Quartz-feldspar separation for the glass and ceramics industries

Large reserves of feldspar ore exist in the Aegean region of Turkey. The main colored impurities in these ores are iron- and titanium-bearing minerals such as anatase, rutile, sphene and ilmenite. In this study, a potassium feldspar ore containing mainly quartz and coloring impurities was subjected to beneficiation tests involving magnetic separation and flotation, which were applied either separately or in combination. Bench-scale flotation experiments using cationic collectors G-TAP and Flotigam V-4343 and using HF and H₂SO₄ as modifiers were employed to separate feldspar from quartz and to remove part of the titanium impurities. The best results were achieved with a combination of high-intensity wet magnetic separation and flotation. A feldspar concentrate containing 16.28% Al₂O₃, 10.75% K₂O, 2.84% Na₂O, 69.97% SiO₂ and 0.16% Fe₂O₃ was produced. A quartz concentrate containing 2.30% Al₂O₃, 0.48% K₂O, 0.42% Na₂O, 0.07% Fe₂O₃ and 96.20% SiO₂ was also obtained.