How To Efficiently Dewatering Gold Concentrate

Gold concentrate is a high-value product in the gold industry chain. The efficiency and quality of its dewatering directly determine the economic benefits of subsequent smelting. Due to its fine particle size, high specific gravity, and complex composition, gold concentrate dewatering is much more challenging than that of ordinary minerals. This article focuses on how to achieve efficient dewatering of gold concentrate.

Challenges of Efficient Gold Concentrate Dewatering

Gold concentrate is not an ordinary mineral, and its unique physical and chemical properties present significant challenges for dewatering.

• Fine Particle Size: Typically, the -200 mesh content exceeds 60%, resulting in a large surface area, high water absorption, and high filtration resistance.

• High Specific Grain Size: With a density between 3.5-4.5 g/cm³, it is prone to sedimentation in equipment and pipelines, causing blockage.

• Complex Composition:  It may contain residual cyanide or sulfide, which poses environmental risks and can also affect filtration performance.

The Core Goal of Efficient Gold Concentrate Dewatering

Achieve ultra-low moisture content (pyrometallurgical ≤12%; hydrometallurgical ≤18%), ensure extremely high metal recovery (gold loss rate<0.5%), and meet the requirements of continuous production and environmentally friendly, closed-loop processing.

Recommended Efficient Dewatering Solutions

To address the above challenges and goals, SINO Filtration recommends a combined dewatering solution:

1. Efficient Pretreatment

First, use a high-efficiency concentrator or deep-cone thickener. By adding appropriate flocculants, fine-grained minerals are rapidly settled, significantly increasing the pulp concentration and laying a good foundation for subsequent filtration.

2.Deep Dewatering with Automatic Membrane Filter Press

This is the core step, and automatic membrane filter presses are the preferred choice for efficient gold concentrate dewatering. Their advantages include:

• Ultra-low Moisture Content Guarantee:Membrane squeezing technology uses high-pressure water/air to perform a secondary squeezing of the filter cake, effectively removing capillary water from the filter cake, ensuring a stable moisture content that meets or even exceeds the requirements of pyrometallurgical smelting, and significantly reducing drying energy consumption.

• High Recovery and Sealing:The equipment utilizes a fully enclosed design to minimize filtrate loss and guarantee high gold recovery (loss rate<0.5%). The closed system fully meets environmental protection requirements and prevents cyanide volatilization.

• High Efficiency and Automation:Automated feeding, squeezing, cake discharging, and filter cloth washing enable continuous, automated operation, perfectly matching the plant's production rhythm.

Efficient dewatering of gold concentrate is a systematic process. By selecting a dewatering solution that combines efficient pretreatment with automatic membrane filter press, the concentrator can not only strictly control moisture content and ensure gold recovery, but also meet the most stringent environmental requirements, thereby minimizing costs and maximizing product value in the gold smelting process.