Effects of solution ageing on the zeta potential characteristics of a hematite ore

• Storage containers for mineral slurries can affect their surface properties.
• Ageing of a hematite ore in plastic bottles caused the iep to rise from 2.6 to 4.8.
• Ageing of the hematite ore in plastic bottles caused the iep to fall.
• Fall in iep in glass bottles attributed to adsorption of aqueous silica from glass.

A number of previous studies have demonstrated how the nature of the storage container can affect surface properties of minerals in an aqueous environment. The effects of solution ageing on the zeta potential characteristics of hematite were conducted on a sample of naturally occurring sample from the Iron Prince deposit in the Middleback Range area of South Australia. The iep of the Run of Mine (ROM) ore was measured as 2.6 under standard conditions. Ageing of the hematite in plastic bottles caused the iep to rise to a maximum of 4.8, whereas ageing in glass containers caused the iep to fall. This fall in iep is postulated to be the result of the adsorption of aqueous silica, possibly as a result of its leaching from the glass at normal values of pH.

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