Concentration of sylvite from its ores

Claim 1

A CONCENTRATION PROCESS USING DIFFERENTIAL WETTABILITY PRINCIPLES FOR SEPARATNG SYLVITE FROM ITS ORES, CHARACETERIZED BY SUBJECTING THE ORE TO THE ACTION OF A MATERIAL SELECTED FROM THE CLASS CONSISTING OF (I) A LIQUID REAGENT WHICH INCLUDES: (A) A REACTION PRODUCT OBTAINED BY (1) FIRST REACTING TALL OIL AND A POLYETHYLENEPOLYAMINE TO PROVIDE AN INTERMEDIATE, SAID REACTION INCLUDING A REACTION TEMPERATURE BETWEEN 270* AND 300*C., THE MOLAL PROPORTION OF POLYAMINE TO TALL OIL BEING BETWEEN ABOUT 0.9:1 AND 0.8:1, THEN (2) REACTING SUCH INTERMEDIATE WITH DICHLOROETHYLETHER, THE MOLAL PROPORTION OF DICHLOROETHYLETHER TO TALL OIL BEING BETWEEN ABOUT 0.25:1 AND 1:1, (B) A HIGH-BOILING PETROLEUM DISTILLATE, THE PROPORTION OF SUCH PETROLEUM DISTILLATE IN THE FINISHED REAGENT BEING BETWEEN ABOUT 25% AND 75% AND A MINOR PROPORTION OF A DEPRESSOR (C), WHICH DEPRESSR IS A REACTION PRODUCT OBTAINED BY (1) FIRST REACTING TALL OIL AND AN OXYALKYLATED POLYETHYLENEPOLYAMINE, SAID REACTION INCLUDING A REACTION TEMPERATURE BETWEEN 270* AND 300* C., THE MOLAL PROPORTION OF OXYALKYLATED POLYAMINE TO TALL OIL BEING BETWEEN ABOUT 0.6:1 AND 0.8:1, THE OXYALKYLATED POLYAMINE BEING DERIVED BY REACTING THE POLYAMINE WITH A MATERIAL SELECTED FROM THE CLASS CONSISTING OF ETHYLENE OXIDE AND PROPYLENE AND ETHYLENE OXIDE, USING NOT MORE THAN ABOUT 2 MOLS OF TOTAL ALKYLENE OXIDE FOR EACH MOL OF POLYAMINE, AND THEN REACTING SUCH TALL OIL-OXYALKYLATED POLYETHYLENEPOLYAMINE REACTION PRODUCT WITH DICHLOROETHYLETHER, THE MOLAL PROPORTION OF DICHLOROETHYLETHER TO TALL OIL BEING BETWEEN ABOUT 0.25:1 AND 1:1 AND (II) PARTIAL NEUTRALIZATION PRODUCTS THEREOF.