FGX Dry Processing Tests Conducted at Exxaro’s Northern Block Complex

Dolerites in the study area differ in mineral content, geometry, thickness, grain size and degree of alteration. Plagioclase textures indicate fractionation at different depths in the crust for the Witbank and Sasolburg intrusions, and the olivine content points to separate magma sources for two of the sills. Fine crystalline dolerite, including chilled margins and bifurcations, alters most readily.

A compound dry cleaning machine de-stoned low grade raw coal without using water, but separation efficiency was low, with high relative density cut points and EPM values in the order of 0.3. Misplaced material was heavy and coal below 6 mm reported to product almost indiscriminately. The unit is cheap to buy and run, needs only crushing to 50 mm, and gives high throughput.

Market prices are set out for sodium sulphate, sodium chloride, sodium nitrate, potassium nitrate and potassium chloride, in South Africa and abroad, as at early 2011, with Chinese supplier quotes alongside United States averages. The work was done to test whether salts recovered from mine water brine could be sold at a worthwhile price.