Siberian Federal University (Russia):

Algebraistova N. K., Professor, algebraistova@mail.ru

Razvyaznaya A. V., Postgraduate, aleksasmolkova@yandex.ru

Krasnoyarsk Scientific Center of the Siberian Branch of the RAS:

Gurevich Yu. L., Chief Reseacher, btchem@mail.ru

Teremova M. I., Reseacher, btchem@mail.ru

Development of an efficient, environmentally friendly and economically sound method of bulk copper-molybdenum concentrate selection is a vital task today. The studies are presented, conducted on copper-sulfide minerals, molybdenite and the Sorsky ferromolybdenum Plant coppermolyb denum concentrate with the view to estimate a possibility of xanthate desorption from that type of concentrate surface through its degradation with microorganisms. As desorbent-microorganisms, bacterial culture Pseudomonas Japonica, selectively isolated on xanthate media from the Plant tailings storage facility, was used regarding the studied ore type. In the course of the studies, the effects of the bacterial culture (its consumption and residence time), their cells and metabolites on copper sul fides and molybdenite flotation, were investigated. It was determined, that the bacterial culture consumption affects sulfides recovery into flotation froth product. This effect is different with respect to copper and molybdenum sulfides: with consumption of 10 ml, copper froth product yield is reduced more than twofold, while molybdenite yield is changed only by 4 %. Comparative Performance Analysis, performed in flotation with the bacterial culture, their cells and metabolites, showed that the greatest decrease in copper minerals yield is caused by the minerals interaction with the bacterial culture at consumption of 10 ml and residence time of 2 min. The results of bulk copper-molybdenum concentrate flotation with the bacterial culture also permit to acknowledge the selection flowsheet with the bacterial treatment to be more promising and environmentally friendly, if compared with the xanthate desorption method, applied at the Sorsky ferromolybdenum Plant.

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