C. I. Nwoye^1,, P. O. Offor², N. E. Idenyi³, S. O. Nwakpa¹, A.O. Agbo⁴

This paper presents the predictability of phosphorus removal based on simultaneously removed sulphur and mass-input of iron ore leached in potassium hydroxide. The reaction vessel containing the solution and ore was heated at a temperature of 600°C for 10minutes. The model; P = 61.8477 x 10^-3μ - 2.27S shows that the predicted concentration of removed phosphorus, is dependent on the mass-input of iron oxide ore and the concentration of sulphur simultaneously removed during the reduction process. The validity of the model is rooted in the expression k₁P = (2μ – k₂S) where both sides of the expression are correspondingly equal. The maximum deviation of the model-predicted (D-Model) concentrations of removed phosphorus (during the beneficiation process) from the concentrations obtained from experiment is less than 3.6861%. This translates to confidence level of over 96%. The concentrations of phosphorus removed per unit mass-input of iron oxide ore as obtained from experiment (ExD), derived model (D-Model) and regression model (R-Model) are 1.01, 1.1549 and 0.87 mg kg^-1 g^-1 respectively. Similarly, the concentrations of phosphorus removed per unit concentration of sulphur simultaneously removed as obtained from experiment, D-Model and R-Model are 1.8843, 2.1546 and 1.6231 mg kg^-1 (mg kg^-1)^-1 respectively. The standard errors in D-Model prediction of the removed phosphorus concentration for each value of simultaneously removed sulphur concentration is 0.0167 compared to ExD (0.6439) and R-Model (2.05 x 10^-5). The F-test result between D-Model and R-Model based on removed sulphur concentration is 0.6926, and 0.7633 between D-Model and experimental results. F-test result between R-Models (based on ore mass-input and removed sulphur concentration) was evaluated as 0.9933. D-Model predicted values agree with the experiment that the concentration of phosphorus removed is ≈ 2.3 times higher than the simultaneously removed sulphur concentration.

prediction, phosphorus removed, Haematite, potassium hydroxide, leaching