Entrainment in Froth Flotation of Fine Coal, Indo-U.S. Collaborative Research

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9415418 Kawatra Description: This project supports collaboration between Dr. S.K. Kawatra of the Michigan Technological University and Dr. T.C. Rao of the Regional Research Laboratory in Bhopal, India. The research aims at understanding the behavior of entrained particles. Entrainment is one of the important mechanisms in processing of coal by froth flotation where particles are transported from the pulp phase to the froth phase. In that process particles enter the base of a flotation froth and are transferred up and out of the flotation cell suspended in water between the bubbles. The process is subject to the influence of many factors, such as the particle size, shape and surface chemistry, whose effects are not fully understood. In this research, experiments will be carried out to conduct studies in batch and continuous flotation cells. Experiments will be conducted using both well-characterized coals and synthetic mixtures of purified components, to compensate for the difficulty of determining particle characteristics in the heterogeneous mixture of minerals in coal. Scope : This project involves collaboration by two scientists with complementary experiences in testing and in mathematical modeling in dealing with a fundamental science problem. The solution of this problem, leading to better understanding of the factors involved in the process of particle entrainment, could have applications in the future in various industries. ***