CA1050767A - Treatment of chalcopyrite - Google Patents
Treatment of chalcopyriteInfo
- Publication number
- CA1050767A CA1050767A CA222,214A CA222214A CA1050767A CA 1050767 A CA1050767 A CA 1050767A CA 222214 A CA222214 A CA 222214A CA 1050767 A CA1050767 A CA 1050767A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- chalcopyrite
- copper
- sulphur dioxide
- sulphur
- rich phase
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
Classifications
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
- C22B—PRODUCTION AND REFINING OF METALS; PRETREATMENT OF RAW MATERIALS
- C22B1/00—Preliminary treatment of ores or scrap
- C22B1/02—Roasting processes
- C22B1/06—Sulfating roasting
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
- C22B—PRODUCTION AND REFINING OF METALS; PRETREATMENT OF RAW MATERIALS
- C22B15/00—Obtaining copper
- C22B15/0002—Preliminary treatment
- C22B15/001—Preliminary treatment with modification of the copper constituent
- C22B15/0013—Preliminary treatment with modification of the copper constituent by roasting
- C22B15/0017—Sulfating or sulfiding roasting
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
- C22B—PRODUCTION AND REFINING OF METALS; PRETREATMENT OF RAW MATERIALS
- C22B5/00—General methods of reducing to metals
- C22B5/02—Dry methods smelting of sulfides or formation of mattes
Landscapes
- Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Organic Chemistry (AREA)
- Materials Engineering (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Metallurgy (AREA)
- Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
- Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- Environmental & Geological Engineering (AREA)
- General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- Geochemistry & Mineralogy (AREA)
- Geology (AREA)
- Manufacture And Refinement Of Metals (AREA)
Abstract
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A process for the treatment of chalcopyrite ore or concentrate is disclosed, The chalcopyrite is contacted with an excess of gaseous sulphur dioxide in the substantial absence of oxygen at a temperature in the range between 700°C, and the fusion point of the chalcopyrite, In a preferred embodiment the gaseous sulphur dioxide contains water, In another preferred embodiment the treated chalcopyrite is heated, in the substantial absence of oxygen, to a molten state so as to facilitate separation of a copper-rich phase,
A process for the treatment of chalcopyrite ore or concentrate is disclosed, The chalcopyrite is contacted with an excess of gaseous sulphur dioxide in the substantial absence of oxygen at a temperature in the range between 700°C, and the fusion point of the chalcopyrite, In a preferred embodiment the gaseous sulphur dioxide contains water, In another preferred embodiment the treated chalcopyrite is heated, in the substantial absence of oxygen, to a molten state so as to facilitate separation of a copper-rich phase,
Description
-The pre~ent invention r~late~ to the treatment o~
chalcopyrite and i~ particular to the treatmen-t of chalco-pyrito ore~ and concentrate~ with ga~eous sulphur dioxide in the ~ub~tantial ab~ence of oxygenO
Chalcopyrite i~ a complex copper-iron ~ulphide mlneral generally glven in the for~ula CuFeS2,. Chalcopyrite i~ one o~ the most abundant miner~ls o~ copper. A number of techniques ~ay b~ u~ed to obtaln copp~r f~om chalcopyrit~
ores or conc0ntrate~. One such technique co~lpriæes a smelt-~ng process in which the copper 3ulphide is con~erted toblister copper, the iron is converted to an i~ert s~ ate clag and the ~ulphur is liberated a~ 3ulphur dioxide. Pure metallic copper may then be obtained by~ ~or example, elec-trolytic technique~. How~v~r, in this process the lib~rated ~ulphur dioxid2 1~ a potentlal ~ollution problcm. Cha:Lco~
pyrite L~ di~lcult to lcach without prior troatment to con-Yert the copper-iron sulphide (CuFeS2) into another form.
For example, chalcopyrite ma~ be con~erted i~to copp~r ~ul-phide ~Cu8) and pyrite (F~S2) by treatment with æulphur at ~levated temper~tures, a~ i8 di~clo6ed in C~nadian Patent 783J52~ of A.I. V~soly~ ~t al which i~u~d April 23, 1958.
The chal~opyrite ~o treated is more readlly leachable but the ~ulphur content o~ the or~ has b~en lncrea~d and the pyrlte may be in a ~orm that i8 partiall~ soluble, one or both o~ which may be undesirable in subsequent steps to re-cover copper.
The treatment o~ molte~ pyrite (FeS2) and pyrrhotite (Fel_xS) ore with oxygen, hydrogen, ~ulphur dioxide and/or water has been di~clo~ed by C~ Kennicott i~ U.S~ Patent 1~958J581 which i~ued May 15, 1934.
, ~- ~L0~(~767 It has now been found that when chalcopyrite ore or concentrate is treated wlth gaseous sulphur dioxide ~n the substantial absence o~ oxygen, the copper and iron con~ents of the chalcopyrite are converted to forms that facilitate recovery of metallic copper and that at ~he same time the sulphur conten~ of the chalcopyrite is decreased, elemental sulphur being produced.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a pro-cess for the treatmen~ of chalcopyrite ore or concentrate comprising contactin~ said chalcopyrite with an excesæ o~
gaseou~ sulphur dioxide in the sub~tantial absence of oxygen at a temperature in the range between 700C and the fusion point of the chalcopyri-te.
Xn an embodiment of ~he process of the present in-vention the temper~ture is in the range 700-900C.
In another embodiment the sulphur formed is sep-arated from the chalcopyrite so treated.
In yet another embodiment the lron oxides formed are separated from the chalcopyrite so treated.
Ln the process of the invention chalcopyrite i8 contacted wlth sulphur dioxide in the substantial absence of oxygen, The chalcopyrite may be in the form of an ore or a concentrate, Chalcopgrite concentrates are normally obtained from the ore by physical separatlon techniques, ~or example, by froth flotation.
The chalcopyrite is treated with an excess of sul phur dloxide. As used herein an excess of sulphur dioxide is defined as an amount of sulphur dioxide in excess of the stoich-iometric amount of sulphur dioxide actually required to convert the iron in th~ chalcopyrite into magnetite (Fe304) and the copper into copper sulphides (CuxS) Other copper-iron ~, ;- , . .,.,.,... , .
~ L~5~3~67 sulphides, e g , bornite (Cu.5FeSI~) o~ lower copper:sulphur ratios than chalcopyrite may ho~rever be f7Ormed in the process o~ the present in~ention I~ is preferred~ espeoially in view of eguilibria that may exist, e~g. between sulp~lur dioxide and sulphur, to treat ~tlth at least five ~lmes and in particular with at lea~7t twenty times the .stoichiometric amount of sulphur dioxide 1,e. a ~wenty-~old excess o~ sulphur dio~ide. Other process condi~ions may a~fect the optimum excess o~ sulphur dioxide, Unreacted sulphur d~oxide may be utilized for removal 10 of sulphur from ~e treAtment zone o~ the proces5. After :~
removal of sulphur the sulphur d~oxide may be recycled to the treatment zone.
Sulphur, which is also obtained in the treatment process, volatizes at the temperature~ used in the process and is pre~er~bly remo~ed ~rom the reac~ion zone. The process 1~ operated in the substantial ab~ence o~ oxygen primarily to avoid oxidation Or the copper ~7ulphides, magnetite (Fe304) or elemental sulphur wh~ch may result in process problems. The term "subs~antial absence o:f oxy~en" is u~7ed to indicate that level of oXy~en tha~ would 7~e ach~eve~ in practical process o~ the type described herein when operated so as to exclude oxygen.
The proce~s is opera~ed at a temperature ln the range betwe~n 700C. and the fusion polnt of the chalcopyrite ore or concentrEte and pre~erably between 700C and 900C. ;.
The process may be operable at lower temperatures but the rate of treatment may be uneconomically sl~w At higher ~emp-eratures fusi~n may limit the rate of reactlon by reducing the surface area of the çhalcopyrite As stated hereinabove the sulphur liberated during the process is pre~erably removed ~rom the reaction zone.
The treated chalcopyrite preferably a~ter re-grinding, may ~ 3 --, ,.
5`~7~
be u~ed a~ such or subjected to a further concentratio~ proce~æ, which may be, for example~ a magnetic separation or a ~lotat~on process, to increase the concentratio~ o~ copper and to reduce the concentration of iron in the treated chalcopyrite. In partlcular3 magnetite may be separated ~rom the treated chalcopyxlte. me ef~ectlveness o~ this separation will depend on, at lea~t in part, the reaction co~ldition~ the grlnding conditions and the separation technique UB~d, me tr~ated chalcopyrit~ either as such or a~ter concentration may be treated ~o a6 to obtain metallic copper or compounds capable of being converted into metallic copper by techniques known in the art. Such techniqueæ include treatment with oxygen in a pyrometallurgical process whe~eby sulphur dioxide, which may be r~cycled, will be liberated, and leached in hydrometallurgical processes the latter processes will more selectively leach copper, as opposed to iron, and produc~ less oxyanions of ~ulphur in solution when u~ed on the treated chalcopyrlte of the prese~t invention th~n on untreated chalcopyrite. Typlcal leaching agentæ are nitric acid, 3ulphuric acid, or ammonia solutions in -the presence o~ oxygen, or by electrolytic tec~niques. Techniques ..
~or the treatment of copper coneentrates are discus6ed in an article by R.J. Roman and B.R. Benner, Minerals Sci. Engin~
oering 5, 3-24 (1973).
In a~ embodlment of the process o~ the present in-vention th~ tre~ted chalcopyrite is heated to molten state in ~he ~ubstantial absence of oxygenD As is exemplified her~-ina~ter the copper-rich phase coalesce~ and this coalesced copper-rich phase ma~ be ~eparated while in a ~olten state or cooled to solidl~y the phase before separation is ~f~ected.
I~ a preferred embodiment o~ the proceæs of the pre-sent invention ~he sulphur dioxide used in the treatment of chalcopyrit~ contain3 water. As ex~mplified hereina~ker the addition of water to the sulphur dioxlde results in an increase in the rate of treatment o~ the chalcopyrite.
Chalcopyrite may contain pyrrhotite (Fel xS) and/or pyrite/marcasite (FeS2) In the process o~ the present in- ..
vention the pyrrhotite and pyrite/marcasite will be largely .
con~erted to Fe304 and sulphur~ .
The presen.t invent~on is illustrated by the following .:
examples A ~230 TYL~R* mesh sample of a chalcopyrite con-centrate, containing 28~6~ Cu, 26.1~ Fe and 3401~ S that had been prepared by flotation of a chalcopyrite ore~ was pelletized lnto pellets o~ -5~10 TYIER mesh s~ze using 1%
Wyoming bentonite as a b~nder Approximately 20 g. of pellets were weighed and then heated, in the ~ubstant~al absence of oxygen, to 850C while sulphur dioxide was passed o~er the pellets at a rate o~ 650 cm3/min. The pellets were then cooled, weighed and then crushed to -325 TYLER m~sh size and analyzed qualitatively by X-ray diffraction techniques.
This technique allowed the extent of the reaction to be monitored using the absorptions due to chalcopyrlte, bornite, magnetite and CuxS (x c 108 ' 2, 0), ~uantitative analys0s were subsequently carried out by atomic abæorption (copper and iron) and X-ray fluorescence (sulphur)0 The a~ove method o~ treatment o~ chalcopyrite was repeated using sulphur d~ox$de that had been saturated with water at 100C.
The results are gi~en ~n Table Io The theoretical ~-results for complete con~ersion of chalcopyrite to Fe304 and Cu2S are a weight loss o~ 15 8~ and a product analyzing, 8,5%
sulphur ~or the chalcopyrite used in this example. The results `
show the effect o~ water on the treatment process denotes trade mark . ~ 5 ', :
.
~ ~ S~ 7 ~ 7 me accuracy Or the analy~s rep~rted in th~ examples is belleved to be as follows: copper and sulphur ~ 4% iron 6% relatlve.
EX~MPlE II
The products of Runs 3 and 6 of Example I were further treated to increase the copp~x content of the treated chal~o-pyrite by sub~ecting the products to magnetic separation and ~ .
~lotation technique~. me results given in Table II
illu~trate the effect of the two separatisn techniquesO
The ~iagnetic separation was made on 8 g. samplesu ing a wet magnetic separation technique in a DAVIS* tubeq The flotation was carri~d out on 4 gO samples that had been condit~on~d in distilled water ~or 48 hours. 200 ml o~ water containing DOW z-200* (0.005~ concent~atiQn), methyl isobutyl carbinol (1.5 ~g/~OO ~1) and ~u~ficient calcium oxide to ..
ad~ust the pH to 10~7 - 11.0 was u~ed ~or the flotatio~.
The use of a DAVIS tube is de~cribed in "Handbook of Mineral Dressing - Ores and Indu~trial Minerals", 2nd Edition, Section 19-174 by A.F. Taggart.
* denotes trade mark .
[)7~7 A -170~230 mER mesh sample of chalcop~rite con-centrate was pelletized into pellets of -5-~10 TYIER mesh size using 1% Wyoming bentonit~ as a binder, The pellets had the following analysis: 26,8~ copper, 29,7~ iron~ 33,8% sulphur and 9,0~ silica. Approxima-tely 24 g, o~ pel~Lets were weighed and then heated to 850C in the substantial absence o~ o~ygen, for 4,5 hour~, Sulphur ~ioxide was passed over the sample at 1090 cm3/min, The weight loss of the treated pellets was 14,3~ and analysis of the treated pellets showed a sulphur content of 807~, .
Samples of untreated chalcopyrite (A) and of the treated chalcopyrite pellets (B) were separately ground under identical conditions to approximately -230 ~Y~ER mesh size, 3.0 g, samples of the ground material were then leached wlth several leaching system~, The resulks are given ln Table III, TABLE III
Leaching Time opper Iron 20 Run Leach _ nditions (hours~ A B A B
9 Concentrated ammon-la in water in ~re~-ence of alr, 20-C 28 11,2 19~5 - -Dilute HN0 /~ SOI
20C 3 2 ~ 28 8,2 49,0 9,~ 29,8 11 Conc, HN03 75C 28 98,o 94,5 85,o 1~6,1 ~V
Using the procedure of Example I pellets were heated at 850C in the substantial absence of oxygen for 3 hours under a flow of 650 cm3/min, o~ sulphur dioxlde~ The weight loss of the pe~lets was 1},8% and the pellets contained 17~2% sulphurO
Analysis by X-ray diffraction showed that the pellets containsd crystalline phases of Fe304 and Cu5FeSL~ together with residual CuFeS2 and some gangue, A port~on of the pel- ;-lets was heated under nitrogen at 1200C for 3 hours, A
further weight loss of 6,6~ was obtained, I~o layers were ~ormed and these were mechanically separated, The top layer (2,3 g,) was shown by X ray diffraction to be primarily Fe2SiO4 and analyzed 6,7~ copper~ 34,6% iron and 36,o% silicà, The lower layer (3,8 g,) was shown to be mainly Cu5FeS~ with ~ome metallic copper and iron; analys~s showed 59,4% copper, 25,6~ iron and 0~ sllica, Copper recovery in the lcwer layer was 93~, ;
Example V
Using the procedure of Lxample I pellets were heated at 850C under nitrogen ~or 2 hours and then ~or 4 hours under a flow of 650 cm3/min, of sulphur dioxide, The weight loss was 14,3% and product analysis showed 30~2~ copper, 28,2~ iron and 7,5$ sulphur, The product was shown by X-ray di~raction to be primarily Fe301~, Cu5FeS4 and Cul.8_2,0S-A portion of this product was ground to -400 TYLER mesh and magnetically wet separated using a DAVIS tube, m e fractions obtained were:
Magnetic fraction: 28,3% Cu, 33,3% Fe, weight 7,80 g, Non-magnetic fraction: 37,7% Cu, 5,2~ Fe, weight 1,09 g, Copper recovery was 16~
The above magnetic ~raction was furkher treated by heating at 1200C under nitrogen for two hours. After cool-ing ~he copper-rich phase existed as large pellets which could be mechanically separated~ The copper-rich phase was 2.47 g. and analyzed 77.4~ copper and 2,2% iron and raised the copper recovery from 16~ to 89~, . . .
chalcopyrite and i~ particular to the treatmen-t of chalco-pyrito ore~ and concentrate~ with ga~eous sulphur dioxide in the ~ub~tantial ab~ence of oxygenO
Chalcopyrite i~ a complex copper-iron ~ulphide mlneral generally glven in the for~ula CuFeS2,. Chalcopyrite i~ one o~ the most abundant miner~ls o~ copper. A number of techniques ~ay b~ u~ed to obtaln copp~r f~om chalcopyrit~
ores or conc0ntrate~. One such technique co~lpriæes a smelt-~ng process in which the copper 3ulphide is con~erted toblister copper, the iron is converted to an i~ert s~ ate clag and the ~ulphur is liberated a~ 3ulphur dioxide. Pure metallic copper may then be obtained by~ ~or example, elec-trolytic technique~. How~v~r, in this process the lib~rated ~ulphur dioxid2 1~ a potentlal ~ollution problcm. Cha:Lco~
pyrite L~ di~lcult to lcach without prior troatment to con-Yert the copper-iron sulphide (CuFeS2) into another form.
For example, chalcopyrite ma~ be con~erted i~to copp~r ~ul-phide ~Cu8) and pyrite (F~S2) by treatment with æulphur at ~levated temper~tures, a~ i8 di~clo6ed in C~nadian Patent 783J52~ of A.I. V~soly~ ~t al which i~u~d April 23, 1958.
The chal~opyrite ~o treated is more readlly leachable but the ~ulphur content o~ the or~ has b~en lncrea~d and the pyrlte may be in a ~orm that i8 partiall~ soluble, one or both o~ which may be undesirable in subsequent steps to re-cover copper.
The treatment o~ molte~ pyrite (FeS2) and pyrrhotite (Fel_xS) ore with oxygen, hydrogen, ~ulphur dioxide and/or water has been di~clo~ed by C~ Kennicott i~ U.S~ Patent 1~958J581 which i~ued May 15, 1934.
, ~- ~L0~(~767 It has now been found that when chalcopyrite ore or concentrate is treated wlth gaseous sulphur dioxide ~n the substantial absence o~ oxygen, the copper and iron con~ents of the chalcopyrite are converted to forms that facilitate recovery of metallic copper and that at ~he same time the sulphur conten~ of the chalcopyrite is decreased, elemental sulphur being produced.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a pro-cess for the treatmen~ of chalcopyrite ore or concentrate comprising contactin~ said chalcopyrite with an excesæ o~
gaseou~ sulphur dioxide in the sub~tantial absence of oxygen at a temperature in the range between 700C and the fusion point of the chalcopyri-te.
Xn an embodiment of ~he process of the present in-vention the temper~ture is in the range 700-900C.
In another embodiment the sulphur formed is sep-arated from the chalcopyrite so treated.
In yet another embodiment the lron oxides formed are separated from the chalcopyrite so treated.
Ln the process of the invention chalcopyrite i8 contacted wlth sulphur dioxide in the substantial absence of oxygen, The chalcopyrite may be in the form of an ore or a concentrate, Chalcopgrite concentrates are normally obtained from the ore by physical separatlon techniques, ~or example, by froth flotation.
The chalcopyrite is treated with an excess of sul phur dloxide. As used herein an excess of sulphur dioxide is defined as an amount of sulphur dioxide in excess of the stoich-iometric amount of sulphur dioxide actually required to convert the iron in th~ chalcopyrite into magnetite (Fe304) and the copper into copper sulphides (CuxS) Other copper-iron ~, ;- , . .,.,.,... , .
~ L~5~3~67 sulphides, e g , bornite (Cu.5FeSI~) o~ lower copper:sulphur ratios than chalcopyrite may ho~rever be f7Ormed in the process o~ the present in~ention I~ is preferred~ espeoially in view of eguilibria that may exist, e~g. between sulp~lur dioxide and sulphur, to treat ~tlth at least five ~lmes and in particular with at lea~7t twenty times the .stoichiometric amount of sulphur dioxide 1,e. a ~wenty-~old excess o~ sulphur dio~ide. Other process condi~ions may a~fect the optimum excess o~ sulphur dioxide, Unreacted sulphur d~oxide may be utilized for removal 10 of sulphur from ~e treAtment zone o~ the proces5. After :~
removal of sulphur the sulphur d~oxide may be recycled to the treatment zone.
Sulphur, which is also obtained in the treatment process, volatizes at the temperature~ used in the process and is pre~er~bly remo~ed ~rom the reac~ion zone. The process 1~ operated in the substantial ab~ence o~ oxygen primarily to avoid oxidation Or the copper ~7ulphides, magnetite (Fe304) or elemental sulphur wh~ch may result in process problems. The term "subs~antial absence o:f oxy~en" is u~7ed to indicate that level of oXy~en tha~ would 7~e ach~eve~ in practical process o~ the type described herein when operated so as to exclude oxygen.
The proce~s is opera~ed at a temperature ln the range betwe~n 700C. and the fusion polnt of the chalcopyrite ore or concentrEte and pre~erably between 700C and 900C. ;.
The process may be operable at lower temperatures but the rate of treatment may be uneconomically sl~w At higher ~emp-eratures fusi~n may limit the rate of reactlon by reducing the surface area of the çhalcopyrite As stated hereinabove the sulphur liberated during the process is pre~erably removed ~rom the reaction zone.
The treated chalcopyrite preferably a~ter re-grinding, may ~ 3 --, ,.
5`~7~
be u~ed a~ such or subjected to a further concentratio~ proce~æ, which may be, for example~ a magnetic separation or a ~lotat~on process, to increase the concentratio~ o~ copper and to reduce the concentration of iron in the treated chalcopyrite. In partlcular3 magnetite may be separated ~rom the treated chalcopyxlte. me ef~ectlveness o~ this separation will depend on, at lea~t in part, the reaction co~ldition~ the grlnding conditions and the separation technique UB~d, me tr~ated chalcopyrit~ either as such or a~ter concentration may be treated ~o a6 to obtain metallic copper or compounds capable of being converted into metallic copper by techniques known in the art. Such techniqueæ include treatment with oxygen in a pyrometallurgical process whe~eby sulphur dioxide, which may be r~cycled, will be liberated, and leached in hydrometallurgical processes the latter processes will more selectively leach copper, as opposed to iron, and produc~ less oxyanions of ~ulphur in solution when u~ed on the treated chalcopyrlte of the prese~t invention th~n on untreated chalcopyrite. Typlcal leaching agentæ are nitric acid, 3ulphuric acid, or ammonia solutions in -the presence o~ oxygen, or by electrolytic tec~niques. Techniques ..
~or the treatment of copper coneentrates are discus6ed in an article by R.J. Roman and B.R. Benner, Minerals Sci. Engin~
oering 5, 3-24 (1973).
In a~ embodlment of the process o~ the present in-vention th~ tre~ted chalcopyrite is heated to molten state in ~he ~ubstantial absence of oxygenD As is exemplified her~-ina~ter the copper-rich phase coalesce~ and this coalesced copper-rich phase ma~ be ~eparated while in a ~olten state or cooled to solidl~y the phase before separation is ~f~ected.
I~ a preferred embodiment o~ the proceæs of the pre-sent invention ~he sulphur dioxide used in the treatment of chalcopyrit~ contain3 water. As ex~mplified hereina~ker the addition of water to the sulphur dioxlde results in an increase in the rate of treatment o~ the chalcopyrite.
Chalcopyrite may contain pyrrhotite (Fel xS) and/or pyrite/marcasite (FeS2) In the process o~ the present in- ..
vention the pyrrhotite and pyrite/marcasite will be largely .
con~erted to Fe304 and sulphur~ .
The presen.t invent~on is illustrated by the following .:
examples A ~230 TYL~R* mesh sample of a chalcopyrite con-centrate, containing 28~6~ Cu, 26.1~ Fe and 3401~ S that had been prepared by flotation of a chalcopyrite ore~ was pelletized lnto pellets o~ -5~10 TYIER mesh s~ze using 1%
Wyoming bentonite as a b~nder Approximately 20 g. of pellets were weighed and then heated, in the ~ubstant~al absence of oxygen, to 850C while sulphur dioxide was passed o~er the pellets at a rate o~ 650 cm3/min. The pellets were then cooled, weighed and then crushed to -325 TYLER m~sh size and analyzed qualitatively by X-ray diffraction techniques.
This technique allowed the extent of the reaction to be monitored using the absorptions due to chalcopyrlte, bornite, magnetite and CuxS (x c 108 ' 2, 0), ~uantitative analys0s were subsequently carried out by atomic abæorption (copper and iron) and X-ray fluorescence (sulphur)0 The a~ove method o~ treatment o~ chalcopyrite was repeated using sulphur d~ox$de that had been saturated with water at 100C.
The results are gi~en ~n Table Io The theoretical ~-results for complete con~ersion of chalcopyrite to Fe304 and Cu2S are a weight loss o~ 15 8~ and a product analyzing, 8,5%
sulphur ~or the chalcopyrite used in this example. The results `
show the effect o~ water on the treatment process denotes trade mark . ~ 5 ', :
.
~ ~ S~ 7 ~ 7 me accuracy Or the analy~s rep~rted in th~ examples is belleved to be as follows: copper and sulphur ~ 4% iron 6% relatlve.
EX~MPlE II
The products of Runs 3 and 6 of Example I were further treated to increase the copp~x content of the treated chal~o-pyrite by sub~ecting the products to magnetic separation and ~ .
~lotation technique~. me results given in Table II
illu~trate the effect of the two separatisn techniquesO
The ~iagnetic separation was made on 8 g. samplesu ing a wet magnetic separation technique in a DAVIS* tubeq The flotation was carri~d out on 4 gO samples that had been condit~on~d in distilled water ~or 48 hours. 200 ml o~ water containing DOW z-200* (0.005~ concent~atiQn), methyl isobutyl carbinol (1.5 ~g/~OO ~1) and ~u~ficient calcium oxide to ..
ad~ust the pH to 10~7 - 11.0 was u~ed ~or the flotatio~.
The use of a DAVIS tube is de~cribed in "Handbook of Mineral Dressing - Ores and Indu~trial Minerals", 2nd Edition, Section 19-174 by A.F. Taggart.
* denotes trade mark .
[)7~7 A -170~230 mER mesh sample of chalcop~rite con-centrate was pelletized into pellets of -5-~10 TYIER mesh size using 1% Wyoming bentonit~ as a binder, The pellets had the following analysis: 26,8~ copper, 29,7~ iron~ 33,8% sulphur and 9,0~ silica. Approxima-tely 24 g, o~ pel~Lets were weighed and then heated to 850C in the substantial absence o~ o~ygen, for 4,5 hour~, Sulphur ~ioxide was passed over the sample at 1090 cm3/min, The weight loss of the treated pellets was 14,3~ and analysis of the treated pellets showed a sulphur content of 807~, .
Samples of untreated chalcopyrite (A) and of the treated chalcopyrite pellets (B) were separately ground under identical conditions to approximately -230 ~Y~ER mesh size, 3.0 g, samples of the ground material were then leached wlth several leaching system~, The resulks are given ln Table III, TABLE III
Leaching Time opper Iron 20 Run Leach _ nditions (hours~ A B A B
9 Concentrated ammon-la in water in ~re~-ence of alr, 20-C 28 11,2 19~5 - -Dilute HN0 /~ SOI
20C 3 2 ~ 28 8,2 49,0 9,~ 29,8 11 Conc, HN03 75C 28 98,o 94,5 85,o 1~6,1 ~V
Using the procedure of Example I pellets were heated at 850C in the substantial absence of oxygen for 3 hours under a flow of 650 cm3/min, o~ sulphur dioxlde~ The weight loss of the pe~lets was 1},8% and the pellets contained 17~2% sulphurO
Analysis by X-ray diffraction showed that the pellets containsd crystalline phases of Fe304 and Cu5FeSL~ together with residual CuFeS2 and some gangue, A port~on of the pel- ;-lets was heated under nitrogen at 1200C for 3 hours, A
further weight loss of 6,6~ was obtained, I~o layers were ~ormed and these were mechanically separated, The top layer (2,3 g,) was shown by X ray diffraction to be primarily Fe2SiO4 and analyzed 6,7~ copper~ 34,6% iron and 36,o% silicà, The lower layer (3,8 g,) was shown to be mainly Cu5FeS~ with ~ome metallic copper and iron; analys~s showed 59,4% copper, 25,6~ iron and 0~ sllica, Copper recovery in the lcwer layer was 93~, ;
Example V
Using the procedure of Lxample I pellets were heated at 850C under nitrogen ~or 2 hours and then ~or 4 hours under a flow of 650 cm3/min, of sulphur dioxide, The weight loss was 14,3% and product analysis showed 30~2~ copper, 28,2~ iron and 7,5$ sulphur, The product was shown by X-ray di~raction to be primarily Fe301~, Cu5FeS4 and Cul.8_2,0S-A portion of this product was ground to -400 TYLER mesh and magnetically wet separated using a DAVIS tube, m e fractions obtained were:
Magnetic fraction: 28,3% Cu, 33,3% Fe, weight 7,80 g, Non-magnetic fraction: 37,7% Cu, 5,2~ Fe, weight 1,09 g, Copper recovery was 16~
The above magnetic ~raction was furkher treated by heating at 1200C under nitrogen for two hours. After cool-ing ~he copper-rich phase existed as large pellets which could be mechanically separated~ The copper-rich phase was 2.47 g. and analyzed 77.4~ copper and 2,2% iron and raised the copper recovery from 16~ to 89~, . . .
Claims (8)
1. A process for the treatment of chalcopyrite ore or concentrate comprising (a) contacting said chalcopyrite with gaseous sulphur dioxide in the substantial absence of oxygen at a temperature in the range between 700°C and the fusion point of the chalcopyrite, the amount of sulphur dioxide being at least five fold in excess of the stoichiometric amount of sulphur dioxide required to convert the iron in the chalcopyrite into magnetite and the copper in the chalcopyrite into copper sulphides, and (b) separating a copper-rich phase from the product of step (a).
2. The process of Claim 1 in which, in step (b), the copper-rich phase is separated using a separation process selected from the group consisting of magnetic separation and flotation.
3. The process of Claim 1 in which, in step (b), the product of step (a) is heated to a molten state in the substantial absence of oxygen so as to facilitate separation of the copper-rich phase.
4. The process of Claim 3 in which the copper-rich phase is separated in the molten state.
5. The process of Claim 4 in which the copper-rich phase is separated after re-solidificaton of the product of step (a).
6. The process of any one of Claim 1, Claim 2 and Claim 3 in which the chalcopyrite is contacted, in step (a), with gaseous sulphur dioxide that contains water.
7. The process of any one of Claim 1, Claim 2 and Claim 3 in which, in step (a), the temperature is in the range 700-900°C.
8. The process of any one of Claim 1, Claim 2 and Claim 3 in which, in step (a), the amount of sulphur dioxide is at least twenty fold in excess of said stoichiometric amount.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA222,214A CA1050767A (en) | 1975-03-17 | 1975-03-17 | Treatment of chalcopyrite |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA222,214A CA1050767A (en) | 1975-03-17 | 1975-03-17 | Treatment of chalcopyrite |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1050767A true CA1050767A (en) | 1979-03-20 |
Family
ID=4102543
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA222,214A Expired CA1050767A (en) | 1975-03-17 | 1975-03-17 | Treatment of chalcopyrite |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1050767A (en) |
Cited By (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WO2008074805A1 (en) * | 2006-12-18 | 2008-06-26 | Alexander Beckmann | Method for obtaining copper and precious metals from copper-iron sulphide ores or ore concentrates |
| EP3387157A4 (en) * | 2015-12-10 | 2019-09-11 | Metoxs Pte. Ltd. | Method of copper concentrate sulfation and leaching |
-
1975
- 1975-03-17 CA CA222,214A patent/CA1050767A/en not_active Expired
Cited By (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WO2008074805A1 (en) * | 2006-12-18 | 2008-06-26 | Alexander Beckmann | Method for obtaining copper and precious metals from copper-iron sulphide ores or ore concentrates |
| EP3387157A4 (en) * | 2015-12-10 | 2019-09-11 | Metoxs Pte. Ltd. | Method of copper concentrate sulfation and leaching |
| US11220725B2 (en) | 2015-12-10 | 2022-01-11 | Clean Resources PTE. LTD. | Method of copper concentrate sulfation and leaching |
Similar Documents
| Publication | Publication Date | Title |
|---|---|---|
| CA1293858C (en) | Method for the recovery of gold using autoclaving | |
| Baba et al. | A review on novel techniques for chalcopyrite ore processing | |
| RU2105824C1 (en) | Method of hydrometallurgical recovery of metals from complex ore | |
| US7422621B2 (en) | Method for concentrating precious metals contained in leaching residue discharged from copper hydrometallurgical process | |
| Grimanelis et al. | Leaching of a rich Greek manganese ore by aqueous solutions of sulphur dioxide | |
| US3957602A (en) | Recovery of copper from chalcopyrite utilizing copper sulfate leach | |
| CA2974905A1 (en) | Process for extraction of copper from arsenical copper sulfide concentrate | |
| US7022504B2 (en) | Method for the bacterially assisted heap leaching of chalcopyrite | |
| CA2756433C (en) | Method for leaching zinc from a zinc ore | |
| GB2181421A (en) | Process for the recovery of noble metals from ore-concentrates | |
| Saxena et al. | Mixed control kinetics of copper dissolution for copper ore using ferric chloride | |
| CA1050767A (en) | Treatment of chalcopyrite | |
| CA2460116A1 (en) | Method for obtaining cobalt and nickel from ores and ore concentrates | |
| US3313601A (en) | Recovery of metal values from oxygenated ores | |
| CA2055427A1 (en) | Process for the treatment of zinc sulphide containing ores and/or concentrates | |
| Harvey et al. | Selective zinc extraction from complex copper/zinc sulphide concentrates by pressure oxidation | |
| Wodka et al. | Pressure leaching of shale ore in oxygenated sulphuric acid | |
| CA1328353C (en) | Recovery of zinc from zinc bearing sulphidic ores and concentrates by controlled oxidation roasting | |
| Bulaev et al. | Selective acid leaching of copper and zinc from old flotation tailings | |
| Haskett et al. | Copper recovery from chalcopyrite by a roast-leach procedure | |
| JPH0527696B2 (en) | ||
| JP7183506B2 (en) | Copper concentrate processing method | |
| SU1444380A1 (en) | Method of processing concentrates of magnetic pyrites of copper-nickel ores rich in them | |
| AU2002233033B2 (en) | A method for the bacterially assisted heap leaching of chalcopyrite | |
| Yang et al. | Hydrometallurgical treatment of low grade zinc oxide ore |