A sulphide gold ore from the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia is hosted in altered greenstones,...
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A sulphide gold ore from the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia is hosted in altered greenstones, and has a sulphide fraction consisting of pyrite and arsenopyrite. Head grade is 6 g/t. Mining is proceeding via a deep open pit and is now in hypogene ore, well below the supergene zone. The ore consists of 3 wt% pyrite and 2 wt% arsenopyrite. The remainder of the ore is made up of quartz, chlorite, sericite and carbonate. A sample of the ore is ground to 80% passing 75 µm and is subjected to a standard gold cyanide leach test in the laboratory. Gold recovery from this test is 58%. A second sample of the same ore is then floated in the laboratory to recover the sulphide fraction. In this test 95 wt% of the sulphides are recovered and the remainder is lost to tails. (You can assume that the sulphides float in the same proportions as they are present in the primary ore.) When the sulphide concentrate from this flotation test is leached with cyanide, gold recovery from the concentrate is 60%. The tailings from the flotation test return a gold assay of 0.49 g/t. The ore samples were then given to a process mineralogist who studied polished sections of the various fractions (ore, concentrate and tailings) under a reflected light microscope. The report contains the following conclusions: 1. In the sulphide concentrate, large particles of native gold (20 to 70 μm) are found as free grains, or attached to fragments of pyrite. There appears to be no native gold associated with arsenopyrite. Grain size of the arsenopyrite is generally quite fine (< 20 μm). 2. In the tailings fraction, tiny grains of native gold (1 to 5 µm) are found as inclusions in quartz. Answer the following questions: 1. What is the most likely explanation for the gold that is not recovered from leaching of the sulphide concentrate? (3 marks) 2. Give the gold deportment of the ore, i.e., how much gold is associated with pyrite, arsenopyrite and the gangue? (6 marks) 3. What is the name given to a gold ore of this type? (1 marks) 4. What would you expect the gold recovery to be if this ore were processed using a normal CIP/CIL circuit? (2 marks) 5. How do you suggest that the ore can be treated to maximize gold recovery? In simple terms, explain how gold is recovered in the process you suggest. (5 marks) 6. What do you suggest is the maximum gold recovery that can be obtained from this ore using your proposed method. Why? (3 marks) In all cases above, explain your calculations or reasoning. A sulphide gold ore from the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia is hosted in altered greenstones, and has a sulphide fraction consisting of pyrite and arsenopyrite. Head grade is 6 g/t. Mining is proceeding via a deep open pit and is now in hypogene ore, well below the supergene zone. The ore consists of 3 wt% pyrite and 2 wt% arsenopyrite. The remainder of the ore is made up of quartz, chlorite, sericite and carbonate. A sample of the ore is ground to 80% passing 75 µm and is subjected to a standard gold cyanide leach test in the laboratory. Gold recovery from this test is 58%. A second sample of the same ore is then floated in the laboratory to recover the sulphide fraction. In this test 95 wt% of the sulphides are recovered and the remainder is lost to tails. (You can assume that the sulphides float in the same proportions as they are present in the primary ore.) When the sulphide concentrate from this flotation test is leached with cyanide, gold recovery from the concentrate is 60%. The tailings from the flotation test return a gold assay of 0.49 g/t. The ore samples were then given to a process mineralogist who studied polished sections of the various fractions (ore, concentrate and tailings) under a reflected light microscope. The report contains the following conclusions: 1. In the sulphide concentrate, large particles of native gold (20 to 70 μm) are found as free grains, or attached to fragments of pyrite. There appears to be no native gold associated with arsenopyrite. Grain size of the arsenopyrite is generally quite fine (< 20 μm). 2. In the tailings fraction, tiny grains of native gold (1 to 5 µm) are found as inclusions in quartz. Answer the following questions: 1. What is the most likely explanation for the gold that is not recovered from leaching of the sulphide concentrate? (3 marks) 2. Give the gold deportment of the ore, i.e., how much gold is associated with pyrite, arsenopyrite and the gangue? (6 marks) 3. What is the name given to a gold ore of this type? (1 marks) 4. What would you expect the gold recovery to be if this ore were processed using a normal CIP/CIL circuit? (2 marks) 5. How do you suggest that the ore can be treated to maximize gold recovery? In simple terms, explain how gold is recovered in the process you suggest. (5 marks) 6. What do you suggest is the maximum gold recovery that can be obtained from this ore using your proposed method. Why? (3 marks) In all cases above, explain your calculations or reasoning.
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