Design of a copper-molybdenum concentration process for complex porphyry ores

Abstract

During this graduation project, the design of a mineral processing process that will produce Cu-Mo concentrate with 19,84 % Copper and 34,91 % molybdenum with grade is planned by using the experiments and laboratory analysis results, carried on the ore with % 0,51 Cu, % 0,006 Mo grade. Porphyr copper-molybdenum deposits holds significant economic value worldwide. These deposits are known for containing large amounts of copper and molybdenum. Copper and molybdenum are strategic metals widely used in industrial application. Theredore the design and beneficiation processes of porphyry copper-molybdenum deposits hold great importance in the mining industry. Given the vital role these metals pay in modern technology, the efficient extraction , processing and enrichment of copper and molybdenum from porphyry deposits become paramount for the minig industry. The design of minig operation must encompass comprehensive geological surveys, advanced exploration techniques, and accurate mineralogical assestments to identify and evaluate the potential of the deposit.This involves understanding the mineralogical composition. According to the results of laboratory analysis, the mineralogical composition of the examined porphiry copper-molybdenum deposit has been determined. While chalcopyrite has been identified as the main source of copper in this deposit molybdenum minerals constitute the main source of molybdenum. Additionally, it has been observed that other importanat minerals such as magnetite, hematite, molybdenite, galena, sphalerite, covellite, and bornite are present in certain proportion. Experiment sconducted ore sample have evaluated the effectiveness of the process designed to obtain Cu-Mo concentrate. The obtained result demonstrate that the designed process can be succesfully implemented. The subjects covering the content of this thesis, consist of main titles. The first part is an introduction, the second gives general information on the copper-molybdenum ore, the third part covers available information on process design, the fourth part consists of calculations of the process design and the fifth part gives the result that is obtained. The plant, which will process 2.500.000 tonnes of ore per year, consists of a crushing unit working in two shifts, reducing the ore from -500 mm to -15 mm using a jaw crusher and two cone crushers. After that, ore (-15 mm size) coming from the crushing unit, was ground by using a rod mill and ball mill to obtain materials which size distribution - 0,1 mm, sent to the flotation unit for enrichment that includes conditioners, flotation cells, thickeners and filters. After the process design, it is possible to produce 49451,9 tons of copper concentrate per year with a 77,12 % efficiency and 203,28 tons of molybdenum concentrate with a 46,03 % recovery. The plan views of the crushing unit, grinding unit, and others are provided in the appendix section.