The Impact of Surface Characteristics of Slightly Soluble Cu (II) and Ni (II) Compounds on their Electroflotation Extraction from Concentrated Solutions of Electrolytes

The impact of concentrated NaCl, NaNO3, and Na2SO4 solutions on the average hydrodynamic diameter and charge of particles of slightly soluble nickel and copper compounds were found to be rather identical. In electrolytes solutions, the average size of the dispersed phases particles decreased from 50–54 µm to 30–45 µm, the electrokinetic potential became more negative (-(2–10) mV). In a result, the removal of slightly soluble nickel and copper compounds decreased from 98% to 94–97% and 30–94%, respectively. Minimal efficiency of electroflotation-based extraction of nickel was observed in the presence of NaNO3. Cationic flocculants promoted increased extraction up to 98–100% regardless of the electrolyte, and decreased electroflotation duration from10–15 min to 5–7 min.