TABLE OF CONTENTS Froth information is usually described as one of the most important aspects in flotation and also in other industrial fields. The investigation of frothing properties and its physico-chemical characteristics dates back to 1920.
The presence of a frothing agent, either as a neutral frother or in multiple functions as both collector and frother, is vital to every flotation process. In addition to the formation of froth, a frother has a significant effect on the increase in air dispersion in the flotation machine, reduction in coalescence of individual bubbles in the pulp and decrease in the rate at which the bubbles rise to the surface. Frothers increase the strength of the bubbles and the stability of the froth that is formed as a result of the rise of mineralized air bubbles to the surface of the pulp.
The frothing ability of their aqueous solution is believed to be connected with a decrease in the surface tension and froth studies were therefore associated with measuring the surface tension and the foam volume or stability. In fact, it should be remembered that the best foaming agents are not necessarily the best flotation frothers and the importance of the interaction of frothers and collectors in particle bubble attachment cannot be neglected.
In general, the flotation selectivity of surface-active frothers is not high, which makes frother selection in flotation practice quite difficult, especially when a fairly large number of factors influence the action of frother and froth stability in general. From a practical...
