Africa is rich in chromium ore resources; depending on the specific ore type, beneficiation processes are broadly categorized into two main groups: hard-rock chromium ore and lateritic chromium ore. The equipment and workflows employed are tailored to the distinct characteristics of each ore type.

Hard-rock chromium ore is characterized by its high hardness; consequently, its beneficiation primarily relies on crushing, grinding, and gravity separation. Following extraction via blasting, the run-of-mine ore first undergoes coarse crushing in a jaw crusher, followed by fine crushing in an impact or hammer crusher to reduce the particle size to approximately 20 mm. The material then enters a wet ball mill for grinding, a process designed to ensure the complete liberation of chromite from the gangue. After grinding, the resulting slurry passes through a spiral classifier to regulate particle size distribution, followed by multiple stages of gravity separation using spiral chutes. By leveraging the differences in mineral density, this process achieves the enrichment of chromite through the combined action of gravity and centrifugal force.

Lateritic chromium ore typically exhibits a high clay content, necessitating an initial washing and desliming stage. Rotary scrubbers are commonly utilized for washing and screening; fine particles—specifically those under 2 mm—undergo desliming in hydrocyclones before proceeding to spiral chutes for separation. Certain process workflows also incorporate magnetic separation operations: after the slurry is conditioned to a concentration of 30% in an agitation tank, it is pumped to a magnetic separator to separate the chromite concentrate from iron fines, thereby enhancing the overall ore grade.

The comprehensive beneficiation process also includes dewatering operations, utilizing dewatering screens or thickeners to remove excess moisture from the concentrate and yield a marketable final product. To maximize recovery rates, tailings may be recycled for further processing, while wastewater undergoes sedimentation treatment for reuse, thereby ensuring the efficient utilization of resources and promoting environmentally sustainable production practices.