Minerals Engineering最新文献

{"title":"Enhanced gold recovery from e-waste by biological thiosulfate leaching and trace gold extraction with UiO-66-NH2","authors":"Fatemeh Pourhossein ,&nbsp;Fatemeh Aghili ,&nbsp;Seyyed Mohammad Mousavi ,&nbsp;Sebastien Farnaud","doi":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109796","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109796","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The recycling of precious metals from electronic waste (e-waste) is essential to respond to the increasing demand for strategic metal. Compared to the cyanide method, the thiosulfate bioleaching method is considered a greener and cleaner approach for gold recovery. However, gold recovery from thiosulfate bioleaching solutions remains a challenge. This study addressed these challenges by optimizing the production of biogenic thiosulfate from <em>Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans</em> <!--> <!--> <!-->using a combination of NaN₃ and KCN at the optimal ratio of 4:1.The thiosulfate bioleaching process achieved a 30% extraction efficiency (0.6 mg/L) of gold, from 10 g/L of spent printed circuit boards. The adsorption of gold was explored using UiO-66-NH₂, a highly porous metal–organic framework (MOF) with a Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area of 1840 m²/g and a pore size of 5–15 nm. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis confirmed the presence of amino functional groups, enhance the gold-binding affinity. The synthesized metal–organic framework, UiO-66-NH₂, demonstrated a 50% gold adsorption capacity from the bioleaching solution within 2 h. The electrostatic attraction between the NH₃⁺ groups of UiO-66-NH₂ and <span><math><mrow><mi>Au</mi><msubsup><mfenced><mrow><msub><mi>S</mi><mn>2</mn></msub><msub><mi>O</mi><mn>3</mn></msub></mrow></mfenced><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow><mrow><mn>3</mn><mo>-</mo></mrow></msubsup></mrow></math></span>, combined with internal Zr-OH complexes, played a crucial role in the adsorption mechanism. Gold ions (Au³⁺) were reduced to elemental gold (Au⁰) via an oxidation–reduction reaction facilitated by amino groups, as confirmed through FTIR, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), mapping and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analysis. Adsorption kinetics analysis indicated that the process followed a pseudo-second-order model. These results demonstratea sustainable method for recovering gold directly from e-waste bioleaching solutions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18594,"journal":{"name":"Minerals Engineering","volume":"235 ","pages":"Article 109796"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145182884","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Performance evaluation of gold (III) bio-reduction by bacterial strains and a consortium isolated from gold mine effluent","authors":"Miranda Mpeta,&nbsp;Job T. Tendenedzai,&nbsp;Shepherd M. Tichapondwa,&nbsp;Evans M.N. Chirwa","doi":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109797","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109797","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The bioreduction of Au (III) to Au (0) offers a sustainable and eco-friendly alternative to conventional gold recovery methods, reducing environmental impacts associated with chemical processing. This study investigated the bioreduction capabilities of indigenous bacterial strains and a microbial consortium isolated from gold tailings and mine wastewater. Aerobic batch experiments were conducted at pH 7 and 35 ± 2°C over 24 h, with initial Au (III) concentrations of 3 and 6 ppm, to compare the reduction efficiencies of individual strains and a mixed consortium. Gram-negative bacteria (<em>Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter bereziniae</em>) achieved superior reduction efficiencies of 98.33–99.8 %, outperforming the Gram-positive <em>Bacillus cereus</em> (92.9 %), likely due to differences in cell wall structure, with Gram-negative strains leveraging outer membrane proteins and efficient extracellular electron transfer mechanisms, while <em>B. cereus</em> relies on biosorption via its thicker peptidoglycan layer. The consortium, combining all four strains, reached 94.5 % efficiency, reflecting synergistic interactions through resource partitioning and metabolite recycling. Scanning electron microscope (SEM), Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X- ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) confirmed the formation of Au (0) nanoparticles, with an 8.5 % crystalline gold content in the consortium despite low starting concentrations. These findings highlight the potential of indigenous bacteria for efficient gold bio- recovery from mining effluents and tailings, demonstrating a viable bio- hydrometallurgical process that integrates waste treatment with precious metal extraction. The technology offers significant advantages for mining operations through reduced chemical consumption, lower energy requirements, and simultaneous environmental remediation, supporting the industry’s transition toward sustainable extraction practices and circular resource utilization in mineral processing operations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18594,"journal":{"name":"Minerals Engineering","volume":"235 ","pages":"Article 109797"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145120011","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Dosage calculation model for humic acid-enhanced in-situ leaching of weathered crust elution-deposited rare earth ores","authors":"Fang Zhou ,&nbsp;Xia Zhang ,&nbsp;Lisen Zhang ,&nbsp;Kaimin Zhang ,&nbsp;Junxia Yu ,&nbsp;Xinyi Yang ,&nbsp;Weiyan Yin ,&nbsp;Ruan Chi","doi":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109794","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109794","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Humic acid (HA) is an environmentally friendly and efficient aid leaching agent, however, the mechanism of HA and ammonium sulfate ((NH₄)₂SO₄) on rare earth (RE) <em>in-situ</em> leaching process and the effect of HA on ammonium reduction remain unclear. Herein, the potential of HA as an aid leaching agent to optimize the dosage of (NH₄)₂SO₄ and reduce the residual ammonium salt was investigated, controlling the ammonia nitrogen pollution. Moreover, the calculation model of (NH₄)₂SO₄ amount and unit consumption equation were established based on mass action law. The result indicated that the leaching efficiency of RE was increased by 3.96 % in the presence of 0.2 g·L⁻¹ of HA, suggesting there was a synergistic effect between HA and (NH₄)₂SO₄ during the RE leaching process. This effect was further confirmed by the leaching mechanism. Specifically, when the value of mass action quotient (<em>K</em>_t) increased, the reaction molar ratio (<em>n</em>) was decreased as compared with that of pure ammonium sulfate, indicating HA has a promoting effect on the ion exchange reaction between rare earth ions and ammonium ions. Additionally, it was revealed that the (NH₄)₂SO₄ dosage was reduced by 34 % based on the law of mass action. Notably, the optimal (NH₄)₂SO₄ concentration was lowered from 0.1 mol·L⁻¹ for the traditional technology to 0.08 mol·L⁻¹ for this work. These findings provided new insights into strengthening the leaching process of weathered crust elution-deposited rare earth ores by HA, which were valuable for elucidating the interaction mechanisms and realizing the source control of ammonia nitrogen pollution.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18594,"journal":{"name":"Minerals Engineering","volume":"235 ","pages":"Article 109794"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145156344","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Leaching characteristics of chalcocite in NH3·H2O-NH4+–O2-H2O system","authors":"Yudong Yang ,&nbsp;Yingzhe Wang ,&nbsp;Yuhu Li ,&nbsp;Zhongtang Zhang ,&nbsp;Zhifeng Xu ,&nbsp;Ruixiang Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109751","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109751","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>To address the unclear leaching behavior of chalcocite in the NH₃·H₂O-NH₄⁺–O₂-H₂O system and the scarcity of selective hydrometallurgical approaches for this mineral, this study systematically investigated the leaching characteristics and reaction mechanisms of chalcocite in the aforementioned system using multiple characterization techniques, including inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results revealed that the NH₃·H₂O-NH₄⁺–O₂-H₂O system enabled highly selective leaching of copper from chalcocite. Under optimized leaching conditions of 5 mol/L NH₃·H₂O, 2 mol/L NH₄Cl, 55 °C (328.15 K), a liquid-to-solid ratio of 5:1, and a reaction duration of 3 h, the copper extraction efficiency reached 98.52 %, with impurity concentrations (Fe, Al, Ca, Mg) in the leachate consistently maintained below 5 mg/L. Notably, ammonium chloride exhibited significantly higher leaching efficiency than ammonium sulfate under identical conditions. Kinetic analysis indicated that the leaching process of chalcocite in this system was well-described by the solid-film diffusion control model, with an apparent activation energy (E_a) of 38.54 kJ/mol. This value closely matches the experimental observations, confirming that interfacial mass transfer serves as the rate-limiting step in the leaching mechanism.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18594,"journal":{"name":"Minerals Engineering","volume":"235 ","pages":"Article 109751"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145120010","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Super-large SLon-5000 PHGMS separators for enhanced recovery of fine ilmenite from tailings in an innovative process","authors":"Huichun Huang ,&nbsp;Xiangjun Ren ,&nbsp;Tao Xiong ,&nbsp;Dahe Xiong ,&nbsp;Luzheng Chen","doi":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109788","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109788","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Since 2006, the large scaling-up of SLon PHGMS separator has been a major development trend as it significantly improves the processing capacity at remarkable reduction in energizing cost, which is critical for processing low-grade ores and re-utilizing tailings. The key technological breakthroughs achieved in the first super-large SLon-5000 PHGMS separator, and its operation performance in comparison with the initial large-scale SLon-2500 PHGMS separator developed in 2006 were briefly introduced. The comparative results indicate the maximum solids processing capacity was remarkably improved from 150 t/h in SLon-2500 to 950 t/h in SLon-5000, with their energizing cost significantly reduced from 0.56 kWh to 0.27 kWh for processing a ton of material. The first application of three SLon-5000 PHGMS separators, forming an innovative process for recovery of fine ilmenite from tailings in the Panxi region of China, was also discussed. Its industrial operation indicates that the process achieved a significantly improved recovery for fine ilmenite, improving the TiO₂ grade from 4.31 % in tailings to 12.26 % in concentrate with TiO₂ recovery reaching 46.51 %, at 0.74 kWh energizing cost and 2.4 m³/h water consumption for processing a ton of the tailings.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18594,"journal":{"name":"Minerals Engineering","volume":"235 ","pages":"Article 109788"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145156826","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Efficient recovery of chromium from electroplating sludge by a two-step roasting process: Mechanisms and kinetics","authors":"Chengbin Zhong ,&nbsp;Junxia Yu ,&nbsp;Boxi Wu ,&nbsp;Jia Wang ,&nbsp;Li Guo ,&nbsp;Ruan Chi ,&nbsp;Zhen Luo ,&nbsp;YingYing Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109795","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109795","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Electroplating sludge (ES), a hazardous industrial waste, poses environmental challenges due to its complex composition, high chromium (Cr) content, environmental toxicity, and its efficient treatment has become a pressing necessity. To address this issue, a novel two-step roasting process—Na₂CO₃ roasting with water leaching for initial dechroming, followed by NaNO₃ roasting of the residue—was used to recover chromium from ES. Given the compositional complexity of ES, FactSage (Facility for the Analysis of Chemical Thermodynamics) was utilized to predict the thermodynamic behavior and phase transformation of the roasting process. Based on the prediction, roasting experiments were carried out at temperatures ranging from 500 to 1000 °C, and the phase transformation mechanisms during the roasting processes were verified by mineral liberation analysis (MLA) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. Results reveal that the total recovery efficiency of Cr reached 99 % under the optimal conditions of the two-step roasting process. Moreover, this study elucidated a systematic Cr-phase transition mechanism in ES, beginning with hydroxide formation, followed by transformation into oxides, spinel phases (FeCr₂O₄, MgCr₂O₄, ZnCr₂O₄, and CaCr₂O₄), and finally conversion into soluble Na₂CrO₄. Kinetic analysis further indicated that Cr(III) oxidation during Na₂CO₃ roasting followed a product-layer diffusion mechanism with an apparent activation energy of 44.5 kJ/mol, supported by a strong linear correlation to the shrinking core model (R² &gt; 0.99) between 500–800 °C, while sintering-induced diffusion limitations emerged at higher temperatures. Overall, this work systematically clarified the Cr phase transformation mechanisms during the two-step roasting, offering theoretical insights and practical guidance for high-efficient and environmentally sustainable recovery of Cr from hazardous industrial wastes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18594,"journal":{"name":"Minerals Engineering","volume":"235 ","pages":"Article 109795"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145156345","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Research progress on the recovery of strategic metals lithium and gallium from coal-based solid wastes: from mineral deconstruction to resource utilization","authors":"Luodan Xiang,&nbsp;Ting’an Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109775","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109775","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>With the rapid expansion of the new energy vehicle and semiconductor industries, the demand for lithium and gallium resources has increased significantly. Coal and its solid wastes, particularly coal gangue (CG), coal fly ash (CFA), and coal gasification slag (CGS), are abundant and rich in lithium and gallium, thereby representing a potential source for these critical elements. This paper presents detection methods for identifying lithium-rich and gallium-rich phases in coal and its solid wastes, describes the lithium and gallium content in these materials, and analyzes their respective occurrence states. Currently, the technologies for recovering lithium and gallium from CG, CFA, and CGS primarily involve pretreatment, leaching, and extraction/separation processes. Pretreatment aims to release lithium and gallium by destroying the stable structure of their mineral phases through activation techniques such as thermal, mechanical, or chemical methods. Leaching technologies use acids, bases, water, or microbial metabolites (organic acids) to extract valuable elements from CG, CFA, and CGS. The extraction/separation of lithium and gallium from leachates mainly utilizes techniques such as solvent extraction, adsorption, precipitation, and ion imprinting. Furthermore, this paper evaluates the advantages and limitations of existing recovery methods through case studies and discusses prospects for developing synergistic extraction techniques targeting multiple elements from coal-based wastes. Finally, the presence of lithium and gallium in low-rank coal suggests the potential for future recovery of these elements from such sources.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18594,"journal":{"name":"Minerals Engineering","volume":"235 ","pages":"Article 109775"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145156347","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Prediction of SAG mill liner wear and geometry optimization using interpretable machine learning","authors":"Tingnian Yin,&nbsp;Yuhua Liu,&nbsp;Haoran Han,&nbsp;Pengfei Shi,&nbsp;Guilong Xiong","doi":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109793","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109793","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Geometric parameters are considered a critical factor influencing the wear of semi-autogenous grinding (SAG) mill liners. However, traditional liner design optimization studies only focus on single variables and incur substantial time and financial costs. Therefore, this paper proposes a framework that integrates the discrete element method (DEM) with interpretable machine learning and that offers an effective approach to address this issue. In this study, a dataset was constructed based on the numerical simulation results using the DEM. Subsequently, four machine learning models were constructed to predict the wear volume (W). The SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) method was employed to interpret the best prediction model for identifying the response relationship between liner geometric parameters and W. The results showed that variations in the geometric parameters of lifters exhibit complex and nonlinear effects on liners wear. The best W prediction model is the multilayer perceptron (MLP) model with superior accuracy, stability and generalizability. The face angle emerged as the most significant geometric factor influencing liner wear with a relative importance of 48.1 %. Optimal lifter designs should prioritize the following geometric parameter intervals: Face angle &lt; 50.57°, Height &lt; 186.09 mm, Width &lt; 91.27 mm, and Number &lt; 33. The findings of this study indicate that interpretable machine learning combined with DEM provides a promising technique for liner design.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18594,"journal":{"name":"Minerals Engineering","volume":"235 ","pages":"Article 109793"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145156825","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"New insights into first-principles assessment of crystallographic plane fracture in minerals: Case studies on representative surfaces of Ilmenite, diopside, and olivine","authors":"Min Wei ,&nbsp;Runqing Liu ,&nbsp;Jian Cao ,&nbsp;Jianyong He ,&nbsp;Wei Sun ,&nbsp;Yijun Cao","doi":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109791","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109791","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The mechanisms of cleavage and crystal plane exposure in mineral crystals are crucial for accurately identifying exposed mineral surfaces. Currently, both fracture energy density (S_c) and surface energy (γ_s) can indicate the relative ease of cleavage along different crystal planes for simple A_nB_m-type minerals. However, when predicting the exposed surfaces of complex crystal minerals with multiple types of chemical bonds and varying bond quantities within the unit cell, the methods based on fracture energy density and surface energy are somewhat insufficient. Therefore, there is a pressing need to explore a more efficient and reliable approach. This paper uses the typical crystal plane of ilmenite, diopside, and olivine as examples. By applying first-principles calculations, it proposes a crystal plane fracture energy calculation method based on surface energy. This method can quickly and accurately assess the fracture ease of various minerals along different crystal planes, reveal the exposure patterns of terminal surfaces on the crystal planes, and provide a universal and precise approach for predicting the properties of exposed mineral crystal surfaces.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18594,"journal":{"name":"Minerals Engineering","volume":"234 ","pages":"Article 109791"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145117646","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mechanism of molecular Synergy in the Aerophine 3418A-DTP mixed Collector: Insights into hydrophobicity and non-polar group interactions for chalcopyrite flotation","authors":"Yingchao Liu ,&nbsp;Zhixiang Chen ,&nbsp;Jingqiao Li ,&nbsp;Jianhua Chen ,&nbsp;Liang Zhao ,&nbsp;Yuqiong Li ,&nbsp;Qingxia Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109787","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.mineng.2025.109787","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>To investigate the synergistic enhancement mechanism of the 3418A-DTP mixed collector in the flotation process of chalcopyrite, multiscale analytical methods of atomic force microscopy (AFM), first-principles molecular dynamics (MD), and scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) were adopted to systematically explore the molecular mechanism of hydrophobicity enhancement and interactions between the non-polar groups of the collector. The AFM bubble probe technology revealed that the adsorption of the mixed collector increased the density of hydrophobic points on the mineral surface by 35.4%, reaching the maximum hydrophobic area and effectively improving the adhesion between bubbles and minerals. Theoretical calculations further confirmed that the interaction force between the non-polar groups of the 3418A-DTP mixed collector was strengthened, leading to notable hydrophobicity enhancement. It was observed from first-principles calculations that the tightly arranged non-polar functional groups of the collector formed a dense hydrophobic layer on the mineral surface to block water permeation. It was noticed from classical MD simulations that the contact angle of the mixed collector after adsorption increased by 6.2–7.0° compared to that of a single collector, confirming the synergistic strengthening effect.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18594,"journal":{"name":"Minerals Engineering","volume":"234 ","pages":"Article 109787"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145103929","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}