a new approach for obtaining settling velocity in a thickener using statistical regression: a case study

in this research work, the parameters affecting the settling velocity within the thickeners were studied by introducing an equivalent shape factor. several thickener feed samples of different densities including copper, lead and zinc, and coal were prepared. the settling tests were performed on the samples, and the corresponding settling curves were plotted. using the linear regression analysis, the chein's equation was fitted to the experimental data in order to obtain the equivalent shape factors for the different minerals. moreover, the relations between the equivalent shape factors and the settling parameters were investigated. the r-squared values for the fits proved the capability of the chein’s equation to fit well on the experimental data (0.96