Abstract
The use of flotation reagents in the form of microemulsions significantly enhances the recovery of noble metals during the flotation of gold-bearing ore and technogenic materials by improving the hydrophobicity of finely dispersed sulfides. This study in-vestigates the effect of a microemulsified dibutyldithiophosphate (DBDTP) on the flo-tation performance of gold-bearing ore and technogenic materials. The research objects were gold-bearing ore and aged flotation tailings from a Kazakhstani deposit contain-ing 3.43 g/t and 0.62 g/t of gold, respectively. Flotation beneficiation was conducted using a microemulsion of DBDTP generated in WAMG. Flotation kinetics demonstrat-ed that the application of the DBDTP microemulsion accelerates the flotation process, increasing gold recovery by 4.65% and reducing gold content in flotation tailings by 0.17 g/t. Under the baseline regime, 37.51% of gold is distributed into the −0.025+0 mm size fraction of tailings with a gold grade of 0.98 g/t. When the microemulsion reagent produced by the WAMG is applied, gold distribution in the −0.025+0 mm size fraction decreases to 28.29% (9.22% lower than the baseline), with a gold grade of 0.62 g/t. In the flotation of aged tailings, the microemulsion application increases gold recovery in the concentrate by 5.88% while maintaining concentrate quality.