Mining Engineering
Mineral Processing
Flotation Chemistry Fundamentals
The surface chemistry behind froth flotation, and what it means for reagents, water and recovery.
- Duration
- 5 days
- Contact hours
- 30
- Level
- Foundation
- Fee from
- US$1,500
Overview
Flotation separates minerals on surface properties, so almost every recovery problem is a chemistry problem presenting as an operational one. This week builds the chemistry from the surface up: wettability and contact angle, the electrical double layer, how a collector attaches to a mineral and why it sometimes attaches to the wrong one. Reagent selection, water chemistry and pH control follow from that, and the troubleshooting session works real plant symptoms backwards to their chemical cause.
Who should attend
Metallurgists and process engineers, plant chemists and laboratory staff, flotation operators and supervisors, and reagent technical representatives.
What you will be able to do
- Explain flotation in terms of surface chemistry rather than recipe.
- Select collectors, frothers, depressants and activators on mineralogy.
- Diagnose the effect of pH, ionic strength and water quality.
- Relate laboratory testwork to plant performance.
- Trace a recovery or grade problem back to its chemical cause.
How it is taught
Short input, then work, across 5 days of roughly 6 teaching hours each. Exercises run on situations delegates bring rather than on a case study written for a different organisation. Cohorts are capped so that everybody is asked something.
Available as classroom, live online, in house.
Programme outline
Day 1
Surfaces
- Hydrophobicity, contact angle and attachment
- The electrical double layer and zeta potential
- Mineral surfaces and their natural behaviour
Day 2
Reagents
- Collectors and their selectivity
- Frothers and froth structure
- Depressants, activators and modifiers
- Dosage, staging and addition points
Day 3
Water and pH
- pH control and its effect on selectivity
- Dissolved ions and recycled water
- Water quality variation and its consequences
Day 4
From bench to plant
- Batch and locked cycle testwork
- Scale up, and where it misleads
- Sampling and assay reliability
Day 5
Troubleshooting
- Recovery loss by size fraction
- Grade, and misreporting minerals
- Froth problems and their chemical causes
What you leave with
- A reagent suite rationale for one ore type.
- A water chemistry review for your own circuit.
- A troubleshooting sequence for recovery loss.
Dates and fees
| Dates | Location | Format | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 23 to 27 November 2026 | Dubai, United Arab Emirates | Classroom | US$1,500 |
| 30 November 2026 to 4 December 2026 | Cairo, Egypt | Classroom | US$1,500 |
| 7 to 11 December 2026 | Nairobi, Kenya | Classroom | US$1,500 |
| 14 to 18 December 2026 | Kampala, Uganda | Classroom | US$1,500 |
Fees are per delegate and cover tuition, all programme materials and the certificate. Travel, accommodation and visas are arranged by the delegate. Registration closes two weeks before a programme starts.
Certificate
A GATI certificate recording what was attended, issued after the programme has run and attendance has been taken. Attending at least 80 per cent of the days earns a certificate of completion; attending less earns a certificate of attendance stating exactly what was attended. Every certificate carries a code that anybody can check against GATI's own record.
It records participation. and GATI does not claim one it does not hold.