Comminution Behavior and Liberation Characteristics of Zankan Spodumene for Lithium RecoveryPages 169-175
Usman Muhammad Akindele Abstract:
The energy requirement for liberating valuable minerals from their associated gangue is determined by the comminution process of the ores, which is often quite expensive and can be as high as 50% of the total energy needed in mineral processing plants. Hence, the need for determination of Zankan Spodumene comminution parameters with no prior data sheet cannot be overemphasised. Spodumene obtained from Zankan Village, Nigeria, was subjected to grindability test using granite and magnetite as reference materials. Sieve analysis was carried out using laboratory sieve shaker. Homogenized samples were obtained by Coning-quartering and riffle splitter methods were processed for chemical compositional analysis using ICP-OES. Lastly, work index of Zankan spodumene was determined, in line with Bond modified energy equation. Grindability tests showed that F80% for Spodumene, Granite and Magnetite were 553.82, 357.68 and 418.85 µm, while P80% were 257.02, 177.42 and 242.67 µm, respectively, work index was then obtained to be 16.3 kWht and 10.24 kWht considering Granite and Magnetite as reference materials. Liberation study shows 75 µm sieve size as the liberation size, having the highest-grade value of lithium content. Experimental parameters attained from this study will be relevant to the processing of the Zankan Spodumene as a critical primary source of lithium for next-generation energy storage systems, particularly for lithium-ion battery production.
Keywords: Spodumene,
Comminution,
Lithium-ion batteries,
Particle liberation,
Energy material
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