Copper Recovery From Ammonia Solutions Through Electro-Electrodialysis (EED)

Abstract

Alkaline leaching with highly selective ammoniacal complexing agents is an interesting alternative for the treatment of copper concentrates. This treatment is beneficial for copper recovery because it allows the formation of soluble amines complexes, with cupric tetramine ( Cu(NH3)42+) being the most stable. In order to suppress the unit operation of solvent extraction (SX) and move directly to the electrochemical process, an electro-electrodialysis (EED) process using ion exchange membranes to obtain copper is proposed. The study contemplates the operation with synthetic ammonia solutions containing copper at different concentrations and current density under standard conditions of pressure and temperature. The presented data demonstrate that the concentration of copper in the solution and the excess of ammonia are inversely related to the efficiency of the current and the voltage of the cell, whereas an increase in current density causes an increase in current efficiency, contrary to what happens in sulfuric systems.

A highly sensitive fluorescent sensor for ammonia detection based on aggregation-induced emission luminogen-doped liquid crystals

“…[Cu(NH 3 ) 4 ] 2+ is a kind of stable complex ion that is usually applied in copper recovery from ammonia leaching, since ammonia has high selectivity for copper. 47,48 The strong complexation will replace the coordination interaction of the 5CB and Cu 2+ , leading to the disturbance of the vertical alignment of the 5CB and TPE-PPE molecules. As a result, the emission dipole moment tilted, and the fluorescence intensity of the TPE-PPE molecules decreased gradually with the increased concentration of ammonia.…”

Waste-to-Energy Bottom Ash Management Copper Recovery by Electrowinning

“…700 mg/L). As summarized in Table 6, several authors have studied copper extraction and recovery by EW [23][24][25], electrodeposition [32,33], ED-based technologies [34][35][36] and extraction techniques [37][38][39].…”

An Old Technique with A Promising Future: Recent Advances in the Use of Electrodeposition for Metal Recovery

“… Ammonia complexing agent can be reused. [ 26 ] To obtain high-purity copper deposits from complex mixtures by electrodeposition with a centrifuge electrode. Synthetic WW: 2–9 g·L −1 Cu 2+ , 2–9 g·L −1 Ni 2+ , 5–40 g·L −1 H 2 SO 4 and 1.5 g·L −1 sodium dodecylsulfonate (SDS).…”

“…A similar objective is obtained with the design of cyclone cells, that promote high flow rate of electrolyte on the cathode surface in order to enhance mass transfer of the process [ 24 ]. An additional interesting approach is the so-called electro-electrodialysis (EED), that combines the proper use of ion exchange membranes inside an electrochemical cell in order to allow the recovery of the metal and the simultaneous reuse of a solution of interest [ 26 ]. Finally, Lu and coworkers proposed a system that promotes the adsorption of uranium on magnetite (Fe 3 O 4 ), that is produced on a graphite cathode from the Fe(II) dissolved from an iron anode [ 28 ].…”

“…Ammonia complexing agent can be reused. [26] To obtain high-purity copper deposits from complex mixtures by electrodeposition with a centrifuge electrode.…”