Copper Solvent Extraction from Highly Acidic Leach Liquors

Isaacson, A. E. ; Dreisinger, D. B. ; Kordosky, G. A. ; Redden, L. D.
Organization: Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration
Pages: 18
Publication Date: Jan 1, 1993
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The U.S. Bureau of Mines is researching the application of solvent extraction technology to highly acidic (pH < 1) copper leach liquors. As increasingly complex copper ores are mined for leaching, use of highly acidic leach solutions maybe necessary to effectively recover the contained metal values. A mixture of two commercially available extractants, based on aldoximes and substituted 8-hydroxyquinoline, which has a high transfer efficiency has been identified. A synthetic leach liquor, containing 5 g/L Cu at pH 0.9 was processed utilizing the mixed extractant and a laboratory SX circuit. The loaded organic was stripped with a synthetic barren electrolyte compatible with electrowinning technology.
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