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By William Petruk

The development of automatic image analysers brought the application of image analysis into process mineralogy because the analysers can measure parameters more easily, quickly and accurately than by manual grain counting techniques, and can also collect data unobtainable by manual grain counting. Data from ore specimens and mill products are used to predict and to define the behaviour of minerals during processing. The analyses are generally performed on the basis of either surface areas or linear intercepts of grains in polished or thin sections, and the data are computer processed to give mineral quantities, liberations, size distributions, and characteristics of middling particles. For analysis, the minerals must be detectable and discriminatable from each other. An image editor is usually used when minerals are not easily discriminated. In addition BSE-8EM photographs have been used where the silicate minerals could not be discriminated from the mounting media. Methods of analysis, typical results, and their applications are discussed.

Jan 1, 1982

By Zhang Hengzhong

Based on thermodynamics of surfaces and a proposed two-dimensional state equation for surfaces, the relationship between the surface tension (Y) of a solution and the activity (a1) of its component (i) was derived: (1/Y)r2-.¬E (ai/Yl) The derived equation was verified with reported experimental data of water-alcohol systems and water-acetone system, the calculated results showed astonishing coincidence with experimental. Applications of the equation to the five matte systems Cu2S-FeS, Ni3S2-FeS, FeS-PbS, Cu2S-PbS and FeS-Cu22S-PbS also demonstrated that at given matte compositions the calculated surface tensions agreed with experimental fairy well.

Jan 1, 1993

By Renato G. Bautista

The solvent extraction separation of nickel, cobalt and their associated metals have been considered for industrial application since the early 1960's. This review of the solvent extraction processes is limited to the industrial applications, pilot plant and the more extensive bench scale studies reported in the literature. The processes with their significant chemical and technological contributions are discussed in detail whenever the information are available. The application of solvent extraction to the nickel-cobalt processing has so far been limited to the secondary separation of nickel-cobalt containing feedstocks derived from other primary nickel-cobalt separation methods.

Jan 1, 1993

By Hiroyuki Sano, Chikabumi Yamauchi, Mitsuru Tanahashi, Toshiharu Fujisawa, Shin-ya Iwahori

"Pyrometallurgical process using Cu2O-based slag was proposed as a recycling process for copper scrap. However, it is difficult to remove nickel from copper by oxidative refining. Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the concentration of nickel in copper before the oxidative refining. In the present work, the copper enrichment stage in this recycling process, where copper scrap melt is separated into the Fe-C-Cu melt and the molten copper, was taken up and the compositions of both melts were measured. Based on the above results, the distribution ratios of nickel between the Fe-C-Cu melt and the molten copper were calculated. Furthermore, the optimum condition of copper enrichment stage was discussed from the viewpoint of nickel removal and copper recovery. The possibility of recovering 4N-purity copper by using this recycling process was confirmed.IntroductionRecycling is well known as a method for saving resources and reducing environmental damage. More than 99% of copper is used in metallic form - as metal or copper alloys[l]. High-grade copper scrap is directly re-melted and reused, while low-grade copper scrap is transported to copper smelters to be pyrorefined and electrorefined. Nevertheless, a great amount of copper is being stockpiled in the cities and should be recycled in the near future. At that time, the current recycling process will face new problems due to the increases in the recycling rate to the smelters. This includes insufficient combustion heat to melt copper scrap and ·almost no benefit in electrorefining because the scrap does not contain gold and silver. Thus, an alternative pyrometallurgical method for copper scrap refining will be required."

Jan 1, 2000

By R. E. Johnson

The No. 3 reverberatory furnace at Phelps Dodge. Corporation's Morenci, Arizona copper smelter first received oxygen from a new oxygen plant during October 1982 and began operation with oxygen-fuel and oxygen sprinkle smelting burners which burn concentrate with oxygen. The furnace was completely converted to roof-mounted oxygen-fuel firing in October 1982. All conventional air-fuel bridge wall burners were extinguished at that time. The novel arch-mounted oxygen sprinkle smelting system began continuous operation April 1983. Since startup, unit fuel requirements decreased and furnace throughput significantly increased. Furnace off gas SO2 strength increased from an average of 1.5% SO2 to an average of 20% using only oxy-fuel burners. Oxygen sprinkle burner operation also has given excellent results, with the furnace off gas strength increasing to 35%-60% S02. There has been a reduction in overall arch temperatures, an increase in matte and slag temperatures, and a lowering of furnace bottom buildup with oxygen smelting. Furnace off gas is blended with converter off gas and treated in a sulfuric acid plant.

Jan 1, 1983

By Pengfu Tan

NiModel, a thermodynamic model, database and computer program, has been developed to predict the distribution behavior of Ni, Cu, Co, Fe, S, O, As, Sb and Bi, and heat balance in the nickel pyrometallurgical processes such as Outokumpu flash smelting, Outokumpu direct high-grade matte smelting, INCO flash smelting, and Peirce-Smith converting processes. In this model, as much as 16 elements (Ni, Cu, Co, Fe, As, Sb, Bi, S, O, Al, Ca, Mg, Si, N, C and H) are considered. The compositions of matte, slag and gaseous phases, and heat balance are calculated using the thermodynamic data and the activity coefficients of the components derived from the experimental data. The model predictions were compared with the known industrial data from Kalgoorlie Nickel Smelter in Australia, Outokumpu Harjavalta Nickel Smelter in Finland and INCO Metals Company in Canada, and an excellent agreement was obtained. In this paper, the applications of NiModel in the nickel pyrometallurgical industries have been presented. NiModel has been used by Jinchuan Group Limited in China.

Jan 1, 2004

By Richard D. Hagni

The United States is dependent upon foreign sources for more than 93% of its bauxite and alumina supply. Domestic production of bauxite, which comes from Alabama, Georgia and Arkansas, is limited to those bauxite ores containing less than about l ½ % iron. Bauxites with higher iron contents are generally not utilized because they cause problems in bauxite calcining and especially because they produce undesirable brick discoloration and cracking. In order to improve beneficiation and expand the utilization of high-iron or ferruginous bauxites, a mineralogical and textural study has been conducted on selected samples from the Eufaula, Alabama, bauxite district. Reflected light microscopic, petrographic, and X-ray techniques have shown that a variety of iron minerals are present, including hematite, goethite, lepidocrosite, siderite, pyrite, marcasite, and ilmenite. Although the iron minerals may be locally concentrated into concretions and pisolites, most occur as very fine grains that are disseminated and show a variety of intergrowths. Mineralogical and textural observations indicate that the fine-grained iron mineral grains may be amenable to high gradient magnetic separation.

Jan 1, 1981

By R. M. G. S. Berezowsky

Treatment of Hudson Bay Mining and Smelting Co. Ltd. (HBM&S) zinc concentrate in the Sherritt zinc pressure leach process produces a residue containing elemental sulphur, residual sulphides, precipitated iron species, si1ver and gold. Flotation of the residue recovers most of the elemental sulphur and residual sulphides to the concentrate, leaving iron oxides and bask sulphates in the tailings. The tailings also contain most of the sflver and some gold. Direct cyantde leaching of the oxide tailings (220 g/t Ag, 1.4 g/t Au) was capable of leaching most of the gold, but only a minor portion of the silver. This paper reports testwork, conducted by Sherritt on behalf of HBM&S, to define a process for a high recovery of the precious metals from the oxide tailings. A si1ver enhancement treatment, consisting basically of digestion of the residue with lime at 90°C to render the silver amenable to enhanced recovery by subsequent cyanidation, was selected as the most promising approach. Batch silver enhancement and cyanidation tests showed that treatment of the oxide residue with 80 kg/t CaO at 90°C for 1 to 2 h increased the silver extractability in subsequent cyanidation from <20% to 96%. A 96 h continuous miniplant test (1 kg/h solids feed rate), of a circuit including a silver enhancement treatment step followed by conventional cyanidation and carbon in pulp silver and gold recovery, confirmed metal recoveries to the carbon of 90% Au and 96% Ag. Reagent consumption rates were 1ess than 100 ?kg/t CaO and 5 kg/t NaCN.

Jan 1, 1990

By Xuling Chen, Yi Wang, Xiaohui Fan

"The current control method of grate-kiln iron ore oxide pellet production is lack of accuracy and normalization due to the limited detection conditions. Therefore, mathematical models of grate-kiln temperature field are presented. With calculation of gas-particle heat transfer as well as enthalpy changes of moisture evaporation and magnetite oxidation, the thermal history of pellets throughout grate-kiln process can be acquired and used for production status estimation. Taking the calculated results as well as detected data in production as inputs, process parameters such as running speed, fan opening and coal injection rate as adjusting objects, expert system for grate-kiln pellet production is outlined. And the preheating section dominated control strategy is explained. Results of production application show that the stability rate of gas temperature in gas hood of preheating section is increased from 91.0% to 94.2%, compressive strength and first grade rate of pellet are increased by 3.62% and 2.36%, respectively, while FeO content is 18.18% lower. Control guidance of this expert system can solve production anomalies effectively, stabilize grate-kiln iron ore oxide pellet production and improve pellet quality.IntroductionSteel industry in China has developed rapidly in recent years. China’s crude steel production in 2010 is nearly 627 million, which is 44.2% of the world total production. Burden with higher quality is demanded by enlargement and modernization of blast furnaces. And oxide pellet production has become a growing concern. In 2010, the total production of pellet in China is 110 million, and about 60% is produced by grate-kiln process."

Jan 1, 2012

Cospidie (3CaO*2SiO2*CaFe2) is one of the most important compounds crystallized in mold flux films during casting in the continuous casting process of steel, The primary crystallization field of cuspidine has been experimentally developed in the CaO-SiO2-CaF2-SiF4 system. The cuspidine-NaF binary and cuspidine-CaF2-NaF ternary systems have been also experimentally determined to study effects of addition of NaF on the primary field of cuspidine. In order to discuss its thermodynamic stability the standard Gibbs energy of formation of cuspidine has been deterimed by an electromotive force methods using CaF2 as solid electrolyte and a transpiration method as follows: ^fG° (cuspidine) /kjmol-1 = 5198 + 0.825T (+12) (1313<T/K<1329): EMF method ^fG° (cuspidine) /kjmol-1 = 5178 + 0.813T (+8) (1221<T/K<1469): Transpiration method The chemical potential diagram and constituent activities for the CaO-SiO2-CaF2 System have been evaluated based on the obtained thermodynamic data.

Jan 1, 2003

By E. Daniel Baker

"The term ""oxide disseminated gold deposits"" refers to near surface, gold-bearing veins, faults, and shear zones that typically contain appreciable amounts of oxidized ore or gossanous material, resulting from oxidation of sulphides.The concept of oxide gold deposits underwent a dramatic change after the discovery of the Carlin gold mine in north-central Nevada in the early 1960's. Now the term implies large tonnage, low-grade bulk minable deposits that are processed by milling and/or heap leach methods.Oxide gold deposits may now be classified into two types: (1) primacy ores derived directly from the effects of hydrothermal alteration on host rocks, and (2) secondary oxide ores derived from the supergene oxidizing effects of circulating post-mineral meteoric waters on gold-bearing sulphides. Each type of deposit has unique diagnostic mineralogic and metallurgical characteristics that must be addressed to achieve successful exploration strategies and viable metallurgical exploitation.The author would like to thank the management of Newmont Metallurgical Services and Newmont Mining Company for allowing presentation of this paper. Thanks are due Sevkett Acar, Donald M. Hausen, Jerry R. Odekirk, and D. Erik Spiller for their critical review of the manuscript. Also, thanks are extended to all those cited and uncited whose hard work and dedication have led to the discovery and exploitation of near-surface oxide gold deposits. Our knowledge would be greatly limited without the dedication and research of many others."

Jan 1, 1997

By H. Jiang, S. Yang

"The main processes for nickel metallurgy in China consist of electric arc furnace smelting to produce low grade nickel matte and converter to high grade nickel matte, grinding and flotation to separate nickel sulfide from copper sulfide and direct electrolysis of nickel matte. Systematic studies on the properties of electric furnace slag, smelting process for nickel matte, anodic process of nickel matte, cathodic process of nickel electrolysis have been done in our labs. In addition, an approach to a new hydrometallurgy process for nickel matte has been done. The feature of the new process is one stage acidic leaching of high grade nickel matte. The leaching solution could be purified by deposition way or by solvent extraction way. There are two leaching rate-determing steps, chemistry reaction-determing one at temperatures below 600C and diffusion-determing one at temperatures higher than 600 c. The acidic leaching fraction reacted dvaties with leaching time t according to the equation 1-(1- a ) 1/3=kt. The experimental data also show that the leaching reaction rate varies with concentrations of H+, Cl-, and it is also effected by copper sulfide and Cu++. The Cu++ ion can retard the leaching reaction due to forming a copper sulfide layer on the matte surface and the equation 1- 2/3 a. - (1- a: ) 2/3 akt can be used for the case. However the copper sulfide added into nickel matte can facilitate the leaching process. The research work for nickel metallurgy done by others in China has also been mentioned in this paper.Large scale production of nickel in China started in 1960s.The main processes consist of electric arc furnace smelting to produce low grade nickel matte and converter to high grade nickel matte grinding and floatation to separate copper sulfide from nickel sulfide and direct electrolysis of nickel matte.To reduce nickel loss in slag a reseaech group organized by Jinchuan Company and Central South Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (now the Central South University of Technology) measured the viscosity surface tention density conductance melting point and structure of the slag(I).lt has been found that the physico-chemical properties of the slag depend on the components SiO2 ,MgO and FeO but FeO in the slag is too high and the statistic analysis of data from industry gave an equation to correlate the content of Ni in slag with the content of Ni in matte and the composition of slag again it was pointed out that the content of FeO in slag effected the loss of Ni in slag very much (2). The ratio (FeO+MgO) to SiO2shouid be less than 1.13 and the content of Fe3O4should be as low as possible but the reaction"

Jan 1, 1988

By Denise C. R. Espinosa

Rechargeable lithium batteries are one of the most promISIng technology in battery development. Although Li ion batteries have been used as an alternative to the more polluting and less performing Ni-Cd batteries, Li ion batteries have limited life and their disposal is uncertain. It is imperative that valuables from wastes, such as lithium, should be recovered. The main objective of the present work was to characterize secondary lithium batteries for cellular phones. This was done using unit operations of mining processing, x-ray diffraction (XRD), chemical analyses and the rmogravimetric analysis (TG). The unit operations were hammer mill grinding, knife mill grinding, size separation and magnetic separation. After the hammer grinding process, the plastic cases were almost intact, however, they have released the cylindrical lithium batteries themselves and these parts correspond to 70% of the total battery weight.

Jan 1, 2001

By Alistair Burrows

Situated in the oblast of East Kazakhstan, the Ust-Kamenogorsk Metallurgical Complex has spent the past twenty years renovating and remodelling itself as a modern polymetallic sulphide smelting facility, and a regional centre of excellence for custom smelting. Along the way there have been changes to the company structure, introduction of new technologies, investments in expanded capacity, environmental improvements, and addition of new metal products and by-products to the site’s repertoire. These changes have been gradual and incremental, but taken together they represent a significant contribution to placing Kazakhstan’s sulphide smelting industry on a strong foundation for enduring success in the international custom smelting market. In achieving these changes, a workforce that was historically isolated from much of the world now has recognised expertise, internationally competitive skills, and confidence to embrace the future. Further improvements in energy efficiency, environmental compliance and polymetallic processing capabilities are challenges that UKMC stands ready to face.

By S. K. Kawatra, T. C. Eisele

"Recent advances in microbiology have made the application of biotechnology to metallurgical processes possible. Hydrometallurgy stands to gain the cost from the use of microorganisms, as they are useful for both dissolution aids and for removing metals from solution. The development of genetic engineering techniques promises to greatly increase the importance of bioprocessing of metals and minerals by the year 2000.In this paper, the basic effects of microorganisms on metallurgical processes are reviewed, and the applications which are currently either in use or near being used are presented. Representative data collected at Michigan Technological University is also given.IntroductionMany hydrometallurgical operations exist which are thermodynamically possible, but which are industrially impractical due to slow kinetics, high reagent costs, or the need for a highly corrosive environment. However, recent discoveries in microbiology indicate that in many cases these difficulties can be reduced greatly by the action of bacteria and other microorganisms (1-8).A major advantage of using living organisms in hydrometallurgy is that once the culture is established the microorganisms produce their own reagents either from the material being processed or from low-cost nutrient supplements. They thus allow extremely complex chemical reactions to be carried out at reasonable cost. The major drawback of using microorganisms is their inability to tolerate extremely high temperatures, excessive concentrations of toxic metals, or very highly acidic, alkaline, or corrosive conditions. However, the complex reactions which bacteria make possible frequently eliminate the need for such extreme conditions. Also, in recent years a number of organisms have been isolated from such exotic environments as hot springs and deep-ocean vents which can tolerate temperatures higher than was previously thought possible for any organism, and can catalyze a number of metallurgically important reactions (8)."

Jan 1, 1988

By Rolando Campos

In August 1993, the operation of Refimet Chile&apos;s copper custom smelter commenced at La Negra, near Antofagasta in northern Chile. Design smelter throughput corresponded to 235 000 tonnes of concentrate, calcines and copper cements arising from suppliers in the north of the country to produce 90 000 t/y of blister copper. Refimet had initially gained experienced in building and operating leaching, roasting and a blast furnace facility at Rungue, near Santiago, followed by Roasting at La Negra. The initial smelter project was based on conventional reverb- smelting and Peirce-Smith converting and the majority of equipment was &apos;purchased second-hand and rehabilitated or modified. After only 3 years in production, the treatment capacity was significantly improved by introduction of technical improvements to the original plant operating scheme. Recently, the plant was further expanded to an annual smelting capacity in excess of 400 000 t/y feed, corresponding to around 160 000 t/y copper production. This expansion, referred to as Phase 2, was achieved by modification of the reverb to oxy-fuel firing, addition of a further (second-hand) acid plant, fire refining and anode casting facilities. Parallel development of concentrate injection into enlarged converters-also took place. Following successful commissioning of Phase 2 expansion, initial engineering studies for a third expansion phase have been completed. This aims to use leading technology based on bath smelting of bone-dry concentrates in a Continuous Reactor. This paper provides an overview of the relatively short plant history, its development and improvements together with operating indices achieved.

Jan 1, 1998

By W. G. Davenport

A flash furnace can be run many different ways. It can, for example, be operated with: (a) highly 02"enriched, ambient temperature blast and no fossil fuel (b) considerable fossil fuel and hot, slightly Or enriched blast. It can also produce different grades of matte. With all these possibilities, the flash furnace operator can benefit from any technique that will indicate the &apos;best&apos; way to operate his furnace. One such technique is Excel&apos;s &apos;Solver&apos;optimizationroutine#. This chapter shows how our matrices and Excers optimization.abllity can be used to optimize a flash furnace operation. The chapter sets three optimization goals: (a) minimum industrial oxygen + oil cost, $ per tonne of concentrate (b) maximum smelting rate, tonnes of concentrate per hour (c) maximum profit, $ per hour.

Jan 1, 2001

By W. L. Dalmijn

Glass recycling in the Netherlands &apos;has grown fr.om 10.000 to 300.000 tonnes per annum. The various advantages and problems of the glass cycle with reference to the state of the art in the Netherlands is given. Special attention is given to new technologies for the automated sorting of cullet with detection systems. In Western Europe the recycling of glass has, become a success story. Because of this, the percentage of ,glass cullet used in ,glass furnaces has increased. To meet the quality demands of the glass industry, automated sorting for the removal of stones, non-ferrous metals and other impurities ,had to be developed and incorporated in glass recycling plants. ;In Holland, Germany and other countries, the amount of glass collected has reached a level that colour-sorting becomes necessary to avoid market saturation with mixed cullet. Recently, two systems for colour-sorting have been developed and tested for the separation of bottles and culletin the size .range of 20 -50 mm. With the increased capacity of the new glass recycling plants, 120,000 -200,000 tpy, the quality systems have also to be improved and automated. These quality control systems are based on tile automated sorting technology developed earlier. for the glass recycling plants. The data obtained are automatically processed and printed. The sampling system and its relation to the theory of Gy will be described. Results of both developments in glass, recycling plants will be described.

Jan 1, 1995

By O. A. Ogunseitan

The contamination of aquatic ecosystems by mercury wastes is one of the most serious forms of environmental pollution associated with the metal mining and electrochemical industries. The transformation of inorganic mercury to alkylated species is a reversible bacterially-mediated process. The production of methylated mercury is of ?major public health and eco-toxicological concern because these forms of mercury are highly toxic ?and they bioaccumulate in aquatic organisms. We determined the response of the genetic determinants of mei:cury transrormation by Pseudomonas species (that predominate in contaminated soils and sediments), to the concentration and species? or available mercurfiations. By combining selective isolation and gene. ?probe techniques, the intrinsic genetic potential for mercury detoxification in a contaminated environment ?can be estimated. We determined that genetic units required for mericury volatilization (merA ?for mercuric reductase) are naturally amplified in response to mercury. Mercury-resistant bacteria that tolerate up to 100 ug Hg(Il)/ml of medium contain about 10 times more DNA fragments encoding merA than in unadapted bacteria. The exposure of bacteria to methylated.Hg (10 ug/ml lake water) produced increases (up to 10 times) in .genetic units, and higher levels of genetic expression (up to 50 times) per ml of lake water for the mercury reductase system, than on-induced lake water. The findings suggest that in environments where methylated Hg may accumulate as a result of bacterial activity, the reverse reaction which leads to the removal of mercury through volatilization from the system, may be achieved by inducing genetic ?amplification and expression of the mercuric reductase gene system.

Jan 1, 1991

By Lifeng Zhang

Printed circuited boards contain considerable quantities of valuable metal, while also containing many environmental pollutants making them unsuitable for landfill. In this study the decomposition of common plastics used in printed circuit boards were studied. Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polyethylene (PE) were heated in both C02 and argon atmospheres using a thermo-gravimetric furnace (TG) coupled to a mass spectrometer (MS). Soda ash Na2C03 and baking soda NaHC03 were used as reactants. The degradation temperatures and evolved gases are presented for single plastics and mixtures. Mixed plastics are shown to behave as a sum of the individual plastics. The mass loss temperature is the same in CO2 and argon. However, less residue is formed when heated in CO2.

Jan 1, 2008