The Effect of Surface Roughness on Particle-Bubble Interaction: A Critical Review, Minerals Engineering

Abstract

Particle roughness affects flotation recovery in terms of wettability, kinetics, bubble-particle interactions, and even inter-particle aggregation. The influence of the surface roughness of particles on flotation recovery and their underlying mechanisms have been proven to be important. To achieve this goal, researchers have used a variety of industrial minerals or natural hydrophilic/hydrophobic materials to demonstrate the effect of morphological characteristics on particle-bubble adhesion, detachment processes, and flotation rates and recoveries. However, the current conclusions are not uniform and the findings vary with the materials used. Therefore, the preparation, as well as measurement methods used in the current studies on flat surfaces, and the effects of particle surface roughness, are summarized and discussed in this paper, respectively. The effects of roughness on the contact angle, induction time, particle-bubble interaction energy, and flotation effectiveness are reviewed. A systematic review of the relevant literature from recent decades is presented with the expectation of shedding light on the underlying mechanisms behind the inconsistent findings and providing instructive guidance for future studies focusing on the effect of surface roughness on particle-bubble interactions.