AbstractThe mineral matter and sulfur, which are present in varying amounts in asphaltites, are a major problem in the utilization of asphaltites as a fuel. Demineralization studies were carried out on an asphaltite sample containing 43.69% ash, 35.9% volatile matter, 19.7% fixed carbon, and 4.64% total sulfur. Laboratory scale free jet flotation cell with a volume of 30 L and a capacity of 2 m3/h was used, and all flotation tests were performed as collectorless. About 100 g/t isooctanol was used as a frother. The effects of particle size, the height of the nozzle pipe, turbulence zone, and laminar zone thickness were investigated during the tests. The flotation results indicated that a clean asphaltite having 19.66% ash content was produced with 66.4% combustible recovery. © 2016 Curtin University of Technology and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.