Use of mechanical activation in the processing of gold-bearing ores and anthropogenic materials

¹ Mining Institute FEB RAS, 51 Turgenev st., Khabarovsk, 680000, Russia;
² JEOL Ltd., 1-2 Musashino 3-Chome, Akishima, Tokyo 196-8558, Japan

^* Main author: nauka22@yandex.ru

Abstract

The results of experimental studies on the use of mechanical activation in the processing of ores and anthropogenic materials of the Far Eastern region are presented. The effectiveness of the use of electrophotoactivated solutions and complex reagents at the stage of mineral preparation has been established. Technological solutions have been proposed to reduce the loss of finely dispersed and chemically bonded gold during the processing of gold-bearing materials based on a directed change in the properties of the surface of minerals. The effectiveness of the use of the mechanochemical activation process for various aspects of the technological chain has been experimentally confirmed – a decrease in the sorption properties of materials, development of microcracks in oxidized ores for the penetration of leaching solutions into mineral aggregates, oxidation of the surface of primary ores, and removal of films from the mineral surface. Indicators of technological refractoriness of the studied ores and anthropogenic materials were revealed – a high proportion of chemically bound gold with atoms of basic and accessory mineral-forming elements, the presence of grains of the valuable component covered with oxide films, enclosed in carbonates, quartz and waste rock. The refractoriness of ores is confirmed by a high sorption capacity (the predominance of carbonaceous and clay matter), the presence of trace impurities in gold (Sb, As, Cu, Fe, Hg), which increase the consumption of cyanide during leaching. The material composition is dominated by a significant amount of chemical elements – cyanosides, actively interacting with the main complexing agent of leaching solutions – cyanide of alkali metals.