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Industrial-academic research and development partnerships would simultane-
ously increase the number of industrial applications and improve present process
supervision. Equipment and service suppliers could also take part in this venture
by making column flotation sensors more robust and reliable. Through joint action
nearly mature technologies like conductivity-based probes for froth depth and gas
hold-up, and on-line bubble size measurements could then rapidly become standard
devices for process control.
6.5.1 Sensor Development and Applications
After the industrial evaluation previously mentioned, the conductivity-based sen-
sors for froth depth and bias rate should ideally be revisited by equipment suppliers
with the aim of producing more robust and reliable commercial versions. Although
commercial sensors do exist for froth depth measurement (floats), the conductivity-
based probe could offer the possibility of using the same collected information for
estimating the bias rate, either exclusively, through the ANN method [23], or in
conjunction with gas hold-up sensor signals for the “dynamic” method [32].
Following its successful use for control purposes within the ongoing research
project at the Laronde concentrator [87], the McGill conductivity-based gas hold-up
sensor should also be revisited by its manufacturers to implement the required mod-
ifications for on-line and robust operation. Another interesting technique amenable
to further “exploration” and eventual transformation into a commercial sensor, is the
concept of the standard addition method developed by Perez-Garibay [40] for gas
Taillings
flow rate
set point
Froth deph
s et point
Froth deph
PI Controller
Flotation Column,
including sensors
and regulatory
controllers
Air flow rate
set point
Gas Hold-up
set point
Gas hold-up
Constrained
MPC
controller
Bias
set point
Wash water flow
rate set point
Bias
Figure 6.12 Control structure
 
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