Hydrometallurgical studies on the leaching of copper from man-made mineral formations

Abstract

The article presents the study results for the processing of industrial waste from copper production at copper smelter Kazakhstan. The samples taken were analysed with the help of X-ray fluorescence and phase analyses which showed that the composition of the studied raw materials was determined as silicate, oxidized, and copper was in a mixed form with a total content of 0.481%, including some in the form of sulfates and sulfides. Mineralogical analysis showed the presence of magnetite, hematite and martite, while copper was present in various mineralogical formations - from magnetic fractions mainly with very fine dusty micron dissemination to native copper and copper minerals. Beneficiation studies performed included flotation and gravity methods. As a result, a concentrate with a copper content of 9.35% was obtained during gravity beneficiation, and a concentrate with a copper content of up to 46% was obtained during flotation. Copper was extracted from beneficiated raw materials with a sulfuric acid leaching method in agitation mode. The solid residue analysis conducted after (cake) leaching also showed the content of the noble metal - gold at the level of 0.47 g/t enabling us to consider its extraction in the future as an additional valuable component.

The Effect of Novel Submicronic Solid Activators on Sphalerite Flotability

“…Flotation remains the most effective technological process for the separation of thinly disseminated ores. Factors that significantly complicate the achievement of high technological performance during flotation include uneven mineral dissemination; the thin intergrowth of ore minerals between themselves and rock minerals; the unfavorable ratio of separated minerals, manifested as a significant mass fraction of pyrite in cuprous ores; the uneven mass fraction ratio of copper minerals and sphalerite; and the often significantly greater mass fraction of zinc over copper or lead sulfides [1][2][3][4]. The flotation beneficiation of copper-zinc ores poses certain challenges in obtaining high-quality finished products.…”