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By Xianwen Dai

One of the biggest challenges for the gold industry in the 21st century is the presence of copper in gold containing ore bodies. This is because copper consumes large quantities of cyanide. In addition, copper cyanide species are more stable than free cyanide, and hence are problematic in events of tailings spillage. The present paper compares cyanide and thiosulfate leaching for the recovery of gold from a copper containing ore. For cyanide leaching, the extraction of gold using copper cyanide complexes instead of free cyanide was tested in the presence and absence of added ammonia. For the thiosulfate leaching, the effect of the minerals present in the ore on the solution potential and thiosulfate consumption are illustrated.

Jan 1, 2003

By Ibrahim Yusufoglu, Ahmet Orkun Kalpakli, Cem Kahruman, Sedat Ilhan

"The effects of oxalic acid concentration, temperature, stirring rate and particle size on the dissolution rate of synthetically prepared calcium molybdate were investigated. Dissolution of calcium molybdate in oxalic acid solutions takes place as a series - parallel type reaction. In the first reaction step, which proceeds according to the ""Langmuir - Hinshelwood Mechanism"", calcium aqua oxalato molybdate is formed as a complex chelate intermediate product. In the second reaction step, molybdic acid is formed during the slow hydrolysis of calcium aqua oxalato molybdate, and it reacts rapidly with oxalic acid to form the polymeric hydrogen oxalate dimolybdate chelate as an end product. Activation energies were calculated as 41.4 and 49.9 kJ mol-1 for the first and zero order reactions. The fractional conversion versus time relationship can be given by the following equation.IntroductionMolybdenum is used widely in electric-electronic, metal working, aerospace and aeronautic, nuclear, glass and petrochemical industries because of its high melting temperature and resistance against chemical effects. However, the largest molybdenum consumers are the iron-steel and super alloy industries where molybdenum is used as an alloying element. Industrially important molybdenum minerals are limited to molybdenite (M0S2), powellite (CaMo04) and wulfenite (PbMo04), which are considered as primary molybdenum resources. Secondary molybdenum resources are spent catalysts and scrap [1-4].Molybdenum has been produced by pyrometallurgical processes in the past. Since it is possible to process low grade molybdenum ores and industrial wastes by hydrometallurgical processes, which are more environmentally friendly than pyrometallurgical processes, the importance of the use of hydrometallurgical processes has increased in the molybdenum production industry."

Jan 1, 2012

By Akira Kaneda

Mitsubishi continuous process employs an electric furnace for settling matte from slag. Electrodes are immersed into the slag layer in the slag-cleaning furnace and the temperature of the melt is maintained at a predetermined level by Joule's heat. Electrodes are immersed to the depth where the current of each electrode is kept at a set value, and they are raised or lowered automatically to compensate for the deviation from it. Because electric resistance of the bath is varied with the matte level in the furnace and the composition and temperature of the slag, the immersion depth of the electrodes is affected by them. Therefore by monitoring the immersion depth and its change with time, abnormal situations in the furnace, such a~ rise of matte level or local abnormal state of melt, can be detected. In this paper, relations between state of the furnace and electrode behavior are discussed based on the plant data, and then a new and simple monitoring method of the condition of the furnace is proposed.

Jan 1, 2001

By Dirk Verhulst

The Altair process employs digestion of ilmenite ore in concentrated hydrochloric acid, solvent extraction to concentrate Ti in a purified stream and spray hydrolysis to produce a TiO2 hydrate, followed by final calcining and milling. HCl gas is regenerated by pressure-swing distillation and reinjected in the leaching solution. All chloride streams are recycled. Chromium compounds generally remain in the residue. Solvent extraction provides flexibility for the removal of naturally occurring radioactive elements (NORMs) present in some ilmenites. The process was previously tested at a 5 t/day feed scale. Recent work at pilot scale (40 liter reactor) led to further improvements. Recovery of Ti in solution is now at least 90% with ilmenite ores, while crystallization at lower temperature lowers the amount of Fe in solution to about 5 g/l and improves solvent extraction, which is now conducted in columns. Higher Ti and lower Fe concentrations in the SX eluate improve the economics. A new formula for pigment production via spray hydrolysis produces a pigmentary base with a narrow particle size distribution.

Jan 1, 2003

By Bekir Karasu

Boron raw materials are amongst the most important natural sources for many industrial branches and their values become increasingly raised with the discovery of boron usage in many new technological fields. All the countries in the world are unfortunately not as lucky as Turkiye and USA where major boron deposits are mainly located. It is widely known fact that on one side, boron is very precious component with its technological importance, on the other; only its limited sources are available. Therefore, even its wastes have to be evaluated and regained. In the present work wastes of Etibor Kirka Borax Company of Turkiye were used in the production of opaque frits which was suitable for floor tile glazes. Standard and newly produced frit based glazes were applied on the pre-engobed floor tile bodies and single firing was employed. Final products were examined according to the certain standard tests and their microstructures were also investigated. All the results confirmed the evaluation of boron wastes in opaque floor tile glazes.

Jan 1, 2006

By William Bourcier

Geothermal Brines are a significant potential source of valuable minerals and metals. These brines are water that is heated by the natural heat flow from the depths of the earth. Hotter brines, typically with temperatures greater than 120°C, are used to generate electricity. Lower temperature brines are directly used to supply thermal energy to applications such as agriculture, aquaculture and process/domestic heat. The geothermal waters have had intimate and lengthy contact with the layers of the earth?s crust that they flow through, resulting in dissolution of minerals and metals from the rocks, and solution into the hot water. These aqueous solutions can be processed to recover minerals and metals. Some potential products include silica, zinc and lithium, along with other materials. Recovery of minerals and metals from geothermal brines can be viewed as ?solution mining by nature?, followed by application of known or new hydrometallurgical techniques for isolation and purification. This paper discusses the opportunities, the processes, the challenges, the current status, the economics and the potential for recovery of minerals and metals from geothermal brines.

Jan 1, 2006

By Yuri Gelfgat

"This paper presents some results of the investigation of the steady magnetic field influence on hydrodynamics and heat/mass transfer in processes of semiconductor single crystal growth (Si, Ge, InSn). The investigation employed mathematical and physical simulation techniques of relevant processes and full-scale experiments on growth facilities. A number of additional MHD phenomena have been found generated in the melt due to the rearrangement of flow pattern, the formation of specific convective cells, and the origin of MHD boundary and shift layer.IntroductionMagnetohydrodynamic (MHD) means of creating forces by contact-free methods in liquid conducting media have been widely used in the production of volume semiconducting single crystals. The goal of this method is to control convective transfer processes in the melt volume and on the crystallization front [1-3]. This is due to the sufficiently high conductivity of semiconductor melts (s = 104 /106 O1m-1 ) and an obvious relationship between the hydrodynamics in the melt and at interfaces and the conditions of formation of single crystals and their quality [ 1].All types of MHD effects rest upon the generation of volume electromagnetic forces in the melt by various means as well as on the possibility to direct them arbitrary in space and to adjust easily their absolute values. Fig. l presents different means how to implement MHD phenomena during single crystal growth. It should be emphasized that in all the modifications given in Fig. l additional energy introduced into the melt cannot influence directly the crystallization process since it is incomparable to the energy of molecular forces. Both the influence and efficiency of MHD means are determined solely by the change of motion, heat and mass transfer characteristics."

Jan 1, 1998

By Larry G. Stolarczyk

The development of geosteering technology for geothermal reservoirs is challenged by the integration of electrically small antennas in small-diameter metallic drill rods. To be useful, the antenna pattern must achieve sufficient back-lobe suppression, preferably with a forward-looking pattern. Forward-looking capability requires an antenna array with phase control. The phase-controlled antenna pattern enables imaging of geologic structures ahead of and surrounding the well bore. This paper describes the development of electric and magnetic dipole arrays for small-diameter drilling pipe.

Jan 1, 2006

By Jin Liu

To improve value metals recovery, a new operating concept for the Inco flash furnace was investigated, in which the flash furnace coke addition practice would aim at establishing a reducing barrier on the surface of the molten bath. The descending partially oxidized sulfide mineral particles would reach the supernatant coke layer prior to the formation of slag. The key for success depends on the effectiveness of the coke layer to produce a sulfur deficient matte while maintaining furnace production capacity. The mechanism and rate of carbon reduction of the phases formed in the flash flame, i.e. sulfide (matte) and oxysulfide was investigated by means of crucible graphite reduction test work. The objective of these tests was to measure the rate of solid graphite reduction of matte, oxysulfide, slag, and matte+slag mixture at different temperatures. These tests were expected to permit understanding and explaining the reduction mechanism of each material by comparing the respective reaction rates, product reaction gas compositions, reduced material assays, and other relevant parameters. Direct visual inspection of the test crucibles would provide additional information.

Jan 1, 2006

By Chen Yongming

In order to eliminate the serious environmental pollution caused by low concentration of sulfur dioxide smoke in antimony smelters, a new smelting process, named as reducing-matting smelting, is proposed in this paper. The effects of technical conditions such as smelting temperature, smelting time, Pyrite cinder addition and the amount of additive on the smelting of stibnite concentrate have been investigated by the method of single-factor experiment. The results show that the optimum conditions are as follow: The amount of pyrite cinder is 1.2 times of its theoretical amount. The addition of soda and sodium sulfate is 15% and 72.6%, respectively, to the amount of stibnite concentrate when the total amount of sodium is 30%. The reducing-matting smelting is conducted at 1100°C for 2h then the smelting temperature is raised to 1200°C for 50min. Under the optimum conditions, the direct and total recovery ratio of antimony can gain 90.99% and 98.87%, respectively, and the fixed ratio of sulfur is higher than 99%.

Jan 1, 2006

By S. S. Chabot, S. E. James

A recent survey of major steel companies worldwide revealed the importance of recycling zinc units from electric arc furnace (EAF) dust, mill scale, blast furnace dust and other zinc containing streams within the steel industry. Many processes have been developed and installed in response to this challenge. The most successful approach involves the production of a crude zinc oxide and its sale to primary zinc producers to recover the metal values. The problem with this process is the high concentration of halides in the crude oxide. This type of material cannot be processed directly in an electrolytic zinc plant because of the corrosion problems it will cause in electrolysis. In 1999, Big River Zinc installed a zinc oxide receiving and washing plant to minimize the impact of halides in its electrolysis circuit. A description of the washing plant and the initial operating results are presented in this paper.

Jan 1, 2000

By L. Klinger, T. Werber, LA Levin, A Katsman

"The process of catastrophic carburization known as ""metal dusting"", whereby a solid metallic material is converted into fine particles in a carburizing atmosphere, was analyzed. It was shown that this conversion is the result of plastic deformation and subsequent fracture accompanying diffusional phase formation in the near-surface layer. The process is controlled by internal stresses arising during phase transformation. Competition between stress generation and relaxation may result in the attaining the ultimate strength in the near-surface layer and its fracture. Such a mechanism of metal disintegration may occur in a certain temperature interval depending on the kinetic and geometrical parameters of the system - the diffusivities of the alloy's components, the ratio between specific volumes of the new and the old phases, and the ultimate plastic strain. The temperature interval for disintegration of carbon steel, the rate of disintegration, and the period of the disintegration cycle, were evaluated and compared with experimental data. IntroductionCatastrophic carburization, known as ""metal dusting"", consists in conversion of a solid metallic material into fine particles. The process occurs in a carburizing atmosphere at elevated temperatures. The corrosion product, usually named ""coke"", consists of metallic particles dispersed in a loose carbon matrix. Under industrial conditions metal dusting takes place, for example, in a gas mixture of CO and H2 or in hydrocarbon environments. Steels, nickel- and cobalt alloys are susceptible to this kind of wastage in the temperature range 400-800°.A mechanism of metal dusting in steels was proposed by Hochman [1] and later developed by Grabke and coworkers [2-5]. According to the proposed model, the process consists of the following reaction steps:"

Jan 1, 1996

By D. R. Spink

A partial desulfurization roasting (PDR) technique has been developed for use on zinc concentrates whereby the sulfide sulfur associated with the iron content is selectively removed over a very short residence ?time in the roaster. The resulting PDR product is then leached for the selective removal of the iron. The resulting leach restdite is an upgraded zinc sulfide concentrate which has a very low iron content. The up-graded zinc concentrate can be subjected to a conventional dead roast without formation of deleterious zinc ferrite so that hot acid leaching and jarosite (or other) iron precipitation steps are obviated. Examples are presented for the treatment of three very different types of zinc concentrates.

Jan 1, 1990

By Jefferson Caponero

The tire is an expressive component of Municipal Solid Waste, manly when its occupied volume is considered. Its treatment by pyrolysis stands for a list of advantages, such as: landfill releasing and a production of a high quality fuel. The exploitation of new natural resources is becoming more difficult each day, basically due to the environmental damages caused by this type of activity. This work presents a study on the thermal behaviour of Brazilian tires using thermogravimetric analysis and differential thermal analysis, in order to optimise the pyrolysis process of tires. Samples of I to 2 mm were investigated at atmospheres of nitrogen, argon, oxygen and mixtures of these gases at temperatures up to 1273K, under heating rates between 1 to 50 Klmin . The results showed that the behaviour of each sample is related to both the atmosphere composition and the heating rate.

Jan 1, 2001

By Adolfo Pillihuaman, Alberto Nogueira, Cyro Takano, Marcelo Mourão

The organic household waste has a growing disposal problem, requiring costly disposal systems. It is necessary to find new applications for these materials; one could be the steelmaking raw material production. In this paper is studied the development of self-reducing pellets from the organic waste pyrolysis, where is generated carbon and condensable and non-condensable volatiles. Non-condensable volatiles were burned and condensable volatiles were recovered. The resulting tar was mixed with iron ore, coal powder and flux (CaO), to then be pelletized together. Compression, falls and tumbler tests were conducted to characterize the pellets before and after heat treatment and reduction processes. The reduction curve and their physical and morphological characterization were measured. The results were as was expected, the fluidized coal create sufficient adhesion that pellets earned resistance with an equivalent resistance of common pellets, showing a good feasibility of this process.

Jan 1, 2015

By P. C. A. Maia, J Alexandre, F. A. J. Saboya, A. R. G. Azevedo, G. C. Xavier

"This work shows the characterization of clay and the granite waste by-product from the sawing process of the granitic blocks, used as raw material for brick ceramic. Besides, shows the degradation of the ceramic material obtained with different by-product contents in the waste after lab test degradation, is investigated. The clay is obtained from mine use areas of ceramic industry in Campos-RI and the waste is originating from of the area of Cachoeiro-ES, an important center of decorative stone in Brazil. The mixes were made by the addition of 0% up to 10% of the waste in the raw material. After drying and firing up to 900°C, obtained prismatic pieces were considered intact. Physico-mechanical properties were obtained from wet and drying tests in laboratory considering 50 and 150 cycles. The results showed that the use of powder byproduct has a considerably influence on the weathering and strength of the material.IntroductionThe ornamental rocks and coating defines the most promising areas of business in the mineral sector [l]. In this context, the Espirito Santo appears as the main Brazilian state in production and export of ornamental rocks, representing 47% of national production [2] which in tum is one of the economic sectors most representative of this State, due of its transport logistics and port vocation that facilitates the export of such products.It is estimated that the state of Espirito Santo there are approximately 1,200 companies dedicated to the activities of ornamental rock by providing 20,000 direct jobs [ 1]. These mobilize support activities, such as companies that provide machinery, equipment and supplies for industries, including service providers for maintenance.However, the production of rocks produces about 15,000 tons of granite waste/month [3] only in the municipality of Cachoeiro ltapemirim-ES. This is justified by the presence of more than 500 extraction industries, cutting and processing of stone, with about 900 looms, waste generators.According to [4], there is great potential for the use of granite waste in red ceramics introduced for the manufacture of bricks, blocks structural ceramics. and other ceramic products, especially when evaluated on exposure to weathering."

Jan 1, 2014

By Harvey Alter

National attention in, recycling focuses on municipal solid waste (MSW), even though only about 50'million tons or so of MSW can be recycled, including grass, leaves and other yard wastes. The scope and value of the recycling of industrial "wastes" is much greater. It is possible to account for some 240 million tons of material recycled at the industrial scale annually, which is likely a conservative estimate. Some of this recycling reduces what would otherwise be hazardous waste to 'comrnodities and non-hazardous residue. Global trade in recycled commodities is outlined, as well as the-effect of the Basel Convention on the Trans boundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes A recent Decision under the Convention can, diminish the trade; deny developing countries needed secondary raw materials, and put world markets in chaos. Current U.S. government policies and activities toward ratification of the Convention, and possible new regulation of industrial recycling activities, will be discussed. There are federal proposals that would regulate industrial recycling differently for on-site and off-site facilities and judge legitimate or "sham" recycling according to the concentration of so-called "toxics along for the ride."

Jan 1, 1995

By Toru Taniguchi

In the Mitsubishi smelting furnace, copper concentrate, silica sand and water granulated slag from the converting furnace are injected through the process lances, together with oxygen enriched air, into the melt. Because bath smelting is used, the rates of particles/melt and gas/melt reactions are high enough and therefore tine grinding of the solid materials is' not necessary. Among these reactions, the dissolution rate of silica sand is the slowest and limits the overall reactions in the smelting furnace. Information on the dissolution rate of silica sand plays an important role for design of a new furnace. Theoretical calculations of the dissolution rate .of silica particles have been reported elsewhere. The authors conducted cold model experiments and could verify the calculation. In this paper, the dependence of dissolution rates of particles on the gas blowing rate, particle size and solid penetration depth in the bath is discussed.

Jan 1, 2002

By Jonathan A. Paul

The most profitable companies in the world recognize that a huge competitive and financial power lies in their intangible assets. The competition to be in command of raw materials and markets is now waged more and more over the exclusive rights to new technology and ideas. The value gained from mining the innovation in your organization and protecting your intellectual property can be enormous. This paper will address the following topics: ? Understanding the connection between your competitive position and intellectual property ? Determining the value of your current portfolio and strengthening protection ? Converting knowledge into assets and adding value to the operation ? Litigation strategies to enforce your position and achieve your business objectives The presentation is designed for company executives and government managers who need to know how to identify and address core intellectual property issues that arise in the minerals, metals and materials extraction and processing industries.

Jan 1, 2006

By Santo Ranieri

We will briefly review the nickel market in 2003 and look forward to the supply demand balance for the next few years focusing in on the key factors influencing future price dynamics. On the supply side we will examine slated brownfield and greenfield expansions including the Norilsk factor and the small to mid-range 'supply creep'. We will also review the cost side of the industry and what to expect going forward. On the demand side, we will discuss the stainless steel and non-stainless demand, the China factor and the stainless steel scrap supply cycle. We will conclude by pinpinting where the market is on the current price cycle, and where we believe the mid-term direction is headed.

Jan 1, 2004