European Metals Holdings Limited has announced the results of test work that confirmed the separation efficiency and capability of flotation of lithium-bearing zinnwaldite from the Cinovec Project in the Czech Republic.
The updated flotation test work, undertaken at Nagrom Laboratories in Perth, has reportedly reached 95% lithium recovery from flotation concentrates at target lithium grades and mass yield.
Ongoing test works will confirm the robust nature of the process and optimise the Definitive Feasibility Study to ensure that it has surpassed previous performance indicators.
According to the company, the Front-End Comminution and Beneficiation process beneficiates Cinovec ore by recovering liberated lithium-bearing zinnwaldite from the quartz and feldspar host rock, collecting the zinnwaldite into a clean concentrate suitable to feed the downstream Lithium Chemical Plant.
It added that results demonstrated the suitability of magnetic separation for coarse ore, but also the need for alternative technology suited for the concentration of fine fractions, to enable maximising lithium recoveries across all particle size ranges.
Further studies into the liberation of mica-like zinnwaldite from the quartz and feldspar host rock revealed that almost complete liberation is achieved at a grind size of 500 micrometres, which is significantly coarser than the 250 micrometres previously applied.
Operating at a coarser grind size results in an overall reduction in energy required, whilst reducing deportment of zinnwaldite into ultra-fine particle fractions due to comminution.
European Metals Executive Chair Keith Coughlan said the lithium extraction results further underline the commercial viability of the company’s operations at Cinovec.
“The neutral pH of the flotation further enhances the already strong environmental, social and governance credentials of the Cinovec Project particularly when compared to the acid flotation used on micas elsewhere around the globe,” Coughlan added.
“We expect the current test work to be completed by the end of June,” he stated.
