His role has focused on providing strategies to assist a variety of clients in improving flotation machine and circuit performance.

New fertility management practices, more acres in production, and the need for less soil compaction drove Ag-Chem's application equipment to larger capacity and higher flotation machines.

Flotation can be performed in rectangular or cylindrical mechanically agitated cells or tanks, flotation columns, Jameson Cells or deinking flotation machines.

He said the measurement of bubble load in industrial flotation machines allows for better analysis and hence operation of flotation circuits, as well as a possible tool to better control flotation circuits.

A subsample of 1 litre was taken from each 15 litre 'BOT' sample and wet sieved by hand using a hose with a spraygun attachment fed by the flotation machine pump.

David believes there is potential to use the device for online control of flotation circuits, but at the moment he will continue to use it as a research tool to further understand what is being measured in the pulp zone of flotation machines.