The influence of galvanic interaction on the dissolution and surface composition of galena and pyrite in flotation system

Abstract The dissolution behavior and surface composition of galena and pyrite in their coexisting flotation system were studied by metal ion releasing experiment and XPS analysis, to reveal the influence of galvanic interaction on their flotation. The results indicated that the dissolution of lead ions from galena surface was strongly enhanced in the presence of pyrite, significantly depending on the pyrite content. The dissolution of iron ions from pyrite surface was also enhanced in the presence of galena, but the effect of galena content was small. XPS analysis verified that the galvanic interaction enhanced the galena oxidation, leading to an increase in oxysulfide/hydroxide components on its surface. However, the galvanic interaction only had little impact on the pyrite oxidation, other than the migration and adsorption of lead ions. This work demonstrated that the galvanic interaction between galena and pyrite altered their surface components and increased the difficulty in flotation separation process.