en.Wedoany.com Reported - Rapid Critical Metals Ltd (ASX:RCM) has achieved strong preliminary flotation results from its Webbs and Consol silver projects in New South Wales, Australia, with silver recovery rates of up to 98.7% and lead recovery rates of up to 99.3%.
Laboratory-scale tests also achieved a zinc recovery rate of 93.3% for the Consol Master composite sample, supporting the company's assessment that the mineralization responds well to conventional flotation processes. Managing Director Byron Miles stated that these results address a key technical consideration for the project.
For the Consol Master composite sample, testing at a finer grind size of 125 microns produced the best overall metallurgical response: silver recovery of 98.7%, lead recovery of 99.3%, and zinc recovery of 93.3%. This test yielded a rougher concentrate grade of 1,048 g/t silver, 20.8% lead, and 23.8% zinc. The Consol Fines composite sample produced the highest-grade silver concentrate in the trial, with a silver grade of 2,051 g/t and lead recovery of 98.1%.
In the Webbs project, lead recovery reached 97.2% at both grind sizes, while silver recovery improved to 88% at the finer 125-micron grind. Rapid noted that finer grinding consistently improved silver and zinc recoveries, indicating that mineral liberation will be an important consideration in future process design.
The test program included six rougher flotation tests on three composite samples (Webbs Master, Consol Master, and Consol Fines), testing two grind sizes of 125 microns and 250 microns. These results represent preliminary rougher concentrate recoveries, not final saleable concentrate specifications, and further cleaner flotation work is required. Rapid's next steps include conducting cleaner flotation tests, optimizing grind size and reagent conditions, evaluating additional variability samples, and incorporating results into ongoing process research and development work.
The Webbs and Consol projects are located in the New England Fold Belt in northern New South Wales, a mature mining region with existing infrastructure. Webbs is a historically mined silver deposit located approximately 10 km north of Emmaville; the Consol project contains intrusion-related silver, lead, and zinc mineralization within the Southern New England Orogen. Rapid also plans to conduct further drilling, resource, and technical studies as the projects advance.
Rapid Critical Metals focuses on discovering and developing high-grade silver and critical mineral resources. Its asset portfolio is centered on the Webbs and Conrad silver projects in New South Wales and the Prophet River gallium-germanium project in British Columbia, Canada. The company is advancing resource upgrades, infill drilling, and new target testing across its portfolio.
