GGMC hosts demo of eco-friendly gold recovery apparatus

The Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) on Tuesday participated in a demonstration of the Knelson concentrator which  is a gravity concentration apparatus, mainly used in the gold mining industry  for the recovery of fine particles of free gold.

Among those witnessing the  demonstration  of the  eco-friendly mineral processing apparatus  at  the Guyana Girl Guides Pavilion  on Brickdam were senior officials of  GGMC, members of Crown Mining Supplies, Univer-sity of Guyana students and Knelson concentrator representatives from South  America.

Karen Livan, Manager of the Environmen-tal Division of the GGMC, said  that the  equipment would demonstrate higher levels of recovery and provide   superior technology in  the recovery of gold.

Latin America’s Knelson Concentrator representative demonstrates how this device is operated.

She also noted that this is the first of its kind but there are plans to  collaborate  with members of the mining industry to better develop this endeavour.

Conducting the demonstration, Kevin Peacocke, one of the representatives of Knelson concentrators, said that they themselves had a look at Guyana’s  interior and  consider  that this apparatus can be advantageous.

The first sample used in the demonstration was from Guyana. The material was grounded to an appropriate size, mixed with water and then fed into the machine. Peacocke explained that the heavy component to be recovered is a very small fraction of the total material. For most primary applications the grade of the heavy material will be less than 500 grams/tonnes  (0.05% by weight).

Livan later explained that this product is beneficial as it does not involve the use of mercury.   She also said that the Knelson concentrator will open the eyes of miners to other possibilities such as the feasibility of recovering  other minerals. Moreover the device  offers a more efficient method and  costs less to upkeep.

The Knelson concentrator, the first of its kind, was developed by Byron Knelson in 1978.