An extended study of the electromagnetic separation of non-ferrous metals from insulators

The performance of a single boundary electromagnetic separator in separating mixture of copper and brass and insulating pieces is examined systematically in a series of experiments that comprises the extension of a previous investigation featuring aluminium. Results are reported that confirm that the previously discovered trends for Al recovery with particle size, beam splitter position and boundary field profile apply to all metal and that the production of experimental results it likewise possible for all metals. The minimum particle size that can be separated by this device is found to be about 4 mm for copper and 7 mm for brass, compared to 3 mm for aluminium. This variation of particle size limit and the changes in the field required to separate the different metals from insulators to the same degree an shown to be consistent with theory.