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Views: 0 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2025-07-26 Origin: Site
Titanium magnetite is a critical raw material for producing sponge titanium, titanium dioxide pigment, ferro-titanium, and electrode rods. Globally, titanium resources are mainly derived from two types of deposits: magmatic titanium magnetite (vein-type) and titanium-bearing beach sand deposits. Among them, beach sands are the most industrially valuable, contributing nearly 30% of the world’s titanium magnetite supply.
Mozambique holds abundant beach sand reserves, and this study focuses on beneficiation tests conducted on a local deposit using a spiral chute gravity separation process. The goal was to determine the optimal slurry concentration and processing capacity for coarse separation.
1. Effect of Slurry Concentration
In the coarse separation test, with a feed rate of 1.88 tph, the influence of slurry concentration on spiral chute performance was analyzed.
Results showed that as feed concentration increased, both TiO₂ grade and recovery initially rose, but later declined.
When prioritizing recovery while maintaining a reasonable grade, the best outcome occurred at a 25% feed concentration.
Conclusion: 25% is the optimal slurry concentration for coarse spiral chute beneficiation of beach sands.
2. Effect of Processing Capacity
Next, with slurry concentration fixed at 25%, the effect of different processing capacities was tested.
As processing capacity increased, the TiO₂ grade of the concentrate showed a steady upward trend.
However, TiO₂ recovery first improved, then declined when the feed exceeded an optimal range.
Balancing recovery and grade, the best separation efficiency was achieved at 1.88–2.05 tph.
Conclusion: The spiral chute performs best when processing capacity is maintained within 1.88–2.05 tph.
Final Insights
This testwork demonstrates that both slurry concentration and processing capacity are critical parameters in optimizing spiral chute beneficiation of beach sand titanium magnetite.
Too low or too high concentration reduces mineral stratification efficiency.
Excessive feed capacity undermines recovery, even if grade improves.
By maintaining 25% slurry concentration and 1.88–2.05 tph feed rate, beneficiation performance can be significantly enhanced, achieving a balance of high TiO₂ recovery and acceptable grade. This study provides a practical reference for titanium magnetite processing in beach sand deposits, supporting more efficient utilization of Mozambique’s abundant resources.
