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. (2011) The kinetics of dissolution of synthetic covellite, chalcocite and digenite in dilute chloride solutions at ambient temperatures. Hydrometallurgy, This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. A C C E P T E D M A N U S C R I P T ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPTThe kinetics of dissolution of synthetic covellite, chalcocite and digenite in dilute chloride solutions at ambient temperatures. AbstractAn experimental study of the comparative kinetics of dissolution of various synthetic copper sulphides (covellite, chalcocite, digenite) in dilute chloride solutions has been carried out at ambient temperatures such as could be encountered in the heap leaching of secondary copper sulphide minerals.The dissolution of sized synthetic covellite particles was carried out in dilute HCl solutions containing known concentrations of copper(II) and iron(III) at controlled potentials. The results show that the rate of dissolution is similar at potentials of 600 and 650 mV, but is predictably less at a potential of 550 mV. The rate of dissolution is remarkably similar to that of chalcopyrite under similar conditions and is largely independent of Cl -and HCl concentration in the range 0.2 to 2.5 M and 0.1 to 1 M respectively. The effect of temperature is significant and an activation energy of 71.5 kJ mol -1 was derived which confirms a chemical or electrochemical rate-determining reaction on the mineral surface. A mineralogical study of the residue after leachingshows that most of the sulphur is associated with unreacted covellite and occurs as isolated globules on the surface with over 90% of the unreacted covellite surface free of sulphur.Dissolution of synthetic chalcocite and digenite is rapid compared with that of covellite under the same conditions. At a potential of 500 mV, the relatively rapid A C C E P T E D M A N U S C R I P T ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPTinitial dissolution of chalcocite and digenite does not proceed beyond about 50% and 45% copper dissolution, respectively, as predicted from the thermodynamics. These results confirm the formation of a covellite-like phase as an intermediate which cannot be leached at a potential of 500 mV. An increase in the potential results in rapid dissolution of this "secondary covellite", relative to primary covellite. These results provide useful information for the conditions that should be used for the heap leaching of ores containing secondary copper sulphide minerals.

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An alternative copper concentrate leaching process using sodium nitrate and sulfuric acid diluted in seawater followed by gas scrubbing to recover the sodium nitrate has been evaluated. The work involved leaching test carried out under various condition by varying temperature, leaching time, particle size, and concentrations of NaNO3 and H2SO4. The amount of copper extracted from the chalcopyrite concentrate leached with seawater, 0.5 M of H2SO4 and 0.5 M of NaNO3 increased from 78% at room temperature to 91% at 45 °C in 96 h and 46 h of leaching, respectively. Gas scrubbing with the alkaline solution of NaOH was explored to recover part of the sodium nitrate. The dissolved salts were recovered by evaporation as sodium nitrate and sodium nitrite crystals.

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This paper reports on a study of column bioleaching of a low-grade chalcopyrite ore that is currently dump-leached under natural biological conditions without any control over microbial populations. The experimental methodology was focused on the effect of managing the bacterial populations in a raffinate solution sourced from a dump-leach operation. This study presents results from columns of two heights (0.45 and 1.0 m). We demonstrated that intermittent irrigation enhanced the chalcopyrite dissolution during column leaching, but excessively long rest periods negatively affected the chemical and bacterial activity due to the shortage of oxidizing agents and/or nutrients for microorganisms. The recovery of low-grade chalcopyrite ore was enhanced by increasing the microbial cell density. The addition of 1.5 × 108 cells/mL to the 0.45 m column and 5.0 × 107 cells/mL to the 1 m column resulted in increased extraction, with the copper dissolution increasing from 32% to 44% in the 0.45 m column and from 30% to 40% in the 1.0 m column over 70 days of leaching. Under these conditions, the pH level remained constant at ~1.8, and the redox potential was around 840 mV vs. the SHE throughout the experiment. These results provided useful insights for evaluating a sustainable controlled dump-based technology for mineral bioprocessing.