Electrokinetic studies of minerals in aqueous solutions through electroacoustic measurement Article uri icon

abstract

  • Electrokinetic property of various minerals in aqueous solutions has been studied through electroacoustic measurement in the present work. This study was carried out on the particles of calcite (CaCO3), magnetite (Fe 3O4), quartz (SiO2), galena (PbS) in an aqueous NaCl solution. Electrophoretic measurement was also applied to magnetite quartz particles for the comparison of the two methods. The experimental results have shown that the point of zero charges (PZCs) of calcite, magnetite, galena were at pH 12.5, 3.8 2.8, respectively, while no PZC for quartz appeared in the pH range of 1.5-11. The electroacoustic electrophoretic measurements have obtained the same PZC similar curves of zeta potential vs pH for magnetite quartz particles in aqueous solutions. In addition, it has been found that a specific adsorption of Na%2b cation was applied to magnetite surfaces in aqueous solutions if the electrolyte (NaCl) concentration in the solution is high enough, leading the isoelectric point to shift rightward. This observation might be more remarkable in electroacoustic measurement than electrophoretic measurement. © 2009 World Scientific Publishing Company.

publication date

  • 2009-01-01