Collectors for treating tailings
AssigneeSyncrude Canada Ltd.
InventorsSimon Yuan, James Lorentz, Ron Siman
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A process for treating and dewatering tailings comprising fine clay minerals, fine rock-forming minerals and water is provided, comprising treating the tailings with a sufficient amount of a collector to modify the surface properties of both the fine clays and rock-forming minerals; subjecting the treated tailings to froth flotation to form a fine clays and rock-forming minerals froth layer; and recovering the froth layer and subjecting it to dewatering.
Claims16
A process for treating and dewatering tailings comprising fine clay minerals, fine rock-forming minerals and water, the fine rock-forming minerals comprising at least one of quartz, a carbonate mineral and feldspar, comprising:
- (a) treating the tailings with a sufficient amount of a collector to increase the hydrophobicity of both the fine clays minerals and the rock-forming minerals;
- (b) subjecting the treated tailings to froth flotation to form a fine clay minerals and the rock-forming minerals froth layer;
- and
- (c) recovering the froth layer and subjecting it to dewatering.
A process for treating and dewatering oil sand tailings comprising fine clay minerals, fine rock-forming minerals and water, the fine rock-forming minerals comprising at least one of quartz, a carbonate mineral and feldspar, comprising:
- (a) treating the oil sand tailings with a sufficient amount of a metal cation to render the fine clay minerals and the fine rock-forming minerals positively charged and form a first treated tailings;
- (b) treating the first treated tailings with a sufficient amount of an anionic collector to render the positively charged fine clay minerals and the rock-forming minerals present in the first treated tailings hydrophobic and form a second treated tailings;
- (c) subjecting the second treated tailings to froth flotation to form a fine clay minerals and rock-forming minerals froth layer;
- and
- (d) recovering the froth layer and subjecting the froth layer to dewatering.
A process of treating and dewatering oil sand tailings comprising fine clay minerals, rock-forming minerals, and water, the fine rock-forming minerals comprising at least one of quartz, a carbonate mineral and feldspar, comprising:
- (a) treating the oil sand tailings with a sufficient amount of a cationic polymer to render the fine clay minerals and the fine rock-forming minerals positively charged and form a first treated tailings;
- (b) treating the first treated tailings with a sufficient amount of an anionic collector to render the positively charged fine clay minerals and the rock-forming minerals present in the first treated tailings hydrophobic and form a second treated tailings;
- (c) subjecting the second treated tailings to froth flotation to form a fine clay minerals and rock-forming minerals froth layer;
- and
- (d) recovering the froth layer and subjecting the froth layer to dewatering.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.