Abstract
Rock texture is, arguably, one of the most essential geo-metallurgical attributes. Numerous studies have shown that textures influence both mechanical and metallurgical characteristics of the rock. From a mineral processing perspective, the degree of mineral liberation is a critical parameter that needs to be optimized with respect to comminution energy requirements. In this study, we explore the link between texture of the rock and its liberation profile under non-preferential breakage conditions. A series of Monte-Carlo simulations was carried out to compute liberation profiles for a number of synthetic binary 2D textures using the Voronoi tessellation masking technique to simulate rock texture breakage. Based on the obtained results, a generalized model for describing volumetric grade-by-size distributions is proposed. The developed model utilizes a mixture of Beta distributions to calculate grade distribution profiles as a function of a dimensionless scale parameter that relates spatial textural characteristics to the fragments (particle) size distribution, thus, enabling the development of predictive correlations. Application of the developed approach for predicting mineral liberation profiles using rock texture image analysis is discussed.