Zirconia Enrichment of Zircon from Arikya, Nasarawa State, Nigeria, by Magnetic and Gravity Separation Processes for Use as Reinforcing Agent in Composite Formulation

Eng Pub Date : 2024-01-17 DOI:10.3390/eng5010010

Benneth Ifenna Okoli, O. Agboola, A. P. Onwualu, Abdulhakeem Bello, O. Sholiyi, V. Anye, O. T. Yusuf

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Abstract

Acceptable zircon for composite formulation in the aerospace industry requires that the mineral contains a minimum of 65% zirconia (ZrO2). Despite having vast deposits of zircon, Nigeria’s aerospace industry has historically relied primarily on imported mild steel tubes for solid rocket motor cases (SRMCs) construction, resulting in three major challenges: low strength-to-weight ratio, pressure, and temperature containment. In this study, the Arikya zircon deposit located in northern Nigeria was investigated with the aim of upgrading low-grade zircon ore using magnetic and gravity separation processes for use in composite formulation for SRMCs. The dry high-intensity magnetic separator (DHIMS) produced a ZrO2 grade of 52.48%, recovery of 57.99%, and an enrichment ratio of 0.78 with a separation efficiency of 0.56, while the air-floating separator (AFS) generated the highest of 65.52% ZrO2 grade with 70.81% recovery and enrichment ratio of 1.25 with a separation efficiency of 0.25. The ZrO2 content increased from 40.77 to 65.52% after beneficiation. Iron oxide and titanium dioxide contaminants at 0.73 and 0.83% were reduced to 0.66 and 0.54%, respectively, while the specific gravity increased from 4.4 to 4.6 g/cm3. The ZrO2 content and specific gravity were improved to the minimum standard specified for zirconia-reinforced composite application and competed effectively with industrially/globally accepted zircon. These results demonstrated the efficacy of combining DHIMS and AFS to upgrade the low-grade zircon ore from Arikya, Nasarawa State.

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通过磁力和重力分离工艺从尼日利亚纳萨拉瓦州阿里基亚出产的锆石中富集锆石，以用作复合材料配方中的增强剂

航空航天工业复合材料配方中可接受的锆石要求矿物至少含有 65% 的氧化锆（ZrO2）。尽管尼日利亚拥有大量的锆石矿藏，但其航空航天工业历来主要依赖进口的低碳钢管来制造固体火箭发动机壳体（SRMCs），这导致了三大挑战：低强度重量比、压力和温度控制。在这项研究中，对位于尼日利亚北部的 Arikya 锆石矿床进行了调查，目的是利用磁力和重力分离工艺对低品位锆石矿进行升级，以用于 SRMC 的复合配方。干式高强度磁选机（DHIMS）产生的 ZrO2 品位为 52.48%，回收率为 57.99%，富集比为 0.78，分离效率为 0.56；而气浮分离机（AFS）产生的 ZrO2 品位最高，为 65.52%，回收率为 70.81%，富集比为 1.25，分离效率为 0.25。选矿后 ZrO2 含量从 40.77% 提高到 65.52%。氧化铁和二氧化钛杂质分别从 0.73% 和 0.83% 降低到 0.66% 和 0.54%，比重从 4.4g/cm3 增加到 4.6g/cm3。ZrO2 含量和比重都提高到了氧化锆增强复合材料应用的最低标准，并能与工业/全球公认的锆石有效竞争。这些结果表明，结合使用 DHIMS 和 AFS 可以有效提升纳萨拉瓦州 Arikya 的低品位锆石矿。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Eng

CiteScore

2.10

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0.00%

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