Upgrading a rutile concentrate produced from Athabasca oil sands tailings☆

A rutile concentrate recently produced by Lakefield Research Ltd and Syncrude Canada Ltd from athabasca oil sands tailings was characterized and attempts were made to upgrade it to market-grade. The rutile concentrate contained 75.5% TiO2, 18.7% Fe2O3, 1.03% Al2O3, 1.94% SiO2, and 563 ppm Th+U. The amount of rutile (anatase) in the concentrate was estimated to be about 10–17%, and the remaining TiO2 came from ilmenite in various altered forms. Magnetic separation could remove the Fe from the concentrate but it increased the SiO2 content from 1.94 to 6.01%. A reverse flotation process was developed to remove the SiO2. Although the fine dissemination of SiO2 in the rutile matrix limited the removal of SiO2, the upgraded rutile concentrate, containing 87–89% TiO2, could be used as a feedstock to the chloride titanium pigment processes.