Extraction of Cu(II), Fe(III), Zn(II), and Mn(II) from Aqueous Solutions with Ionic Liquid R4NCy

Abstract

The leaching of copper ores produces a rich solution with metal interferences. In this context, Fe(III), Zn(II), and Mn(II) are three metals contained in industrial copper-rich solutions in high quantities and eventually can be co-extracted with the copper. The purpose of the current study was to determine the feasibly of solvent extraction with the use of ionic liquid methyltrioctyl/decylammonium bis (2,4,4-trimethylpentyl)phosphinate (R4NCy) as an extractant of Cu(II) in the presence of Fe(III), Zn(II), and Mn(II). In general terms, the results showed a high single extraction efficiency of all the metals under study. In the case of Fe(III) and Zn(II), the extraction was close to 100%. On the contrary, the stripping efficiency was poor to Fe(III) and discrete to Zn(II), but very high to Cu(II) and Mn(II). Finally, the findings of this study suggest that the ionic liquid R4NCy is feasible for the pre-treatment of the copper solvent extraction process to remove metal impurities such as Fe(III) and Zn(II).

Solvent Extraction of Metal Ions from Synthetic Copper Leaching Solution Using R4NCy

“…It is essential to note the high selectivity of the ionic liquid for iron and zinc over copper and manganese. This fact can be explained based on previous results [46]. The extraction of the individual elements clearly showed that the performance was more efficient for the extraction of iron and zinc than for copper and manganese under all the conditions under study.…”

“…The mechanism of metal extraction with R 4 NCy was reported in previous work [46] and can be generalized to all metals in this study, as shown below.…”

“…The salts were dissolved in distilled water. The synthetic pregnant leach solution (PLS) was prepared according to previous work [46] and simulated a PLS from SX process of copper. The concentrations of Cu(II), Zn(II), Mn(II), and Fe(III) of the PLS are summarized in Table 1.…”

“…Castillo et al report the individual extraction of Cu(II), Fe(III), Zn(II), and Mn(II) with the ionic liquid R 4 NCy. Results showed a strong affinity of ionic liquid R 4 NCy for Fe(III) and Zn(II) over Cu(II) and Mn(II) [46].…”

In Situ XANES Studies on Extracted Copper from Scrap Cu/ITO Thin Film in an Ionic Liquid Containing Iodine/Iodide

“…In(III) can be extracted by ionic liquids, such as n -hexyl-trimethyl ammonium bis(trifluoromethyl-sulfonyl)amide and A327H Cl (by reaction of tertiary amine A327 and HCl) [ 18 ]. The ionic liquid, methyltrioctyl/decylammonium bis 2,4,4-(trimethylpentyl)phosphinate extracted Fe(II) and Zn(II) selectively from a solution containing Cu(II), Fe(II), Mn(II), and Zn(II) [ 19 ]. Another ionic liquid, tetrahexylammonium dicyanamide, has exhibited selective extraction for Cu(II) [ 20 ].…”