Effect of Mn (II) on quartz flotation using dodecylamine as collector

Quartz is, in most cases, the major gangue mineral found in the manganese ore. Mn iron, dissolved from the surface of ore, will determine the interfacial properties of the particles and, thus, their flotation behavior. In this work, the effect of Mn2+ on quartz flotation was investigated through flotation tests. It was found that quartz can be depressed with Mn2+ and floated with dodecylamine in the pH region 7–8. In order to prove the validity of the findings, UV spectrophotometry, FTIR and SEM-EDS were carried out. UV spectrophotometry tests results show that Mn2+ can competitive adsorb with RNH3+ in the surface of quartz at acidic and neutral pH values. The FTIR measurements and SEM-EDS analysis indicate that Mn2+ forms precipitation and adsorbs on the negatively charged quartz surface, it induces quartz recovery dropping in alkaline pH. Furthermore, in the case of sodium hexametaphosphate (SH), sodium silicate or citric acid, the effects of Mn2+ were also studied. This depression in the given Mn2+ did not disappear. Citric acid is an appropriate modifier to separate quartz depressed by Mn2+ from other ores at pH 7.