The possibility of recovering residual amine present in the water phase of tailings pulps of the reverse cationic flotation of iron ore was investigated. The samples collected in the tailings from mechanical and tank cells and also from flotation columns were kept under rest to promote the separation between the water and the solid particles. The water was used for determination of the residual amine concentration and for flotation tests. The residual amine concentration was determined through indirect quantitative analysis using a spectrophotometer. The flotation tests were performed using, separately, each tailings water and a composition of them. Four sets of tests were carried out. The first three sets indicated the strong possibility of reusing the amine present in the water. As a consequence, the dosage of amine was reduced and the residual amine concentration of three out of four collection points was below the detection limit in the sampling for the last set. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.