant polluting chemicals. In this manuscript, the effect of different parameters on the recovery of lead from Nakhlak lead mine was investigated considering the impact of used chemicals on the surrounding environment including air, soil and native plant species. The reason for this investigation was to achieve the optimal conditions for the minimum consumption of xanthates and other chemicals. The optimal recovery was obtained in the presence of xanthate (1 kg/t) and sodium silicate (0.4 kg/t). In addition, MIBC showed to be more efficient in the floatation process. Furthermore, it was observed that higher xanthate contents are required for the floatation of large particles. Therefore, smaller particles of feed can decrease xanthate consumption. A particle size of 100 µm showed the best floatation recovery with the least xanthate requirement.

Keywords

• Mineral processing
• Nakhlak lead mine
• environmental pollution
• bioconcentration factor
• translocation factor

Main Subjects

• Pollution Control