Institute of the Earth’s Crust of SB RAS (Irkutsk, Russia)
Chikisheva T. A., Junior Researcher, Candidate of Geological and Mineralogical Sciences, cta@spirit-irk.ru
Prokopiev S. A., Head of Department, Candidate of Engineering Sciences
Prokopiev E. S., Junior Researcher

«Spirit» Research and Production Company LLC (Irkutsk, Russia)

Komarova A. G., Leading Mineralogist Engineer

The coal mining industry urgently requires new comprehensive waste processing solutions. This problem can only be solved through a detailed study of the material composition of the waste using the applicable process mineralogy methods. The main goal of the article is to assess the effects of material composition of raw materials on their washability. The research uses a sample of flotation tailings from the Krasnobrodskaya-Koksovaya coal preparation plant. A particle size distribution study of the sample has demonstrated that more than half of the sample material is distributed within the size class of less than 20 μm, with an ash content of 40.5 %. The waste material of over 0.5 mm has an ash content of 74.5–80.8 %, with a total yield of 5.43 %. The ash content of the 0.5–0.02 mm material is 34.84 %, which suggests that it is suitable for coal processing. The main components of the waste are coal (59.8 wt%) and mixed-layer formations of clay minerals (29.52 wt%). The sample also contains smaller quantities of iron sulfides, carbonates, silicon oxides, and other inorganic mineral inclusions, which increase the ash content. It has been found that 53.89 % of all coal is distributed within the size class of less than 20 μm. Material of this size is difficult to process by physical methods; it should be removed at the early stages of the industrial process and considered for use as a clay raw material. Additional valuable components of the waste are Fe, Pb, Zn, Y, Ag, rare earth and other elements of mineral phases, which may be recovered subject to economic feasibility.
This work was carried out within the framework of Comprehensive Scientific and Technical Program No. 075-15-2022-1192 «Processing of Tailings of Coal Preparation Plants to Obtain Commercial Coal Concentrate» of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation.

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