Chair of Non-Ferrous Metals and Gold, National University of Science and Technology “MISiS”, Moscow, Russia:

E. V. Bogatyreva, Assistant Professor, e-mail: Helen_Bogatureva@mail.ru
A. G. Ermilov, Ex-employee

This work demonstrates the possibility of forecasting of reactivity of low-grade tungstenite concentrate after preliminary mechanical activation, using X-ray analysis. Application of chemical and physical methods leads to disintegration of the sample and requires significant amounts of activated material. That's why, application of X-ray analysis is more efficient. This work presents X-ray diffraction analysis for unactivated and activated low-grade tungstenite concentrate with different grain size. According to X-ray diffraction analysis, there was estimated the influence of the following energies on total energy, stored during mechanical activation:
— energy, spent for changing of interplanar spacing of crystal lattice (ΔE_d);
— energy, stored in the form of freshly formed crystallite surfaces (ΔE_s);
— energy, stored in microstrain form (ΔE_ε).
This approach is unique, because it offers both possibility of evaluation of energy, stored in the system, and forecasting of reactivity of materials from X-ray diffraction analysis, without chemical or physical characterization, with typically lead to the sample disintegration and requires significant amounts of activated material. Process tests confirmed the foregoing, because extraction degree depended not on the total stored energy, but on the type of energy. Research results confirmed the fact that the energy, stored in the forms of ΔE_s and ΔE_ε during mechanical activation, makes an influence on leaching behavior of low-grade tungstenite concentrate. There was studied the influence of ΔE_s and ΔE_ε in tungstenite phase during mechanical activation on WO₃ extraction into solution through low temperature alkaline leaching. Evaluation of reactivity of milled tungstenite concentrate from X-ray diffraction analysis allowed to optimize mechanical activation conditions and to reach tungsten extraction into solution at the level of 99%.

1. Bogatyreva E. V., Ermilov A. G., Sviridova T. A., Savina O. S., Podshibyakina K. V. Neorganicheskie materialy — Inorganic materials. 2011. Vol. 47, No. 6. pp. 877–883.
2. Voldman G. M., Zelikman A. N. Teoriya gidrometallurgicheskikh protsessov (Theory of hydrometallurgical processes). Moscow : Intermet Engineering, 2003. 464 p.