Use of polyols as scale control reagents in the mining processes

1. A method of increasing stability of a pregnant liquor of a Bayer process comprising:

adding to the pregnant liquor of a Bayer process a hyperbranched polyglycerol having a molecular weight of from 1,000 to 1,000,000 in an amount of no less than 0.1 ppm.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hyperbranched polyglycerol contains 5 to 30 milliequivalents of hydroxyl units per gram of active polymer.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hyperbranched polyglycerol contains 8 to 18 milliequivalents of hydroxyl units per gram of active polymer.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hyperbranched polyglycerol is synthesized via an addition polymerization.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hyperbranched polyglycerol has from 25 to 12,000 monomeric units.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hyperbranched polyglycerol has from 42 to 7,200 monomeric units.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hyperbranched polyglycerol is a homopolymer.

8. The method of claim 6 , wherein the hyperbranched polyglycerol consists of a combination of multiple monomers.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hyperbranched polyglycerol is present in the pregnant liquor of a Bayer process at a concentration of from 5 to 50 ppm.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hyperbranched polyglycerol has a molecular weight of from 1,000 to 50,000.

11. Pregnant Bayer liquor comprising a hyperbranched polyglycerol having a molecular weight of from 1,000 to 1,000,000 at a concentration of from 0.1 to 100 ppm.

12. The pregnant Bayer liquor of claim 11 , wherein the hyperbranched polyglycerol has a molecular weight of from 1,000 to 50,000.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hyperbranched polyglycerol is synthesized via addition polymerization of glycidol.