Froth flotation

Froth flotation is like a fun adventure ride for tiny minuscule particles called minerals. The adventure happens in a special box-like machine called a flotation cell.

Imagine you're playing with your bubble toys. There are bubbles floating around everywhere. Now imagine that some of those bubbles have magical powers that can magically take the toys you want away from the other toys. That's kind of what froth flotation is like.

In the flotation cell, there are a lot of tiny mineral particles floating around with a little bit of water. The bubbles enter the cell, and they are caught up in the water flowing through the cell.

The bubbles have the magical power to stick to certain mineral particles, like magnets! When a bubble sticks to a mineral particle, it makes the particle float up to the surface of the water, like when you get a new toy from a game machine.

The mineral particles that float to the surface form a type of foam, called a froth. The froth is then collected, and the minerals are separated from the water.

Now imagine you and your friends were floating around in a pool, and some of the magical bubbles could grab you and lift you to the surface! That's what happens to the minerals in froth flotation. They get lifted up and out of the water, so they can be collected and used to make important things like metals, paper, or even the toys you play with!