Process Mineralogy of an Oolitic Hematite Ore and its Implications for Mineral Processing

Based on process mineralogical study of an oolitic hematite ore in SW China, the texture and structure of the ores, the occurrence of iron minerals and the dissemination of them are determined in detail, which provides scientific reference for forthcoming mineral processing technology. The mineralogical results show that the sizes of the grains are generally under 0.01mm, so the minerals cannot be liberated completely by traditional grinding technology. Moreover, the objective minerals are the assemblages of hematite and chlorite, whose amount is highly variable, so the magnetism also varies widely. Therefore, during the coming magnetic separation tests, the increment of the magnetic intensity should be strictly manipulated to determine the best condition for the ores.