Study on Flocculation and Sedimentation Characteristics of Unclassified Tailings in Gold Mine

In order to obtain the static thickening and sedimentation characteristics of the unclassified tailings of a gold mine in Shandong, firstly, the physical and chemical properties of the unclassified tailings of the mine were analyzed by laboratory test. On this basis, the flocculant selection test was carried out by the control variable method. Secondly, the mass concentration of the unclassified tailings and the unit consumption of flocculant were taken as input factors and the solid flux value was taken as response, Using Response surface central composite design method (RSM-CCD) in design experts, 9 groups of static thickening tests of full tailings were designed and carried out for the full tailings of the mine. According to the test results, the response surface was established, and the reliability of the response surface parameters was analyzed. At the same time, based on the static dense settlement test, the dense dynamic flocculation settlement simulation test of all tailings was carried out. The results show that there is basically no interaction between the input factor total tailings mass concentration and flocculant unit consumption in the flocculation and sedimentation process of the whole tailings of the mine based on the solid flux, and the effect of total tailings mass concentration on the solid flux is significantly higher than that of flocculant unit consumption; When the mass concentration of total tailings is 14.7% and the unit consumption of flocculant is 10.8g/t, the predicted solid flux of response surface reaches the maximum value of 4.18 (t/ (h·m²)), and the error between the predicted solid flux and the actual value measured in the test is less than 3.5%; The feeding speed of thickener has a negative correlation with underflow concentration and yield stress, and a positive correlation with solid content in overflow water. The test results and dynamic settlement mechanism analysis can provide experimental basis and theoretical guidance for the design of full tailings thickening system in the same type of mines.