Electronic sorting principles
Sorting can be applied to pre-concentration, in
which barren waste is eliminated to reduce the tonnage reporting to the downstream concentration
processes, such as in uranium or gold ore sorting,
or to the production of a final product, such as
in limestone or diamond sorting. The ore must be
sufficiently liberated at a coarse size (greater than
5-10mm) to allow barren waste to be discarded
without significant loss of value. Preconcentration by
sorting is seen as a method of improving the sustainability
of mineral processing operations by reducing
the consumption of energy and water in grinding and
concentration, and achieving more benign tailings
disposal (Cutmore and Ebehardt, 2002)