Bioleaching review part B:

Abstract

This review describes the historical development and current state of metals leaching and sulfide mineral biooxidation by the minerals industries. During the past 20 years commercial processes employing microorganisms for mineral recovery have progressed from rather uncontrolled copper dump leaching to mineral oxidation and leaching in designed bioheaps for oxidation of refractory gold ores and for copper recovery. Also during this period of time, stirred tank bioleaching has been commercialized for cobalt recovery and for biooxidation of refractory gold ores. Chalcopyrite bioleaching in stirred tanks is on the verge of commercialization. Commercial applications of biohydrometallurgy have advanced due to favorable process economics and, in some cases, reduced environmental problems compared to conventional metal recovery processes such as smelting. Process development has included recognition of the importance of aeration of bioheaps, and improvements in stirred tank reactor design and operation. Concurrently, knowledge of the key microorganisms involved in these processes has advanced, aided by advances in molecular biology to characterize microbial populations.

Isolation and Distribution of a Novel Iron-Oxidizing Crenarchaeon from Acidic Geothermal Springs in Yellowstone National Park

“…Peeples and Kelly (28) have shown that M. prunae may oxidize Fe(II) as a sole energy source, and several studies have noted that Metallosphaera spp. are effective in accelerating the dissolution of pyrite and the release of metals in biomining applications (27,30,32).…”

Biological oxidation of polymetallic ores as a potential possibility for the treatment of ore from the Coka Marin

“…[22,23]. [24] Postrojenje i lokacija Veličina (tona koncentrata/dan) Tehnologija Godine rada hidrit/gips-precipitat iz neutralizacije krečnjakom rastvora nakon luženja i bogat mineralni ostatak. Oba ostatka mogu biti modifikovana različitim metal ekstrakcionim procedurama (uglavnom ekstrakcija/elektroliza za bakar, precipitacija karbonata ili hidroksida za nikl i cijanidna/ugljenična adsorpcija zlata) [25].…”

Arsenic bioleaching in medical realgar ore and arsenicbearing refractory gold ore by combination of <i>Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans</i> and <i>Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans</i>

“…Mixed cultures of A. ferrooxidans and A. thiooxidans and some other acidophiles have been confirmed to be predominant bioleaching bacteria which can effectively oxidize and release metals or metalloids in the leachates during the bioleaching and bio-oxidation of sulfide ores, such as arsenic-bearing refractory gold ore [9,[11][12][13][14]. However, only one strain of A. ferrooxidans and another strain of A. thiooxidans were employed in that report, and comparison of bioleaching behavior between mixed unadapted cultures and adapted cultures was not investigated.…”

“…ferrooxidans and Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans are two of the most important bioleaching micro-organisms [7][8][9][10]. Mixed cultures of A. ferrooxidans and A. thiooxidans and some other acidophiles have been confirmed to be predominant bioleaching bacteria which can effectively oxidize and release metals or metalloids in the leachates during the bioleaching and bio-oxidation of sulfide ores, such as arsenic-bearing refractory gold ore [9,[11][12][13][14].…”