Characterisation of ferrosilicon dense medium separation material

Ferrosilicon is used in the dense medium separation of iron ore at Kumba resources, Sishen, South Africa. Due to high cost and losses that occur during use, maximum recovery by means of magnetic separation is aimed for. The purpose of this project was to determine the characteristics of the unused Fe-Si and then to characterise the changes that occur during storage and use thereof. Scanning electron microscopy was used to determine the composition of each sample, whilst Mossbauer spectroscopy yielded a two-sextet spectrum with hyperfine magnetic field strengths of 20 and 31 T, respectively, for the fresh samples. Additional hematite oxide peaks appeared in the Mossbauer spectra after use of the Fe-Si over a length of time, but this did not result in a dramatic degradation of the medium. No definite changes occurred during correct storage methods. It was, however, found that the biggest loss of Fe-Si was due to the abrasion of the particles, which resulted in the formation of an oxihydroxide froth, during the process.