Butyl Thioglycolate Supplier South Africa

What Is Butyl Thioglycolate?

Butyl thioglycolate (BTG) is the butyl ester of thioglycolic acid (mercaptoacetic acid), containing both an ester group and a thiol (–SH) functional group. The thiol group provides the primary collector activity through chemisorption to metal ion sites on sulphide and precious metal mineral surfaces, while the butyl ester group contributes hydrophobicity to the adsorbed layer. BTG is a specialty collector used in situations where conventional xanthate or DTP collectors provide suboptimal performance, such as in certain refractory gold ores, complex polymetallic sulphide circuits, and in combination with other collectors for synergistic effects.

Collector Applications

BTG is used as a co-collector or secondary collector rather than a primary collector in most flotation applications, given its relatively high cost compared to xanthates. It is particularly useful in flotation circuits treating partially oxidised ores, where thiol-type collectors can access metal sites on oxidised mineral surfaces better than xanthate collectors. BTG has been reported to improve recovery of fine-grained gold and PGM minerals in some circuit-specific applications. It is also used in certain industrial applications as a chemical intermediate for synthesis of sulfur-containing compounds.

Supply Details

Terracore Chemicals supplies butyl thioglycolate in 200 L drums to mining and chemical industry customers. Given its odour characteristics (characteristic thiol odour), appropriate handling ventilation is required. Technical data and SDS are available on request.