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By A. S. H. Kabir, I-H. Jung, J. Su, Yue. S., M. Sanjari

One of the major problems associated with conventional wrought magnesium alloys is the unwanted basal texture that forms during plastic deformation which generally does not change markedly after post-deformation annealing. Formation of precipitates on the recrystallized grain boundaries during annealing may affect the usual rotation of grains towards preferred basal direction resulting in texture weakening. In this study, Mg-Al-Sn alloy was hot compressed at 250°C and annealed at 350°C for various times. The initial as-deformed microstructure was partially dynamic recrystallized with dynamic precipitates on the grain boundaries. After annealing at 350°C, static recrystallization of the bimodal microstructure took place where at this temperature no static precipitates formed. The goal of this work was to study the effect of dynamic precipitation on the texture evolution during the annealing process. Texture evolution was studied during annealing by electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) technique through a microstructure tracking process. It was found that precipitates on the recrystallized grain boundaries have significant effect on the usual rotation of the grains towards the basal direction, meaning significant texture weakening, which is beneficial for final mechanical properties.

Jan 1, 2015

By X. -G. Chen, E. M. Elgallad

Direct chill (DC) cast ingot plates of 2xxx alloys have been increasingly used for large mold applications in the plastics and automotive industries. A novel heat treatment practice for Al-3%Cu-1%Mg DC cast ingot plates has been developed, involving solution treatment, furnace cooling to the desired aging temperature and holding for appropriate time at the aging temperature. The mechanical properties of the plates were studied for different combinations of aging temperature and time, using hardness measurements and tensile testing. The evolution of the strengthening precipitates was investigated under different cooling rates corresponding to cold water quenching, still-air cooling and furnace cooling, using electrical conductivity measurements. The results showed that by applying the novel heat treatment, the cast ingot plates could provide a wide range of combinations of strength and ductility satisfying the design specifications of large molds. This, in turn, offers a practical solution for the fabrication of extremely large DC cast plates combining between good mechanical properties and low levels of residual stress using the shortest possible heat treating cycle.

Jan 1, 2015

By M. Kim, M. Ha

"The effect of red mud on the melting behavior of ferronickel slag was investigated by a laboratory-scale horizontal tube furnace. Melting and softening of slag samples fluxed with different amount of red mud was examined by in-situ visualization technique at temperature range from 1400 to 1550°C. FactSageTM 7.0 was used for the thermodynamic calculation of multi component system of ferronickel slag and red mud. Liquid phase area was extended to lower temperature by adding red mud indicating its suitability as a flux material. X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed the dependency of the phase changes on the red mud content. Microscopic observation by scanning electron microscope (SEM / EDX) clarified the phase transformations from olivine to spinel along with red mud additions.INTRODUCTION Ferronickel smelting by submerged arc furnace (SAF) is an energy intensive process performed at high temperature range 1500–1600°C. During the smelting process of saprolitic nickel laterite ore with a nickel content of 2.2–2.3 pct, a large quantity of ferronickel slag is being produced that account for 97 pct of ore charged. To achieve ferronickel grade of 15–20 pct Ni, electrical energy of 80 to 85 MW is used for the melting and reduction of nickel oxide (NiO) and iron oxide (FeO) in the ore (Rodd et al., 2010). Unreduced components, mostly MgO, SiO2 and partly FeO are removed from the furnace in a liquid slag form by a tapping operation. Due to the high melting temperature, forsterite (Mg2SiO4) based slag containing approximately 10 pct FeO requires typical process temperature of 1600°C. Flux in metallurgical process is a medium that decreases melting and operating temperatures while it increases fluidity of the liquid slags. Calcite and fluorite are examples of flux materials used for the ironmaking, steel refining and continuous casting process. Oxide systems based on CaO - CaF2 - SiO2 - Al2O3 - MgO cover most of the slag composition in ferrous metallurgy accordingly. Crucial operating factors for ironmaking and steelmaking slags are basicity (typically CaO/SiO2 ratio), viscosity and impurity levels. These are extensively controlled by the fluxes. General metallurgical fluxes such as limestone, dolomite and calcium fluoride are abundant in nature and supplied to steel mills at low prices. Meanwhile, in copper flash smelting process, silica is supplied with copper concentrate to remove iron oxide (FeO) generated from sulfide oxidation. FeO - SiO2 binary system formulates eutectic area at 25–38 pct of silica that has low melting temperature below 1205°C. Fayalitic system (Fe2SiO4) that has low viscosity (0.1 Pa·s) (Park et al., 2011) facilitates easy separation of slags from molten sulfide mattes. Recently, copper plants actively utilize recycled raw materials as a flux. Various recycled glasses are ground and fed to copper smelting process as a partial replacement of silica ore. Applying industrial wastes to smelting processes is advantageous since the operators can reduce the production cost remarkably. Not to mention the consumption of recycled materials can ultimately minimize the environmental risks and the waste management costs. The authors, therefore, investigated the reasonable waste materials that can be effectively used for ferronickel smelting process. Prerequisites for potential fluxing materials are non-recyclable property, low transportation cost and excellent performance as a flux."

Jan 1, 2017

By C. Schmidt, M. Kohnk, C. Siemers, J. Kiese

The application of conventional titanium alloys is limited to 550°C due to their poor oxidation resistance. In addition, severe grain growth is observed in single-phase titanium alloys in long-term runs at elevated temperature leading to a degradation of their mechanical properties. In exhaust applications in automotive or aerospace engineering, products are often manufactured by cold-deformation like deep-drawing or rolling which is normally difficult in oxidation-resistant titanium alloys due to the presence of titanium-silicides. Therefore, in the current study, titanium alloys based on CP Titanium Grade 1S (soft grade) were developed showing (1) improved oxidation resistance due to a concerted addition of silicon, iron and niobium, (2) microstructure stability by the precipitation of hafnium-silicides mainly on the grain boundaries and (3) good cold-deformation properties. The industrial production route was developed so that the new class of Ti-Si-Fe-Nb-Hf-alloys is now ready for application in exhaust systems of planes or cars at minimum 800°C.

Jan 1, 2015

By O. A. Ojo, N. Esmaeili

"The effects of brazing and use of composite powder mixture as interlayer material on hot corrosion resistance of brazed IN738 superalloy were studied. Brazing was observed to result in significant reduction in the hot corrosion resistance of the superalloy. However, application of composite powder mixture, which consists of additive superalloy powder, enhanced the hot corrosion resistance of brazed samples. It is also found that although the use of composite powder mixture increased hot corrosion resistance of brazed alloy, if the additive powder completely melts, which is possible during brazing, it can significantly reduce the hot corrosion resistance of the brazed joint. Elemental micro-segregation during solidification of the joint with completely melted powder mixture produces chromium depleted zones and consequently reduces hot corrosion resistance, since a uniform distribution and adequate chromium concentration is necessary to combat hot corrosion. This has not been previously reported in the literature and it is crucial to the use of composite powder mixture for enhancing the properties of brazed superalloys.INTRODUCTION Superalloys have been developed in response to the increasing demand for materials with higher resistance to corrosion and creep and also with higher mechanical strength at higher temperatures (Smith, 1981). Ni-base superalloys are predominantly used in manufacturing hot sections of gas turbine engine components. This is due to their high strength and corrosion resistance in extremely high temperature service environments which is typical for hot sections of gas turbine engines (Miglietti, 2009). The continuous demand for higher efficiency and output has resulted in the use of higher operating temperatures and gas pressure in modern gas turbine engines (Jahnke & Demny, 1983). Consequently, this has caused thermal and mechanical stresses which result in severe degradation and damage of gas turbine engine components due to creep, fatigue and hot corrosion (Zhang, Feng, & He, 2006). The decision to replace or repair damaged parts depends on the overall repair cost and expected life of the repaired components (Jahnke & Demny, 1983). However, in most cases, it is more cost effective to repair damaged parts rather than use a full replacement."

Jan 1, 2017

By Olaf Kessler, Jan Kalich, Michael Reich, Julia Osten, Uwe Füssel

Modern automobile bodies consist of different materials, e.g. aluminium alloys and high strength steels. Mechanical joining, e.g. clinching, is very suitable for joining aluminium and steel sheet. But clinching needs a sufficient ductility, which is no longer supplied by high strength steels. Laser-assisted clinching has been shown, to be able to join aluminium and high strength steel sheet successfully. Thereby the steel sheets were heated locally for short times to increase their ductility. Due to the thermal contact between steel and aluminium sheet the aluminium alloys also achieve a local short-time heat treatment. This fact may cause a significant impact, as aluminium sheet in automobile bodies is often used in T4 (or similar) condition and later artificially aged during the paint bake cycle. Aluminium alloys 6016 and 6181 have been short-time heat treated with heating rates up to some 100 K/s. Precipitation and dissolution processes have been monitored in-situ by calorimetry. Mechanical properties have been investigated on as well as after short-time heat treatment by deformation dilatometry. The results show, that suitable short-time annealing parameters during laser-assisted clinching can increase ductility and at the same time act as retrogression for aluminium sheets, resulting in increased strength after aging.

Jan 1, 2015

By S. M. Chentouf, M. Jahazi, N. Bombardier, T. Belhadj

The main limiting factor in the commercial expansion of superplastic forming (SPF) of thin sheet aluminum alloys is the extent of cavitation phenomenon that takes place during the processing. The severity of the cavitation process is mainly dependent on the uniformity of deformation (i.e. level of local thinning) during processing. In the present paper, correlations are made between thickness variations in several formed sheets and the characteristics of the cavities observed in the material. The 1.4 mm thick 5083 aluminum alloy sheets were hot pre-formed at around 450°C for 4 min and then air-cooled. Opto-digital and Scanning Electron Microscopy were used to examine the microstructure and analyse the cavities. Also, grain size measurements were carried out for different location in the SPF formed piece. The surface and volume fractions of the cavities were measured with the aid of metallography image processing (MIPTM) on as-polished samples prior to etching. The results are analyzed in terms of the influence of applied strain and microstructure conditions on the propensity to cavitation of the alloy.

Jan 1, 2015

By J. R. Donald

"Project development has been increasingly formalized in the past decade, with most organizations having extensive and descriptive deliverables documents and processes to govern the stage gate progress of capital projects. Although this has improved the general governance of capital project development and execution, it has perhaps not led to improved business success. This paper identifies specific challenges associated with developing complex projects with multiple stakeholder interests over the long timeframe of the project life cycle. The paper outlines these challenges and suggests management approaches and aspects of project development where increased focus is required to achieve improved business outcomes."

Jan 1, 2015

By Takashi Nakamura, Atsushi Iizuka, Yong Fan, Etsuro Shibata

The level of iron in typical copper slag reaches nearly 40% by mass, in the form of iron silicate. We designed a method to oxidize the nonmagnetic iron silicate to magnetite, permitting the selective recovery of the slag’s iron content by magnetic separation. This would effectively decrease the volume of dumped slag; the reclaimed iron could be used for iron and steel making. The crystallization behaviors of magnetite and hematite were studied as reaction products of the molten oxidation of copper slag. A gas atmosphere of 1% by volume of oxygen was found to effectively precipitate the slag’s iron content as magnetite.

Jan 1, 2015

By A. McLean, A. Hue, K. Le, Y. D. Yang, P. Wu

While the treatment of relatively inexpensive ferrosilicon alloys is a potential refining route in order to generate solar grade silicon, phosphorus is one of the more difficult impurities to remove by conventional processing. In this project, the use of an electromagnetic levitation technique was used to investigate the dephosphorization of ferrosilicon alloy droplets exposed for various times and temperatures to a hydrogen-argon gas mixture. It was found that approximately 40% of the phosphorus was removed from an 85%Si-15%Fe alloy after 20 minutes exposure at approximately 1673K, to a gas mixture containing 48.5% hydrogen. Further dephosphorization is expected with longer reaction times. The effect of increasing temperature was found to be insignificant, although processing at lower temperatures is not only economically advantageous, it also decreases evaporative silicon losses, thus resulting in a more efficient process.

Jan 1, 2015

By Haruka Takeura, Tomoaki Murata, Kazunari Yoshida, Masato Adachi

"Pure magnesium is a material with high functionality, however, the cold drawing of this material is very difficult, that is why, until this day there are no optimal cold drawing conditions. Furthermore, cold drawing of pure magnesium wire shows a problem with internal defects that occurs under certain conditions. In this research, the aim is the suppression of internal defects, and final target is to create the optimal cold drawing conditions for pure magnesium wires. The first step is the investigation of the drawing limit by using 250°Cannealed wire. As a result, reduction of 10% per pass was chosen for stable wire drawing. However, in this case, it was found that internal defects occurred at total reduction of over 45% during drawing. Investigation of intermediate annealing conditions that can suppress internal defects, and influence on internal defect that the die half angle and reduction per pass. As a result, it was found that the drawing condition capable of suppressing internal defects most efficiently was 13% reduction drawing by using under 6°half angle die. Consequently, it’s possible to manufacture a cold fine drawn pure magnesium wire of 100µm, without defects in the center of the wire and hindering its mechanical properties.INTRODUCTIONMagnesium is a light and high functionality material that has high vibration absorbency, heat dissipation, electromagnetic wave-shielding and recycling efficiency (Conruy, 1989). However, proper cold wire drawing conditions haven’t been established, that is why warm or hot processing is commonly used (Oishi, Mori, &Kawabe, 2005). As a result, strength improvement of the wires is not possible, that is why the production of medical tools is disregarded. If it was possible to cold draw magnesium wires, the applications for material products would expand. Further, in wire drawing such difficult processing material, if appropriate processing conditions are not selected, defects will be generated inside the drawn wire."

Jan 1, 2017

By M. Kosugi, Y. Kon, M. Kawata, J. V. Satur, K. Mitsuhashi, C. Tokoro, K. Horiuchi, R. Kawarabuki, B. Calabia

"Liberation of copper minerals is important in ensuring high flotation efficiency in copper sulfide flotation. The high pressure grinding roll (HPGR), microwave (MW), and electric disintegration (ED) are known to feature enhanced liberation over conventional comminution machines such as jaw crushers and ball mills by producing internal stresses on minerals or mineral grain boundaries through high compressive forces, thermal expansion of minerals, and pulsed high voltage discharges, respectively. In this study, each of these methods was applied before ball mill grinding to investigate its effect on enhancing the liberation of copper minerals in a low grade and fine-grained copper ore. The copper minerals observed in the tested ore sample are bornite, chalcocite, and chalcopyrite, and their grain sizes range from 10 to over 100 µm. Calcite, quartz, and feldsparare confirmed as gangue minerals. The liberation of the copper minerals by the different methods was analyzed using the mineral liberation analyzer (MLA) and compared. The result showed that the HPGR crushing was the most effective for enhancing copper mineral liberation. HPGR bench-scale test was then conducted on the copper ore and flotation was applied on a HPGR-treated sample to confirm the improvement in the flotation performance by applying HPGR.INTRODUCTIONIn order to recover copper minerals by flotation, copper ore is usually ground by ball milling to liberate the copper minerals from gangue minerals. In the case that the fine size copper minerals are targeted, grinding of the copper ore to a finer size is necessary to increase the copper recovery. However, finer size grinding by ball mill increases energy consumption significantly, which might deteriorate the economies of the mineral processing operation. HPGR, MW, and ED have been recently the focus of researchers as new techniques for enhancing the mineral liberation in mineral processing (Tavares, 2004; Kingman, 1998; Wang, 2010).HPGR crushing is considered to generate micro cracks along mineral boundary when rocks pass between two rolls by applying high compressive force. In the MW treatment, micro cracks are reported to be generated at crystal boundaries by differential thermal expansion of crystals attached to each other. In the ED treatment, micro cracks are known to be produced by plasma current flowing along mineral grain boundaries. These treatments are expected to increase mineral liberation (Fujita, 2001),improve flotation performance(Michaelis, 2005), and reduce ball mill work index(Kaya, 2010)."

Jan 1, 2017

By P. R. Brito-Parada, A. Norori-McCormac

Positron emission particle tracking (PEPT) has become an important tool for flotation research, as it is able to resolve directly the behaviour of particles in laboratory scale flotation vessels. The first applications of PEPT to flotation showed only the motion of an individual particle in the pulp and the froth, but nonetheless allowed interpretations of behaviour not previously possible. Since then, PEPT measurement and data analysis techniques have improved significantly and now ensure a high level of confidence in the particle behaviour obtained. In particular, statistical analysis of long-duration experiments allows time-averaged data to be collated, ensuring spatial accuracy and allowing rigorous comparison of different conditions. It will be shown that these PEPT techniques can be used to compare directly the effect of operating conditions and particle properties in a laboratory flotation system. Particle tracks will be illustrated, as well as analyses of particle speeds, average flow streamlines and occupancy that show marked differences in behaviour near the interface and impeller.

Jan 1, 2015

By T. W. Wong, M. A. Whitney, A. Hadadzadeh

Uniaxial compression tests were performed on cylindrical specimens, 10mm in diameter and 15mm in height, machined from an extruded AZ31B magnesium billet. The tests were conducted under isothermal conditions to a true strain of 0.5. The study compares macroscopic flow anisotropy between the extruded (ED) and transverse (TD) directions in the temperature range of 300°C to 500°C, and strain rate range of 0.001s-1 to 1s-1. Compression of ED specimens at low strain rate (0.001s-1) exhibited axisymmetric flow, and no significant differences were observed between geometries of specimens deformed above 350°C under the same strain rate. Deformation of TD specimens at low temperature and/or low strain rate resulted in elliptical cross-sections, with the anisotropy of flow being less significant at higher temperatures. Other studies performed using rolled plates have proposed that pyramidal slip and cross-slip at higher temperature eliminate the effects of initial texture, while the dominance of prismatic slip at lower temperatures will result in anisotropic flow. It is believed that the initial fiber texture common among extruded HCP-structured materials plays a role in the anisotropic deformation behaviour observed in the extruded specimens

Jan 1, 2015

By G. Granata, C. Tokoro, T. Kato

"The goal of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of mechanochemical activation by planetary milling as method to enhance the recovery of cerium from rare earth ores. For this purpose, a weathered ore was first ground by planetary milling and then leached by sulfuric acid. The influence of planetary milling was investigated by assisting the experiments with X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) in cerium LIII-edge and inductively coupled plasma spectrometry to measure the concentration of cerium dissolved by leaching. Results showed that, by increasing the grinding time, although the particle size of the specimen increased due to agglomeration, the recovery of cerium significantly increased. This finding clearly indicated that a smaller particle size actually hinders the recovery of cerium. In particular, XAFS analysis revealed that the longer the grinding time, the more tetravalent cerium could be converted into trivalent cerium and such conversion, also called mechanochemical reaction was beneficial to the recovery of cerium. Based on the obtained results, it was confirmed that approximately 70% of cerium could be recovered by mechanochemically activated leaching of rare earth ores.INTRODUCTION Rare earth elements (REEs) are a group of 17 chemically similar metallic elements comprising lanthanides, scandium and yttrium. Since REEs have various unique physical and/or chemical properties, they have become essential materials for advanced application (Adachi, 2015). REEs used in industry are usually supplied as rare earth minerals. In the last decades, flotation, gravity separation, magnetic separation and leaching have been widely applied to recovery of REEs from rare earth minerals like monazite (Archana, Rekha, Manis, Jitendra, & Jin, 2015). Among these operations, leaching has been widely studied in the recent years to improve the state of the art (Archana, Rekha, Manis, Jitendra, & Jin, 2015; Xiao, Feng, Huang, Huang, Chen, Liu, Wang, & Long, 2016; Farzaneh, Fereshteh, & Ahmad, 2017). Aiming to enhance recovery of REEs from rare earth minerals, a possible advancement of leaching technology could be the mechanochemically activation of the ore by high-intensity milling (Alorro, 2016). In the mechanochemical activation, an improvement of the leaching performances can be achieved through high-intensity milling operations which result into a dramatic decrease of the mineral particle size with a consequent improvement of the physical kinetics of leaching. Furthermore, the high mechanical energy provided to the sample during milling can determine the rupture of the crystal structure of the mineral, thereby transforming it into a more leachable form."

Jan 1, 2017

By W. Hawker, A. M. Ivana

"Pressure oxidation is used to liberate gold from refractory sulphide ore and concentrates with over fifteen autoclaves in operation. Despite the importance of pressure oxidation, the autoclave chemistry and chemical thermodynamics are not well established. For example, there is no consensus on aqueous iron speciation or stability of jarosite phases. Additionally, there remains questions about basic ferric sulphate formation and stability. In addition to a review of the current state of knowledge, a methodology to study the ferric precipitation reaction and relate the results to chemical thermodynamic predictions is presented which will be used to accurately define the phase boundaries of the iron precipitates in the future (hematite, jarosite and basic ferric sulphate).INTRODUCTION With declining availability of orebodies that respond to simple leaching conditions, pressure oxidation has become a prevalent technology to liberate gold locked in sulphide mineral matrices. Gold pressure oxidation was established 32 years ago, with McLaughlin being the first facility in 1985 (Thomas & Pearson, 2016). Pressure oxidation is carried out at elevated temperatures ranging from 180 to 240°C as shown in the summary of operations in Table 1 (Ruonala et al., 2016; Fleming, 2010).A considerable amount of research has been done to study iron solubility and precipitation under autoclave conditions (Tozawa & Sasaki, 1986; Umetsu et al., 1977; Sasaki et al., 1993; Fleuriault, 2016; Cheng & Demopoulos, 2004; Papangelakis et al., 1994; Yue et al., 2003). These reports provide a description of the process chemistry and iron behaviour in the autoclave. However, there remain questions about the type and stability of aqueous species and solid phases. This detailed information is required to build a robust chemical thermodynamic model of the system, allowing for equilibrium and kinetic reaction limitations to be discerned."

Jan 1, 2017

By H. Utsunomiya, J. Su, K. S. Tamimi, S. Yue, M. Sanjari, L. Kestens, A. S. Kabir, R. Petrov

The recrystallization and texture evolution of AZ31 sheets obtained through two stages was investigated at different stages of post-rolling annealing. The specimens were rolled at the temperature of 100? and at a fast speed of 1000m/min and low speed of 15m/min with a reduction of 30% in one pass. The results show thatAZ31B sheets rolled at 15 m/min and 100 °C has fractured for reductions of more than 30% per pass. However, by increasing the rolling speed to 1000 m/min the rollability was improved significantly and the material can be rolled to reductions of more than 70% per pass. The high speed and heavily deformed materials are fully recrystallized even at 100 °C.

Jan 1, 2015

By Y. Kashiwaya, J. Yagi, P. R. Austin

The problems of global environment and resources have become important issues in recent years, and the iron and steelmaking industry is requested to decrease energy consumption and carbon dioxide emission. The improvement of efficiency of ironmaking system is one of the countermeasures for these problems because more than a half of total energy input to the integrated steelwork is input to the ironmaking system. Various approaches to improve the blast furnace process have been made. The authors examined their performances through mathematical simulations of blast furnace operation, and confirmed the improvement of blast furnace efficiency under some operating conditions. The ironmaking system consists of various processes, and the materials and the energy are transported among these processes. Thus it is necessary to evaluate the efficiency of the novel operation of blast furnace based on the ironmaking system. In this study, the balances of material and energy on ironmaking system that consists of blast furnace, coke oven, sintering and hot stove processes were analyzed. The operation status of each process in the system was adjusted according to the results of the operation simulation of the blast furnace under novel operating conditions. The analysis clarified the effect of the blast furnace operation on the energy balance and CO2 emission of the ironmaking system.

Jan 1, 2015

By C. Schlumberger

INTRODUCTION The object of the present paper is to discuss, from a geological point of view, the practical results obtained by the authors with the method of the 'resistivity map of the subsoil' in the study of various mining problems. Some of the studies described date from 1920, 1922, and 1923. They are, therefore, quite old, at least as far as geophysical research is concerned (1). Others, on the contrary, are very recent (2). We shall deal only very briefly with the theoretical and technical sides of the processes employed. This paper has, essentially, a practical purpose, and it has seemed unnecessary to enter into a detailed discussion of the methods. Such a discussion cannot be presented without introducing ,quite. Complex considerations both of mathematics and experimental physics, which interest only the geophysicist: whose work is highly specialized.

Jan 1, 1931

By Ahmad Ghahreman, Lin Li

"In this study, the Fe(II)/Fe(III) redox reaction kinetics on the surface of pyrite, have been investigated in a 0.5 mol L-1 sulfuric acid solution for a temperature range of 22 to 65°C. Based on mixed potential theory, chronoamperometry is introduced to study the Fe(II)/Fe(III) kinetics by subtracting the current density of pyrite oxidation in an iron-free acidic solution from that in an iron-containing solution at the same applied polarized potential. Tafel behavior was established by this method to analyze the kinetics of the Fe(II)/Fe(III) redox reactions. The results showed that exchange current densities increased slightly with temperature, however remained on the order of 10-5 A cm-2. The activation energy for Fe(II) oxidation and Fe(III) reduction on the pyrite surfaces was calculated to be 102.0 and 32.7 kJ mol-1, respectively. Anodic transfer coefficients also increased, from 0.24 to 0.39, with increasing temperature, which indicates a weakened n-type semiconductor property at higher temperatures. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements have indicated that at lower anodic over potentials the charge transfer is the rate determining step of pyrite oxidative dissolution in sulfuric acid solution. In the presence of Fe ions, the major contribution of the total current density comes from the Fe(II)/Fe(III) redox reaction. INTRODUCTION Pyrite, an abundant sulfides mineral in the nature, is commonly considered a valueless gangue mineral frequently associated with other valuable sulfide minerals such as chalcopyrite, or metals such as gold, or coal (Lin & Say, 1999). Pyrite oxidation has been the subject of extensive research in view of gold metallurgy, as oxidation of pyrite is the initial step to break down the pyrite lattice and expose the encapsulated fine gold particles (Gasparrini, 1983). Fe(III) ion and dissolved oxygen (DO) have generally been considered as the two most important oxidants with respect to pyrite oxidation, having been studied extensively in previous research (Zheng, Allen, & Bautista, 1986; King Jr & Lewis, 1980). The process of pyrite oxidation can be viewed as a series of reactions amongst pyrite, ferrous, ferric and oxygen in which pyrite is initially oxidized by the dissolved oxygen in water forming ferrous (Eq. 1), and then the ferrous also is oxidized by he dissolved oxygen to form ferric (Eq. 2). The ferric, produced by reaction 2, then could potentially oxidize pyrite (Eq. 3) and convert to ferrous."

Jan 1, 2017