In turbulent flotation, the quantitative prediction of particle—bubble collision behavior is a long-standing problem, that restricts the research and development of fine-particle flotation equipment with turbulent mineralization as the core technology. Classical flotation kinetic theoretical models, have shown that the collision probability between particles and bubbles is directly proportional to the particle slip velocity. However, existing slip velocity models cannot accurately predict the slip motion of fine particles in turbulent flows. In this study, numerical simulations are conducted by coupling computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and discrete element methods (DEM) to investigate the effects of the particle shapes, particle densities, and turbulence intensity on the slip velocity of fine particles. Through experimental validation, the reasonability of the numerical simulation of the particle slip velocity in turbulence is proved with a minimum error 13%. In addition, the numerical results show that, although the particle shapes do not have a significant effect on the particle slip velocity, the slip velocity of flat or ellipsoidal particles is slightly higher than that of spherical particles. Moreover, the slip velocity of spherical particles increases with the turbulence intensity and particle density. Finally, a new correlation for the slip velocity is established, which is suitable for Stokes number between 0 and 3.012.
 

turbulence, CFD-DEM, particle slip velocity, flotation dynamics