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Mining & Mineral Processing Using Froth Flotation
In mining applications, froth flotation is often used during the mineral processing stages to help separate the solids from the heavy slurries by taking advantages of differences in their hydrophobicity. The first step in the process is to gather and finely crush and grind chunks of ore into fine particles, with the goal of separating the individual minerals into their own separate grains. The particles are then mixed with water, and the entire solution is then pumped using a slurry pump to the mineral processing facility in slurry form and the desired mineral is rendered hydrophobic by the addition of a surfactant or collector chemical. This allows the minerals to bind to the air bubbles of the froth, bringing the majority of valuable minerals to the surface of the slurry in a concentrated form, making it easier to collect. Frothing agents, or frothers, can also be added to the slurry mixture to promote the formation of a stable froth on the surface of the liquid.

In this sense, mining froth can be described as an aerated slurry that either occurs naturally or, in some cases, purposely created to assist with the separation of minerals. Froth flotation is an important step used for the recovery and upgrading of sulfide ores, allowing far more economic recovery of valuable metals from much lower grade ore. Frothing is usually performed in multiple stages to maximize the recovery of target minerals. Historically first developed and used in mining, this process is now also used in other industries including paper and pulp pump applications and wastewater treatment applications.