Implementation of a model for Falcon separation units using continuous size-density distributions

• Modeling of the Falcon enhanced gravity separator.
• Representation of washabilities with continuous functions.
• Application to coal fines and dredged sediments particle size–density distributions.
• Step towards validation of the model for industrial scale Falcon devices.

Falcon concentrators are commonly used in the mining industry to separate ores. Recent research yielded a predictive model for their separation performance in the form an analytical expression, based on a mechanistic understanding of the separation physics in these devices. While giving good results for lab-scale concentrators, in the form it is given, this model is not ready for industrial applications because of two limitations: its strong dependance on high quality measurements of size-density distributions, and its sensitivity to the discretization of data. These two shortcomings are solved by representing the distributions using continuous polynomials functions, in order to produce a robust model that makes it possible to validate the predictions for industrial scale Falcon bowls.