SPA SOMEX, Moscow, Russia¹ ; Mining Industrialists of Russia, Moscow, Russia²:

A. Yu. Nikitin, CEO, Executive Director, Candidate of Economic Sciences

SPA SOMEX, Moscow, Russia¹ ; NUST MISIS, Moscow, Russia²:

R. A. Eliseeva, Engineering Manager¹, Post-Graduate Student², engineering@somex.ru

NUST MISIS, Moscow, Russia:

T. I. Yushina, Head of the Mineral and Waste Treatment and Processing Department, Associate Professor, Candidate of Engineering Sciences

Apatit JSC’s Division in Kirovsk, Kirovsk, Russia:
A. I. Kalugin, Deputy Chief Engineer—Chief Dresser, Candidate of Engineering Sciences

The article discusses design variables and operation, as well as control and adjustment of process flows in column flotation machines of the same size from four different manufacturers. The relevance and key features of the column flotation method are shown. The main directions of modernization of column flotation machines with justification and comparison of operational characteristics are revealed. The technological performance indicators of the Russian flotation column, developed on the basis of a comparative analysis, are given. In Russia, column flotation machines are widely used in the flotation of phosphate raw materials. They are used at the processing plants of Apatit and North-Western Phosphorus Company, processing apatite–nepheline ores of the Khibiny deposits, and ensured a reduction in the number of refining operations from three to one. Column flotation machines of four manufacturers are used at these enterprises: CPT (Canada), BGRIMM (China), Metso Minerals (Finland), SPA SOMEX (Russia). Brief results of technological tests comparing the performance of two parallel sections, one performed on equipment manufactured by Metso Minerals, the second on the equipment of SPA SOMEX, are presented. It is established that the column flotation machine manufactured by SPA SOMEX takes into account the experience of operating columns from various manufacturers and is the most advanced version of column apparatuses.

1. Harbort G. Fluctuations in the popularity and usage of flotation columns—An overview. Minerals Engineering. 2017. Vol. 100. pp. 17–30.
2. Lavrinenko A. A. State and trends of development of flotation machines for solid mineral concentration in Russia. Tsvetnye Metally. 2016. No. 11. pp. 19–26. DOI: 10.17580/tsm.2016.11.02
3. Gan Cheng, Yuexian Yu, Wencheng Xia, Hongxiang Xu. Energy feature of a multi-flow column flotation process. Physicochemical Problems of Mineral Processing. 2017. Vol. 53(2). pp. 1264–1284.
4. Column Flotation Cell. Operating and Maintenance Manual. Vancouver : Canadian Process Technologies Inc., 2001. 52 p.
5. BGRIMM Machinery. BGRIMM Technology Group. Available at: http://english.bgrimm.com/products/bgrimmmachinery/index.htm (accessed: 19.06.2021).
6. Flotation columns: getting the most from fine ores. Metso Outotec, 2021. Available at: https://www.mogroup.com/insights/blog/mining-and-metals/flotation-columns-getting-the-most-fromfine-ores/ (accessed: 19.06.2021).
7. Review of flotation units market for processing of mineral raw materials in Russia : Report. 2nd ed. Moscow, 2019. 171 p.
8. Flotation machines. SPA SOMEX, 2021. Available at: http://www.somex.ru/katalog/gornometalurgicheskoe_oborudovanie/oborudovanie/flotomashiny/ (accessed: 19.06.2021).
9. Cheng G., Shi C. L., Liu J. T., Yan X. K. Bubble-Distribution Measurement in a Flotation Column. International Journal of Coal Preparation and Utilization. 2016. Vol. 36, Iss. 5. pp. 241–250.
10. Yushina T. I., Petrov I. M., Belousova E. B. Flotation machines in Russia: State-of-the-art and prospects. Gornyi Zhurnal. 2016. No. 3. pp. 61–67. DOI: 10.17580/gzh.2016.03.13
11. Gan Cheng, Yijun Cao, Chuanxiang Zhang, Zhendong Jiang, Yuexian Yu et al. Application of novel flotation systems to fine coal cleaning. International Journal of Coal Preparation and Utilization. 2018. Vol. 40, No. 1. pp. 24–36.
12. Measurement Data Test Protocol No. 734 dated 16 Jun 2021 under Agreement No. 29 dated 29 Jan 2020. Production and Control Laboratory, Technical Supervision Department, North-Western Phosphorus Company, 2021.