Outotec sets new standards in superior flotation performance; aeration and mixing, froth manipulation and recovery – for every flotation task. Our flotation solutions are tailor-made for each customer, be it a question of flotation packages with support services, modular process sections or even whole concentrators. Every stage in the flotation circuit is customized, be it roughing, scavenging or cleaning.

With over 40 years of experience in proven and innovative flotation, the complete life cycle of the installation, starting from the very first mineralogical study through feasibility studies and simulations, is professionally covered. There is no compromise on quality.

Low operating and maintenance costs and high equipment reliability contribute to a rapid return on investment. The wide range of available cell sizes permits plant design to be compact, economical and efficient, without fear of short-circuiting, even for today's high tonnage operations. Fewer units lead to substantial savings in construction costs, piping, cables, instrumentation and auxiliary equipment

Outotec is the global market leader by installed capacity in flotation and, in the past ten years alone, over 4,000 Outotec flotation units have been installed around the world. Outotec TankCell® provides the world's fastest flotation kinetics (demonstrated in full-scale tests), offers optimized fines and coarse particle flotation and has the largest size range on the market. In 2005, Outotec launched the largest TankCell® in the world, TankCell® 300, with over 300m³ of active volume.

Outotec offers the widest range of flotation solutions to meet all application needs. Each flotation unit can be delivered complete with a customized package of our high-level automation and intelligent instruments.

Optimizing the flotation circuit

As a former mining company and the leading supplier of analyzers and flotation equipment, a large amount of flotation expertise has been concentrated in Outotec’s engineering teams. Outotec's optimization solutions cover practically every type of flotation. Complex chemistry, high non-linearity and the significant effect on the economic performance of the plant make flotation control a challenging task. Numerous customers have entrusted their flotation optimization to us; our solutions significantly improve metallurgical results and reduce costs, leading to a payback time of only a few months.

Maintaining final product quality is critical while keeping an eye on circulating loads in the cleaner section. Outotec Courier® system is able to measure low assays of penalty elements in the presence of a high main element grade to ensure consistent production of the best quality concentrate.

Basic flotation circuit control loops

Successful assay control requires that the key operating parameters of a flotation machine can be managed. The process operator or an expert system determines basic control loop setpoints. Outotec® ACT Advanced Control Tools package can be used to optimize plant operation. Advanced control applications bring more stability to the process, as well as consistency to the plant operation. Less disturbance means less variance in process performance. Higher availability leads to more efficient utilization of capital; equipment is used at full capacity all the time.

Securing exact levels

The precision of the level control contributes directly to the consistency of metallurgical results. Outotec has developed the EXACT-level control solution. It simultaneously monitors the entire flotation line and effectively compensates for the process disturbances before cell levels are affected. Independence of flotation line configuration and joint operation with traditional PID controllers allow easy implementation of existing and new concentrators. An automatic tuning component identifies process parameters on-line, making the use and maintenance of the system very simple. Direct improvements in slurry level control lead to significant benefits in flotation performance.

Keeping an eye on froth

Metallurgists have always wanted an effective means of automatically measuring and controlling froth properties, as balanced froth dynamics maximize cell efficiency. Our response to this need is advanced froth control, which uses information measured by Outotec FrothMaster™ instrument. A hierarchical, multivariable algorithm controls froth flow. Additionally, the system is able to detect abnormal situations such as froth collapse in the froth, and to determine corrective action.

The speed at which the froth is recovered over the lip of the cell has a very direct and consistent influence on the grade and the recovery of the circuit. Attained controllability of froth enables a totally new kind of grade and recovery optimization, as froth speed is used jointly with the on-stream analyses to provide an enhanced responsive and cell-specific optimization system. In some applications, other froth parameters, such as froth stability and froth color are included in the optimization.

Flotation is a well-known extraction/beneficiation process. Flotation of sulphide minerals using synthetic collector chemicals is an invention with a history of more than a hundred years. Numerous plants worldwide utilize this process with very well-controlled and documented environmental impact.

The flotation process needs water. If necessary, seawater is also suitable. It also needs collector reagents in the dosing of some grams per ton of feed, plus regular ambient air blown into the mixture of finely ground minerals and water. To assist the process, other reagents, such as pH modifiers (typically lime or soda ash) and frothers (organic compounds stabilizing the froth) are used. In the case of some minerals, the flotation process needs to use harmful chemicals like cyanide, but fortunately in very small dosages. These substances may also find their way into the plant tailings, which are constantly monitored by authorities.

Perhaps the biggest environmental challenge presently felt with the flotation process is the availability of water. Water resources are often scarce and tightly controlled by authorities, and in certain areas, projects need to build long pipelines to bring water to site. Seawater pipelines and de-salination plants can also be used.

Another impact of the flotation process is tailing areas. These may occupy vast areas, and are composed of slowly settling material and residual amounts of process reagents. Tailing areas are under constant, tight surveillance.

Because of the water issues mentioned above, the clear top water of a tailing area is usually recycled back to the plant, and used as process feed water. The amount of recycled water versus raw (fresh) water is naturally as high as possible, often in the range of 50… 90 % recycling. This recycling can be vastly improved be using tailings thickening. With recycled water, the process may also experience pulp chemistry-related issues, typically leading to difficult controllability in the process.

Flotation

Flotation equipment

Process control equipment

Optimizing the flotation circuit

Basic flotation circuit control loops

Securing exact levels

Keeping an eye on froth

Experts services and plant audits

Plant and equipment upgrades

Maintenance services

Component and spare part services

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Case studies