Research on red mud treatment by a circulating superconducting magnetic separator

Red mud (RM) accumulated over the years and caused a serious environmental problem. Iron-rich fraction separation is a cost-effective way to reduce the amount of disposal RM. A circulating high-gradient superconducting magnetic separator was produced in this work. Steel wool was filled in the circulating boxes. The boxes were connected by two chains, which moved in and out the magnetic field by a drive motor. The efficiency of iron-rich RM separation by the superconducting magnetic separator was investigated. An amount of 25% (w/w) iron-rich RM fractions with a grade of 65% were separated from the 56% iron content raw RM. The parameters of the steel wool matrix were important in controlling the iron-rich RM magnetic separation. Finer steel wool increased the iron recovery ratio, but decreased the grade of the iron-rich RM concentrates. Microscopic photographs of the RM particles showed that opaque mineral particles were enriched in the collected RM. The particle size distributions of raw, concentrate and residue RM were measured. The increased particle size of concentrate RM implied that large particles were entrapped in the steel wool matrix.