1

Classification
Anand Anupam
Assistant Professor
Department of Fuel and Mineral Engineering
Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

2 Classification: Introduction

 Classification is a method of separating mixtures of

minerals into two or more products on the basis of the
velocity with which the grains fall through a fluid
medium.
 In mineral processing, this is usually water, and wet
classification is generally applied to mineral particles
which are considered too fine to be sorted efficiently
by screening.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

3 Principles of Classification

 When a solid particle falls freely in a vacuum, it is

subject to constant acceleration and its velocity
increases indefinitely, being independent of size and
density.
 In a viscous medium, such as air or water, there is
resistance to this movement and the resistance
increases with velocity.
 When equilibrium is attained between the
gravitational and fluid resistances forces, the body
reaches its terminal velocity and thereafter falls at a
uniform rate.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

4 Principles of Classification:
Sorting Column
 Classifiers consist essentially of a sorting column in
which a fluid is rising at a uniform rate.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

5 Principles of Classification:
Sorting Column
 Particles introduced into the sorting column either sink
or rise according to whether their terminal velocities
are greater or lesser than the upward velocity of the
fluid.
 The sorting column therefore separates the feed into
two products – an overflow consisting of particles with
terminal velocities lesser than the velocity of the fluid
and an underflow or spigot product of particles with
terminal velocities greater than the rising velocity.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

6 Free settling

 Free settling refers to the sinking of particles in a

volume of fluid which is large with respect to the total
volume of particles, hence particle crowding is
negligible. For well-dispersed ore pulps, free settling
predominates when the percentage of solids by
weight is less than about 15.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

7 Stokes' Law

 Consider a spherical particle of diameter d and

density ρ falling under gravity in a viscous fluid of
density Df under free-settling conditions, i.e. ideally
in a fluid of infinite extent. The particle is acted
upon by three forces: a gravitational force acting
downwards, an upward buoyant force due to the
displaced fluid, and a drag force D acting
upwards. The equation of motion of the particle is

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

8 Stokes' Law

 where m is the mass of the particle, m' is the

mass of the displaced fluid, x is the particle
velocity, and g is the acceleration due to gravity.
 When the terminal velocity is reached, dx/dt =0, and
hence D = (m - m')g. Therefore

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

9 Stokes' Law

 where m is the mass of the particle, m' is the

mass of the displaced fluid, x is the particle
velocity, and g is the acceleration due to gravity.
 When the terminal velocity is reached, dx/dt =0, and
hence D = (m - m')g. Therefore

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

10 Stokes' Law

 Stokes (1891) assumed the drag force on a spherical

particle to be entirely due to viscous resistance
and deduced the expression

where µ is the fluid viscosity and v is the terminal

velocity.
 Hence, by substitution

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

11 Stokes' Law

 After rearranging, we get

 This expression is known as Stokes' law.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

12 Newton‘s Law

 Newton assumed that the drag force was entirely

due to turbulent resistance, and deduced

 By substituting the above in the force balance

equation, we get the following expression for settling
velocity under turbulent conditions

 This is Newton's law for turbulent resistance.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

13 Free Settling Ratio

 The free-settling ratio is defined as the ratio of particle

size required for the two different mineral particles
to fall at equal rates. For very fine particles (size < 50
µ), it is derived using Stokes equation for settling
velocity and applicable to smaller particles and given
as:

where, ‘d’ denotes particle size and ‘D’ denotes density

of species a and b and f stands for the fluid (medium).

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

14 Free Settling Ratio

 Similarly, the free-settling ratio for relatively coarser

particles (size > 0.5 cm), derived using Newton’s
equation for settling velocity, is defined as:

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

15 Free Settling Ratio

 The general expression for free-settling ratio is given as:

where, n = 0.5 for small particles obeying Stokes' law

and n = 1 for large particles obeying Newton's law.
The value of n lies in the range 0.5-1 for particles in the
intermediate size range of 50 µm -0.5 cm.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

16 Hindered Settling

 As the proportion of solids in the pulp increases, the

effect of particle crowding becomes more apparent
and the falling rate of the particles begins to
decrease.
 The system begins to behave as a heavy liquid whose
density is that of the pulp rather than that of the carrier
liquid; hindered-settling conditions now prevail.
 Because of the high density and viscosity of the slurry
through which a particle must fall in a separation by
hindered settling, the resistance to fall is mainly due to
the turbulence created.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

17 Hindered Settling

 A modified form of Newton's law, as shown below,

can be used to determine the approximate falling
rate of the particles in case of hindered settling.

where, Ds is the solid density and Dp is the pulp density

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

18 Hindered Settling

 The lower the density of the particle, the more marked

is the effect of reduction of the effective density, Ds-
Dp, and the greater is the reduction in falling velocity.
 Similarly, the larger the particle, the greater is the
reduction in falling rate as the pulp density increases.
This is important in classifier design; in effect, hindered-
settling reduces the effect of size, while increasing the
effect of density on classification.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

19 Hindered Settling Ratio

 The hindered-settling ratio, is defined in a similar way

as free-settling ratio, except that the settling
conditions are hindered. It is given as:

where, the symbols have their previous meanings.

 The hindered-settling ratio is always greater than the
free-settling ratio, and the denser the pulp, the greater
is the ratio of the diameter of equal settling particles.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

20 Hindered Settling Classifiers

 Hindered-settling classifiers are used to increase the

effect of density on the separation, whereas free-
settling classifiers use relatively dilute suspensions to
increase the effect of size on the separation.
 Relatively dense slurries are fed to certain gravity
concentrators, particularly those treating heavy
alluvial sands.
 This allows high tonnages to be treated, and
enhances the effect of specific gravity difference on
the separation.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

21 Mechanical Classifiers

 Mechanical classifiers have widespread use in closed-

circuit grinding operations and in the classification of
products from ore-washing plants.
 Several forms of classifiers exist in which the material
of lower settling velocity is carried away in a liquid
(finer) overflow, and the material of higher settling velocity
is deposited on the bottom of the equipment and is
dragged upwards against the flow of liquid by some
mechanical means.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

22 Mechanical Classifiers

 In washing plants they act more or less as sizing

devices, as the particles are essentially unliberated,
so are of similar density.
 The most common types of mechanical classifiers are:
1. Rake classifier
2. Spiral classifier

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

23 Rake Classifier

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

24 Rake Classifier

 The rake classifier utilises rakes actuated by an

eccentric motion, which causes them to dip into the
settled material and to move it up the incline for a
short distance.
 The rakes are then withdrawn, and return to the
starting-point, where the cycle is repeated; the settled
material is thus slowly moved up the incline to the
discharge.
 Simplex, duplex and quadruplex machines are made
in which there are one or four raking assemblies.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

25 Spiral Classifier

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

26 Spiral Classifier

 Spiral classifiers use a continuously revolving spiral to

move the sands up the slope.
 They can be operated at steeper slopes than the rake
classifier, in which the sands tend to slip back when
the rakes are removed. Steeper slopes aid the
drainage of sands, giving a cleaner, drier product.
 Agitation in the pool is less than in the rake classifier
which is important in separations of very fine material.
 Increasing the feed rate increases the horizontal
carrying velocity and thus increases the size of
particle leaving in the overflow.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

27 Spiral Classifier: Some
Important Parameters
 Increasing the feed rate increases the horizontal
carrying velocity and thus increases the size of
particle leaving in the overflow.
 Increasing the weir height increases the pool
volume, and hence allows more settling time and
decreases the surface agitation, thus reducing the
pulp density at overflow level, where the final
separation is made.
 Water addition determines the rate of settling of the
particles; increased dilution reduces the density of the
weir overflow, and increases free settling, allowing
finer particles to settle out of the influence of the
horizontal current.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

28 Hydrocyclone

 This is a continuously operating classifying device that

utilises centrifugal force to accelerate the settling
rate of particles.
 Its main use in mineral processing is as a classifier, and
it has proved extremely efficient at fine separation
sizes.
 Hydrocyclones are almost universally used in grinding
circuits, because of their high capacity and relative
efficiency.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

29 Hydrocyclone

 Apart from closed-circuit grinding operations it has

found many other uses, such as de-sliming, de-gritting,
and thickening.
 It can carry out classification over a very wide range
of sizes (typically 5-500 µ); smaller diameter units are
used for finer classification.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

30 Hydrocyclone

 It has replaced mechanical classifiers in many

applications, its advantages being simplicity and high
capacity relative to its size.
 A variant, the "water-only-cyclone", has been used for
the cleaning of fine coal and other minerals.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

31 Hydrocyclone

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

32 Hydrocyclone: Construction

 A typical hydrocyclone consists of a conically shaped

vessel, open at its apex, or underflow, joined to a
cylindrical section, which has a tangential feed inlet.
 The top of the cylindrical section is closed with a plate
through which passes an axially mounted overflow
pipe.
 The pipe is extended into the body of the cyclone by
a short, removable section known as the vortex
finder, which prevents short-circuiting of feed directly
into the overflow.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

33 Hydrocyclone: Operation

 The feed is introduced under pressure through the

tangential entry which imparts a swirling motion to the
pulp.
 This generates a vortex in the cyclone, with a low-
pressure zone along the vertical axis.
 An air core develops along the axis, normally
connected to the atmosphere through the apex
opening, but in part created by dissolved air corning
out of solution in the zone of low pressure.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

34 Hydrocyclone: Operation

 The classical theory of hydrocyclone action is that

particles within the flow pattern are subjected to two
opposing forces-an outward centrifugal force and an
inwardly acting drag.
 The centrifugal force developed accelerates the
settling rate of the particles thereby separating
particles according to size, shape, and specific
gravity.
 Faster settling particles move to the wall of the
cyclone, where the velocity is lowest, and migrate to
the apex opening.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

35 Hydrocyclone: Operation

 Due to the action of the drag force, the slower-settling

particles move towards the zone of low pressure along
the axis and are carried upward through the vortex-
finder to the overflow.

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad

36
Thank You!!
Any Query??

Department of Fuel, Minerals and Metallurgical Engineering, ISM Dhanbad