12.5.

3 Gravity Concentration
Gravity concentration is a proven process for mineral beneficiation.
The gravity concentration techniques are often considered where
flotation practice is less efficient and operational costs are high due
to extremely complicated physical, chemical and mechanical
considerations. The gravity separations are simple and separate
mineral particles of different specific gravity. This is carried out by
their relative movements in response to gravity along with one or
more forces adding resistance to motion offered by viscous media
such as air or water. Particle motion in a fluid depends on specific
gravity, size and shape of the moving material. The efficiency
increases with coarser size to move sufficiently but becomes
sensitive in presence of slimes. There are many types of gravity
separators suitable for different situations. There are many devices
for gravity concentration. The common methods are manual pans,
jigs, pinched sluice and cones, spiral concentrator and shaking
table to name a few.
(a)
Panning
Panning as a mineral or metal recovery technique was known to
ancients since centuries past. Gold panning was popular and
extensively practiced in California, Argentina, Australia, Brazil,
Canada, South Africa and India during the nineteenth century.
Panning is done by manual shaking of tray containing riverbed sand
and gravels, alluvial deposits containing precious metals like gold,
silver, tin, tungsten etc. The shaking of the tray separates sand,
stones and fine-grained metals into different layers by differential
gravity concentration (Fig. 12.28). The undesired materials are
removed. This is primitive practice at low cost and generally in
practice at small scale by the local tribal people.
Download full-size image
FIGURE 12.28.  Recovery of gold, platinum and other heavy valuable

minerals by panning is extensively practiced today in remote tribal areas.

(b)
Jig
Jigs are continuous pulsating gravity concentration
devices. Jigging for concentrating minerals is based exclusively
on differences in the density of the particles. The elementary jig
(Fig. 12.29) is an open tank filled with water. A thick bed of coarse
heavy particles (ragging) is placed on a perforated horizontal jig
screen. The feed material is poured from the top. Water is pulsated
up and down (the jigging action) by pneumatic or mechanical
plunger. The feed moves across the jig bed. The heavier particles
penetrate through the ragging and screen to settle down faster as
concentrate. The concentrate is removed from the bottom of the
device. Jigging action causes the lighter particles to be carried
away by the cross flow supplemented by a large amount of water
continuously supplied to the concentrate chamber. Jig efficiency
improves with relatively coarse feed material having wide variation
in specific gravity. Jigs are widely used as efficient and economic
coal cleaning device.
Download full-size image
FIGURE 12.29.  Conceptual diagram illustrates the basic principles of Jig

concentrator.

(c)
Pinched sluice and cones
Pinched sluice and cones is an inclined trough made of wood,
aluminum, steel and fiberglass, 60-90 cm long. The channel tapers
from about 25 cm in width at the feed end to 3 cm at the discharge
end. Feed consisting of 50-65% solids enters the sluice and
stratifies as the particles flow through the sluice. The materials
squeeze into the narrow discharge area. The piling causes the bed
to dilate and allows heavy minerals to migrate and move along the
bottom. The lighter particles are forced to the top. The resulting
mineral strata are separated by a splitter at the discharge end (Fig.
12.30). Pinched sluices are simple and inexpensive device. It is
mainly used for separation of heavy mineral sands. A large number
of basic units and recirculation pumps are required for an industrial
application. The system is improved by development and adoption
of the Reichert cone. The complete device is comprised of several
cones stacked vertically in circular frames and integrated.
Download full-size image
FIGURE 12.30.  Conceptual diagram portrays the basic principles of

pinched sluice concentrator.

(d)
Spiral concentrator
Spiral concentrator is a modern high-capacity and a low-cost
device. It is developed for concentration of LGOs and industrial
minerals in slurry form. It works on a combination of the solid
particle density and its hydrodynamic dragging properties. Spirals
consist of a single or double helical conduit or sluice wrapped
around a central collection column. It has a wash water channel and
a series of concentrate removal ports placed at regular intervals
along the spiral. Separation is achieved by stratification of material
caused by a complex combined effect of centrifugal force,
differential settling and heavy particle migration through the bed to
the inner part of the conduit (Fig. 12.31). The most extensive
application is treatment of heavy mineral beach sand consisting of
monazite, ilmenite, rutile, zircon, garnet etc. It is widely used to
upgrade chromite concentrate. Two or more spirals are constructed
around one central column to increase the amount of material that
can be processed by a single integrated unit.
Download full-size image
FIGURE 12.31.  A typical sketch diagram of spiral concentrator working at

chromite process plants, Sukinda layered igneous complex, India.

(e)
Shaking table
Shaking table consists of a sloping deck with a rifled surface. A
motor drives a small arm that shakes the table along its length,
parallel to the rifle pattern. This longitudinal shaking motion drives
at a slow forward stroke followed by rapid return strike. The rifles
are arranged in such a manner that heavy material is trapped and
conveyed parallel to the direction of the oscillation (Fig. 12.32).
Water is added to the top of the table and perpendicular to the table
motion. The heaviest and coarsest particles move to one end of the
table. The lightest and finest particles tend to wash over the rifles
and to the bottom edge. Intermediate points between these
extremes provide recovery of the middling (intermediate size and
density) particles.
Download full-size image
FIGURE 12.32.  A typical model diagram of shaking table in recovery of

gold, platinum etc.

Shaking tables find extensive use in concentrating gold. It is also

used in the recovery of tin and tungsten minerals. These devices
are often used downstream of other gravity concentration
equipments such as spirals, Reicherts cone, jigs and centrifugal
gravity concentrators for final cleaning prior to refining or sale of
product.
(f)
Multi-gravity separator
Multi-gravity separator (MGS) is a new development in flowing film
concentration expertise which utilizes combined effect of centrifugal
force and shaking (Fig. 12.33). Centrifugal force enhances the
gravitational force and obtains better metallurgical performance by
recovering particles down to 1 μm in diameter. It would otherwise
escape into tailing stream if other conventional wet gravity
separators like jigs, spiral, table etc. are used. The principle of the
system consists essentially in wrapping the horizontal concentrating
surface of a conventional shaking table into a cylindrical drum and
then rotates. A force, many times greater than the normal
gravitational pull, is exerted by this means on particles in the film
flowing across the surface. This enhances the separation process
to a great extent. MGS in close circuit with lead rougher cells of
graphite schist-hosted sulfide ore improves the lead concentrate
metallurgy from 20 to +40% Pb. Graphitic carbon content reduces
simultaneously from >10 to less than 3%. Presence of graphitic
carbon interferes with the flotation of sulfide ore resulting in low
metal recovery and unclean concentrate. MGS improves the
metallurgical recovery and quality of concentrate for graphite
carbon-bearing sulfide ore and high alumina-bearing fine iron ore.
MGS technique is working successfully at Rajpura-Dariba zinc-lead
plant and all iron ore plant in India by decreasing graphitic carbon
and alumina respectively. MGS improves 42.9% Cr2O3 with 73.5%
recovery from the magnetic tailings of Guleman-Sori beneficiation
plant in Turkey.