Transportable modular system for enhanced mineral recovery, from tailings line and deposits

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10427166-B2
Application number	US-201515534632-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 17, 2015
Priority date	Dec 17, 2014
Publication date	Oct 1, 2019
Grant date	Oct 1, 2019

Abstract

A transportable modular system for enhanced minerals recovery from tailings lines and deposits, features two transportable mineral recovery modules (TMRM), each TMRM for transporting as a truck mounted module to a remote site as an independently-operable mineral recovery module, each TMRM to couple to another TMRM on-site at the remote site and used together to provide enhanced minerals recovery. One TMRM having a central engineered polymer mineral recovery module that receives tailings fluid having a mineral particle of interest, processes the tailings fluid using an engineered polymer configuration, and provides recovered mineral processing fluids having the mineral particle of interest and a tailings disposal fluid. One other TMRM is selected from a group of TMRMs that includes another central engineered polymer mineral recovery module, a tailings fluid management module, an additive/chemical treatment polymer management module, a tailings disposal module and a recovery mineral processing module.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A transportable modular system for enhanced minerals recovery from tailings lines and deposits, comprising:
a plurality of trucks arranged to travel between a distribution point and at least one remote site;
at least two transportable mineral recovery modules, each transportable mineral recovery module configured for transporting as a truck mounted module to said at least one remote site as an independently-operable mineral recovery module by one of said plurality of trucks, each of the at least two transportable mineral recovery modules configured to couple to another one of the at least two transportable mineral recovery modules on-site at the remote site and used together to provide enhanced minerals recovery;
at least one of the at least two transportable mineral recovery modules comprising at least one central engineered polymer mineral recovery module configured to
receive tailings fluid having a mineral particle of interest,
process the tailings fluid using an engineered polymer configuration, and
provide recovered mineral processing fluids having the mineral particle of interest and a tailings disposal fluid; and
the at least two transportable mineral recovery modules comprising at least one other transportable mineral recovery module selected from a group of transportable mineral recovery modules that includes another central engineered polymer mineral recovery module, a tailings fluid management module, an additive/chemical treatment polymer management module, a tailings disposal module and a recovery mineral processing module, and wherein each of the tailings fluid management module, the additive/chemical treatment polymer management module, the tailings disposal module and the recovery mineral processing module is configured as an independently-operable module, wherein each transportable mineral recovery module comprises an input porting and an output porting, and wherein the output porting of any one of the transportable mineral recovery modules is configured to couple on-site to the input porting of another one of the transportable mineral recovery modules.

2. A transportable modular system according to claim 1 , wherein each of the at least two transportable mineral recovery modules is configured as a respective plug-and-play transportable mineral recovery module for interconnecting and cooperating together to provide the enhanced minerals recovery.

3. A transportable modular system according to claim 1 , wherein the tailings fluid management module comprises some combination of at least one pump or at least one pre-conditioner module, wherein the at least one pump is configured to provide the tailings fluid from a tailing pond or reservoir to the at least one central engineered polymer mineral recovery module, and wherein the at least one pre-conditioner module is configured to pre-condition the tailings fluid before the tailings fluid is provided to the at least one central engineered polymer mineral recovery module.

4. A transportable modular system according to claim 1 , wherein the additive/chemical treatment polymer management module comprises at least one chemical storage vessel configured to provide at least one chemical to the at least one central engineered polymer mineral recovery module, wherein the at least one chemical comprises at least one chemical polymer, or at least one chemical additive, or at least one polymer reactivation, or some combination thereof.

5. A transportable modular system according to claim 1 , wherein said at least one other transportable mineral recovery module comprises said another central engineered polymer mineral recovery module and a recovery mineral processing module, and said another central engineered polymer mineral recovering module is configured to provide the mineral particle of interest in the recovered mineral processing fluids to the recovery mineral processing module for further processing.

6. A transportable modular system according to claim 5 , wherein the recovery mineral processing module comprises a recovered mineral processing fluids storage vessel to receive and store the recovered mineral processing fluids for further processing.

7. A transportable modular system according to claim 6 , wherein the recovery mineral processing module is configured for transporting from the remote site with the recovered mineral processing fluids contained in the recovered mineral processing fluids storage vessel for further processing off-site at another location, including at a main plant.

8. A transportable modular system according to claim 1 , wherein said another central engineered polymer mineral recovering module is configured to provide the tailings disposal fluid to the tailings disposal module for tailings disposal.

9. A transportable modular system according to claim 8 , wherein the tailings disposal module comprises a pump configured to provide the tailings disposal fluid for tailings disposal.

10. A transportable modular system according to claim 8 , wherein the tailings disposal module comprises a tailings disposal storage vessel to receive and store the tailings disposal fluid for tailings disposal, and wherein the tailings disposal module is configured for transporting from the remote site with the tailings disposal fluid contained in the tailings disposal storage vessel for tailings disposal off-site at another location.

11. A transportable modular system according to claim 1 , wherein the engineered polymer configuration comprises apparatus having a collection area comprising collection surfaces configured to contact with a mixture comprising water and valuable material, the valuable material comprising a plurality of mineral particles; and a synthetic material provided at least on the collection surfaces, wherein the synthetic material comprises plurality of molecules comprising a functional group configured to attract the mineral particles to the collection surfaces, wherein the functional group is configured to render the collection surfaces hydrophobic and wherein the synthetic material comprises a siloxane derivative, and wherein the siloxane derivative comprises either polydimethylsiloxane or polysiloxanates or hydroxyl-terminated polydimethylsiloxanes; and the synthetic material is selected from a group consisting of hydrophobically-modified ethyl hydroxyethyl cellulose polysiloxanates, alkylsilane and fluoroalkylsilane.

12. A transportable modular system according to claim 1 , wherein the engineered polymer configuration comprises apparatus having a collection area or tank having one or more collection surfaces configured to contact with a mixture having water and valuable material, the valuable material having a plurality of mineral particles of interest; and a synthetic material provided at least on the one or more collection surfaces, the synthetic material having plurality of molecules with a siloxane functional group configured to attract the mineral particles of interest to the collection surfaces.

13. A transportable modular system according to claim 1 , wherein the engineered polymer configuration is made of polyurethane rubber and coated with a silicone gel for collecting the material particle of interest of a wide range of sizes, including particles far larger than about 500 microns.

14. A transportable modular system according to claim 13 , wherein, after being coated on the polyurethane rubber, the silicone gel cures and hardens to as to form part of, and stick to, the polyurethane rubber.

15. A transportable modular system according to claim 13 , the silicone gel includes, or takes the form of, molecules having the

Assignees

• Cidra Corporate Services Inc

Inventors

• Didden Francis K
• Kersey Alan D
• Fernald Mark R
• Rothman Paul J

Classifications

• B01J20/3212

  consisting of a polymer obtained by reactions otherwise than involving only carbon to carbon unsaturated bonds · CPC title

• B01J20/3285

  Coating or impregnation layers comprising different type of functional groups or interactions, e.g. different ligands in various parts of the sorbent, mixed mode, dual zone, bimodal, multimodal, ionic or hydrophobic, cationic or anionic, hydrophilic or hydrophobic · CPC title

• B01J20/3272

  Polymers obtained by reactions otherwise than involving only carbon to carbon unsaturated bonds · CPC title

• B82Y30/00

  Nanotechnology for materials or surface science, e.g. nanocomposites · CPC title

• B01J20/327

  Polymers obtained by reactions involving only carbon to carbon unsaturated bonds · CPC title