Home  /  Applications
Brownfield optimisation

Built to slot into the circuit you already run.

Our focus is existing operations — miners looking to recover more, lift grade and drive down cost per tonne without rebuilding the plant. HPSA targets a handful of well-defined points in a standard flowsheet, each a self-contained modification rather than a new circuit.

Where HPSA goes in your circuit

Four target positions in a standard flowsheet.

HPSA can be deployed at many points, but four stand out in a typical concentrator. They sit on a simple spectrum: the closer to the end of the circuit, the easier and quicker the install; the further upstream, the larger the benefit cascading down the rest of the flowsheet.

HPSA insertion point Numbered 1–4 in the order we'd typically prioritise, working back upstream.

Illustrative flowsheet — actual circuit configuration varies by operation. HPSA is modular and skid-mounted, so each insertion point is a self-contained addition to an existing circuit.

1

Final scavenger feed

The last chance to capture value before it leaves as tailings. Much of what's lost in the scavenger tail is poorly-liberated middling — valuable mineral still locked to gangue. HPSA re-liberates it and returns it to flotation, minimising losses to tailings at source rather than leaving the value in the waste stream.

Loss minimisation at sourceLowest implementation risk
Recover what's heading to tailingsEasiest to implement
2

Primary flotation feed

Conditioning the feed to the rougher so more of the target mineral is liberated before flotation even begins. Cleaner liberation here means a higher proportion reports to concentrate from the first stage, lifting overall recovery and grade.

Higher recovery & gradeFeeds the whole circuit
Higher recovery & gradeModerate complexity
3

Secondary regrind circuit

Inserted into the secondary regrind loop, HPSA liberates material more effectively at a coarser size, so it moves forward instead of recirculating. The reduced recirculating load frees mill capacity for additional fresh feed — more product through the same equipment, improving recovery, throughput and cost per tonne of product.

Reduced recirculating loadThroughput on a fixed cost base
More throughput · lower cost per tonne of productMore planning
4

Primary mill regrind circuit

The same recirculating-load logic, applied furthest upstream. Because it sits early in the circuit, the benefit cascades down the entire downstream flowsheet — the largest potential prize. It also carries the most implementation complexity, with mass-balance effects to design for up and downstream of the insertion point.

Greatest downstream impactHighest complexity
Throughput & cost per tonne, plant-wideMost complex
Stop the loss at source
Capture the value today — don't make it tomorrow's tailings problem.

A meaningful share of recoverable mineral reports to tailings simply because it was never fully liberated — the valuable grains stay locked to gangue and float past the cells. That loss happens every shift, on fresh ore.

Applying HPSA at the scavenger feed re-liberates that locked fraction and gives it one more pass at recovery — so the value is captured now, in today's production, instead of being buried in the dam as a future reprocessing project. It's the most direct way to lift recovery on an operating circuit.

Proof the mechanism works

Demonstrated across commodities.

Wherever it sits in the circuit, HPSA's value rests on one thing: selective liberation that actually improves grade and recovery. Each result below comes from a DISA test programme on real ore. Headline figures are DISA-published; fuller campaign data is available under technical engagement.

Copper sulfides

More copper, at a cleaner grade.

Benchmarked against a rod mill in a regrind circuit, HPSA improved both copper grade and recovery in the finer size fractions — concentrating the valuable mineral into less mass and reducing the volume sent downstream.

+13%
Concentrate grade vs rod mill
+22%
Recovery vs rod mill
Figures: DISA HPSA brochure (copper sulfides).
Gold tailings

Unlocking value from a tailings stream.

Applied to a gold tailings stream, HPSA's selective liberation concentrated the gold into less mass — substantially lifting recovery while reducing the particle size needing downstream processing.

+44%
Au recovery improvement
~150µm
P80, reduced from ~2,100 µm
Figures: DISA HPSA brochure (gold tailings).
Graphite

Higher concentrate grade, coarser grind.

Evaluated as a replacement for a ball mill in a secondary grinding circuit, HPSA raised graphite flotation concentrate grade at a coarser grind size while maintaining recovery — pointing to fewer downstream regrind stages.

+25%
Concentrate grade, at a coarser P80
=
Recovery maintained
Figures: DISA HPSA brochure (graphite).
Phosphate

Cleaner apatite, fewer impurities.

In phosphate rock, HPSA selectively liberates acid-consuming and silicate gangue minerals from the apatite host — lifting P₂O₅ grade and stripping magnesium-bearing impurities that penalise downstream acid plants.

+15%
P₂O₅ improvement
−50%
MgO impurity reduction
Figures: DISA HPSA brochure (phosphate, 250 TPH scale).
An HPSA unit installed at a phosphate processing operation
HPSA installed at a phosphate operation. Image: DISA Technologies.
A longer-term play Legacy tailings & remediation

And when you're ready, the value already in the dam.

The same selective liberation that minimises losses at source can also recover value from tailings already deposited. Reprocessing legacy material is a bigger, more complex project with a longer route to reality — but where the value justifies it, HPSA supports it, and the same mechanism can clean and recycle process media or reduce the volume of contaminated material requiring disposal.

Reprocessing deposited tailings

Re-liberating and recovering the locked mineral fraction in existing tailings storage — turning a closed-out loss into a recoverable resource where grades and volumes justify the project.

Bigger project · longer horizon

Media recovery & remediation

Cleaning and recycling spent process media such as filter sand, and concentrating contaminants into a smaller fraction so the bulk of the material is left cleaner — including specialised remediation of legacy waste.

Specialised programmes

Remediation applications include specialised legacy materials handled as dedicated programmes. Specific recovery and mass-reduction figures are available under technical engagement.

Full sector coverage

If it benefits from selective liberation, HPSA can be evaluated for it.

Copper · Nickel · Zinc · Lead · Molybdenum Gold · Silver · PGM Graphite · Lithium · Rare Earth Elements Iron ore · Phosphate · Potash · Fluorspar · Chromite Mineral sands · Filter sand Tailings & remediation — all ore types
A note on figures. Performance is ore-specific. The numbers on this page are drawn from DISA's published results and are confirmed for each project through laboratory characterisation and pilot testing on your own material before any commitment.

Where would HPSA fit in your circuit?

Tell us your flowsheet and where you're losing value, and we'll point to the position — and the win — that makes sense to test first.

Contact Optimise Minerals