ELECTROSTATIC
SEPARATION
By Caitlyn, Alish, Carly
DefinitionElectromagnetic forces can be used to separate non-magnetic
materials from other non-magnetic materials as well. This is
called electrostatic separation.
ExampleElectrostatic air cleaner is a
particulate collection device that
removes particles from a flowing
gas (such as air) using the force of
an induced electrostatic charges.
ExampleA simple form of electrostatic separation can
be performed using a plastic comb and some
peanuts with the skins still on. Rub the
peanuts so that the skins are easily separated
from the peanuts. Then rub the comb against
something fuzzy (a woolly jumper would work
well) and pass it over the peanuts. The peanut
skins should separate from the peanuts this
way. When you rub the comb against your
jumper, it charges the comb. This is often
referred to as static electricity. Different
materials are affected differently by these
electrical charges.
ExampleElectrostatic separation is often
used to separate waste products
from the air in chimneys attached
to factories and power plants. The
smoke that passes through the
chimney passes through a series of
electrically charged wires, which
charge the smoke particles. Then,
near the top of the chimney,
charged plates attract the charged
particles. This cleans some of the
dangerous waste products from
the smoke and prevents them from
escaping into the environment.
The Process
This process uses dry ore particles that are broken into smaller
sizes, and 250 mesh size particles are chosen and separated from
impurities. This dry ore is electrostatically charged by passing a
high velocity arc through the ore. This creates two oppositely
charged particles. An oppositely charged collector is used to
remove the impurities. This process gives the pure form of the
metal and is very widely used for extracting precious metals