Abstract:
As a cornerstone of the national economy, the iron and steel industry generates a significant amount of sintering dust containing both valuable lead resources and deleterious elements. Flotation is a promising technique for lead recovery from sintering dust, but efficient separation from Fe
2O
3 is still challenging. This study investigated the cooperative effect of sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS, C
12H
25SO
4Na) and sodium pyrophosphate (SPP, Na
4P
2O
7) on the selective flotation of lead oxide minerals (PbOHCl and PbSO
4) from hematite (Fe
2O
3). Optimal flotation conditions were first identified, resulting in high recovery of lead oxide minerals while inhibiting Fe
2O
3 flotation. Zeta potential measurements, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis, adsorption capacity analysis, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) studies offer insights into the adsorption behaviors of the reagents on mineral surfaces, revealing strong adsorption of SLS on PbOHCl and PbSO
4 surfaces and remarkable adsorption of SPP on Fe
2O
3. The proposed model of reagent adsorption on mineral surfaces illustrates the selective adsorption behavior, highlighting the pivotal role of reagent adsorption in the separation process. These findings contribute to the efficient and environmentally friendly utilization of iron ore sintering dust for lead recovery, paving the way for sustainable resource management in the iron and steel industry.