Which term refers to an apparatus that uses diamonds' affinity for grease to separate them from other minerals?

Which term refers to an apparatus that uses diamonds' affinity for grease to separate them from other minerals?

• A. Graphitization
• B. Grease belt
• C. GrCnt
• D. Glide plane

Answer: (B)

This question hinges on how diamonds are separated from other minerals using their surface properties. Diamonds have a hydrophobic surface, meaning they don’t wet well with water and instead prefer interaction with oil-based substances. In a grease belt setup, a thin film of grease coats a moving belt. As the mineral slurry passes over it, the hydrophobic diamonds cling to the grease while many other minerals wet and drift away with the water. The belt then carries the trapped diamonds to a collecting area, yielding a concentrate richer in diamonds. Other terms don’t describe a separation device used for this purpose: graphitization is a chemical process that changes carbon forms, a glide plane is a crystallography concept about dislocations in crystals, and GrCnt isn’t a recognized apparatus.

This question hinges on how diamonds are separated from other minerals using their surface properties. Diamonds have a hydrophobic surface, meaning they don’t wet well with water and instead prefer interaction with oil-based substances. In a grease belt setup, a thin film of grease coats a moving belt. As the mineral slurry passes over it, the hydrophobic diamonds cling to the grease while many other minerals wet and drift away with the water. The belt then carries the trapped diamonds to a collecting area, yielding a concentrate richer in diamonds.

Other terms don’t describe a separation device used for this purpose: graphitization is a chemical process that changes carbon forms, a glide plane is a crystallography concept about dislocations in crystals, and GrCnt isn’t a recognized apparatus.