Conflict of interest

1. Deinking of paper in paper recycling

an effective and successful flotation.

stronger the selectivity of collector.

well for reverse flotation process.

24

polymers to enhance their depressing action.

simple and customized reagent regimes for given ore deposits.

property along with their collecting capability.

• There is a trade-off between the pH of the slurry, surfactants and the mineral surface for maximum flotation performance. It can thus be concluded that the length of alkyl chain, arrangement of atoms, nature and type of bonds present within the surfactants and regulation of pH in the flotation pulp are solely for

• Mineral surface and collector chemistry interaction is the first and critical step in flotation. The larger the electronegativity of the group, the stronger is the acting solid intensity, and the larger the radical section of collector, the

• Surfactants containing alcohol group and amine group have inherent frothing

• Though the cost of hydroxamate is higher than fatty acids, its superiority over fatty acids in flotation of the fine-grained oxide ore deserves further attention for industrial application. Research is geared at (a) developing alternate cheaper reagents with similar performances as hydroxamates, (b) modifying the structure of fatty acids for similar or better results than hydroxamates, (c) application of other chelating agents for enhanced flotation response, (d) successfully using flotation of silicated ores and other minerals, and (e) using green surfactants and solvents given their advantage of biodegradability and sustainability. However their high cost at present continues to be a barrier preventing their use although their benefits have been well realized.

• For cationic surfactants, another cationic group can be inserted, which can be further upgraded to dicationic and tricationic surfactants, which will work out

• For the use of depressants, more kosmotropic ions can be added to existing

As discussed earlier, froth flotation has the ability to treat any mineral and thus reigns supreme as it is the most versatile concentration process for ore fines. A universal solution for all minerals is not possible but it depends on a case-by-case basis as each mineral ore has different compositions. The challenging aspect of the interaction of value and gangue minerals of any ore could be overcome by specifically improved reagents. A universal specific reagent recipe cannot be proposed for any ore flotation due to variation of mineralogical composition of different ores, tailings and slimes. The knowledge and research about surfactant chemistry have to be given due recognition and used judiciously through encouraging innovative,

2. Flotation of wastewater treatment

3. Processing of oil sands

Surfactants and Detergents

5. Conclusions

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
