Kingman Minerals (TSX-V:KGS) reports preliminary gold recovery of 93.5% from laboratory-scale gravity and rougher flotation testing on selected material from its Rosebud Gold Property in Arizona, US.
Sepro Laboratories completed the test work on 165.8kg of mineralised rock collected from 24 underground samples. The samples were combined into three variability composites and then blended into a master composite grading 12.52 grams per tonne gold (Au).
A three-stage gravity recoverable gold test recovered 82.3% of the gold at a final grind size of 80% passing 75 microns. The resulting gravity concentrate graded 379.97g/t Au.
Rougher flotation testing subsequently recovered 61.9% of the gold remaining in the gravity tailings. Combined, the gravity and flotation products contained approximately 93.5% of the gold in the tested material and produced a concentrate grading around 53.4g/t Au.
The master composite also graded 60.5g/t silver (Ag), with the combined test work recovering approximately 63.1% of the contained silver.
Sepro Senior Mineral Processing Engineer Jalal Tajadod says the results provide a basis for further investigation of a combined gravity and flotation flowsheet.
“The combination of high gravity recoverability, rapid flotation kinetics, and strong overall preliminary recovery provides a solid basis for further metallurgical optimization and mineralogical investigation,” Tajadod says.
The first rougher flotation stage recovered 36.9% of the gold in the gravity tailings into a concentrate grading 40.4g/t Au. Sepro also recorded more than 51% recovery from the tailings during the first four minutes of flotation.
Gold grades varied substantially across the three composites, ranging from 1.19–113.62g/t Au. Sepro attributes the variation to the nugget effect caused by the uneven distribution of discrete gold particles.
Kingman says further sampling will be required to assess how representative the results are across Rosebud. The 93.5% figure reflects preliminary laboratory testing of selected samples and is not an estimate of future commercial plant recovery or the grade of any mineral resource.
Director Bradley Peek says the company plans further geological, metallurgical, and technical work.
“These results justify a focused program designed to better define the continuity and scale of the mineralization, optimize the metallurgical flowsheet and evaluate the broader economic potential of the property,” Peek says.
Further work could include flotation optimisation, cleaner flotation, mineralogical investigation, and potential leaching of the flotation tailings.
Kingman Minerals is a Canadian-listed precious metals explorer that owns the Rosebud Mine in Arizona’s Music Mountains. The property contains a 400-foot shaft and approximately 2,500 feet of historical underground workings.
Write to France Pinzon at Mining.com.au
Images: Kingman Minerals
