CA1265095A - Electrolytic cell for recovery of metals from metal bearing materials - Google Patents
Electrolytic cell for recovery of metals from metal bearing materialsInfo
- Publication number
- CA1265095A CA1265095A CA000545463A CA545463A CA1265095A CA 1265095 A CA1265095 A CA 1265095A CA 000545463 A CA000545463 A CA 000545463A CA 545463 A CA545463 A CA 545463A CA 1265095 A CA1265095 A CA 1265095A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- cathode
- conductive
- recovery
- electrolytic cell
- metal
- 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 - Fee Related
Links
Classifications
-
- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
- Y02P—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS
- Y02P10/00—Technologies related to metal processing
- Y02P10/20—Recycling
Landscapes
- Electrolytic Production Of Metals (AREA)
Abstract
ABSTRACT
AN ELECTRODE FOR AN ELECTROLYTIC CELL FOR THE RECOVERY
OF METALS FROM METAL BEARING ORES OR CONCENTRATES
AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME
A cathode for use in an electrolytic cell for the recovery of metal from mineral ores or concentrates, characterized by a conductive portion and, a non-conductive covering overlying a portion of said conductive portion, the non-conductive covering being comprised of a perforated tubular member formed of heat shrinkable plastics material which has been heat-shrunk directly around said cathode to leave only areas of said cathode exposed which are located below the perforations in the tubular member.
AN ELECTRODE FOR AN ELECTROLYTIC CELL FOR THE RECOVERY
OF METALS FROM METAL BEARING ORES OR CONCENTRATES
AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME
A cathode for use in an electrolytic cell for the recovery of metal from mineral ores or concentrates, characterized by a conductive portion and, a non-conductive covering overlying a portion of said conductive portion, the non-conductive covering being comprised of a perforated tubular member formed of heat shrinkable plastics material which has been heat-shrunk directly around said cathode to leave only areas of said cathode exposed which are located below the perforations in the tubular member.
Description
AN ELECTRO~E FOR AN ELECTROLYTIC CELL FOR THE RECOVERY
OF METALS FROM METAL BEARING ORES OR CONCENTRATES
AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME
This application is divided from copending Canadian Patent Application No. 443,033 in which is described and claimed an electrolytic cell for the recovery of metal from mineral ores or concentrates. The present invention is directed to electrodes and a me-thod of making same, which electrodes are useful in electrolytic cells for the recovery of metals from mineral ores and concentrates, particularly electrolytic cells as described in copending Canadian Patent Application No. 443,033.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to an electrode for an electrolytic cell for treating mineral ores and con-centrates, and a method of making same.
BACKGROUND OF THE IN~ENTION
The electrolytic cell is of particular importance in the recovery of copper from copper bearing ores and concentrates as described in U.S. Patent 4,061,552 and the recovery of lead from lead bearing ores and ~a concentrates as described in U.S. Patent No. 4,381,225.
In these processes not only are electrodes and electrolyte involved but also two lots of solids, the metal bearing ore or concentrate and the particulate metal product. To achieve a maximizing of reaction with resultant high yield it has been previously believed the anode and cathode should be in close parallel relationship.
Also typical of the conventional electrolytic cell is the use of diaphragm bags surrounding the cathode. A multiplicity of diaphragm bags is employed to keep slurry away from the cathodes where clean metal is required to be deposited. Some problems experienced in the operation of such a cell include:
1) Clogging of the diaphragm materials with ~; .. .
" ;'"''~ : ~' ` ' particles when high hydraulic gradients must be used in the cell to maintain a uniformity of agitation of the slurry.
OF METALS FROM METAL BEARING ORES OR CONCENTRATES
AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME
This application is divided from copending Canadian Patent Application No. 443,033 in which is described and claimed an electrolytic cell for the recovery of metal from mineral ores or concentrates. The present invention is directed to electrodes and a me-thod of making same, which electrodes are useful in electrolytic cells for the recovery of metals from mineral ores and concentrates, particularly electrolytic cells as described in copending Canadian Patent Application No. 443,033.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to an electrode for an electrolytic cell for treating mineral ores and con-centrates, and a method of making same.
BACKGROUND OF THE IN~ENTION
The electrolytic cell is of particular importance in the recovery of copper from copper bearing ores and concentrates as described in U.S. Patent 4,061,552 and the recovery of lead from lead bearing ores and ~a concentrates as described in U.S. Patent No. 4,381,225.
In these processes not only are electrodes and electrolyte involved but also two lots of solids, the metal bearing ore or concentrate and the particulate metal product. To achieve a maximizing of reaction with resultant high yield it has been previously believed the anode and cathode should be in close parallel relationship.
Also typical of the conventional electrolytic cell is the use of diaphragm bags surrounding the cathode. A multiplicity of diaphragm bags is employed to keep slurry away from the cathodes where clean metal is required to be deposited. Some problems experienced in the operation of such a cell include:
1) Clogging of the diaphragm materials with ~; .. .
" ;'"''~ : ~' ` ' particles when high hydraulic gradients must be used in the cell to maintain a uniformity of agitation of the slurry.
2) Difficulty in trying to maintain large areas of cloth in parallel planes without distortion, which is particularly aggravated by high hydraulic gradients in the cell. In most cases it is undesirable for the cloth to come in contact with the electrodes.
3) The energy requirements resulting from the 1~ necessity for agitation in the bottom of the cell to maintain adequate suspension of the mineral between the bags.
Other problems include:
Difficulties in recovering the metal powder if it falls off the electrodes onto the cell floor or the bags, or difficulties and costs in removing and stripping the electrodes if the metal particulate adheres strongly.
To overcome these problems it has been known ~0 to introduce additives into the electrolyte which inhibit the growth of dendrites of metal powder on the cathode. Further, many attempts have been made to provide a simple and effective recovery of metal powder. However the very design of parallel cathode relationship complicates recovery. In particular, previously it has not been possible to integrate a central recovery system, especially with diaphragm cells, without complex pipework and flushing techniques.
The present invention seeks to mitigate these disadvantages of recovery of deposited product.
Accordingly, in one aspect of the invention, there is provided a cathode for use in an electrolytic cell for the recovery of metal from mineral ores or concentrates, characterized by a conductive portion, and a non-conductive covering overlying a portion of said conductive portion, the non-conductive covering being comprised of a perforated tubular member formed of heat shrinkable plastics material which has been heat-shrunk directly around said cathode to leave only , .~
., ,,, ~`,' ' ., ' : ' .
~ 3~
areas of said cathode exposed which are loc~ted below the perforations in -the tubular member.
The conductive por-tion may be rod shaped, preferably a tube.
The cathode may be a copper cathode.
According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a method of producing a cathode for use in an electrolytic cell for the recovery of metal from minerals, ores or concentrates, characterized l() by providing an elongated conductive member, contacting and surrounding said elongated conductive member with a perforated tubular non-conductive covering formed of heat shrinkable plastic, and heat shrinking said non-conductive covering so as to leave exposed only areas of said conductive member which lie below per-forations of said non-conductive covering.
The invention is diagrammatically illustrated by way of example, with reference to -the accompanying drawings:
Figure 1 is a view of an electrode coated in accordance with the invention.
Figure 1 shows the surface of an electrode 1 in the form of a cathode for the deposition of product of elec-trolysis in an easily detachable form in an electrolytic cell for treating mineral ores and con-centrates to remove product in the form of metal powder, there being a plurality of electrodes in -the cell.
A conduc-tive cathode 19 is partially covered with a non-conductive material 20 which allows product to grow from the electrodes 19 only in certain areas 21. One of the most convenient methods of achieving this effect is by covering rod or pipe electrodes, which are usually copper, with perforated shrlnkable plastics tubing or plastics net. The plastics tubing or net is then heated and shrinks onto the rod or tube. This causes the product to grow out from the electrode in small discrete forms which allows it to be easily detached from the elec~rode (in some cases assisted by a periodic vibration of the electrode) ~0 and easily j, . ". ..
;.... . . . .
... .
.
,, pumped as a slurry.
The foregoing describes the advantages of the cathode design. The following data shows a chemical effect achieved by such electrode in an electrolytic cell.
EXAMPLE
40 kilos of a copper concentrate analyzing 23~
copper and 23.~% iron were added to a cell, as described in the drawings of applican-ts copending applica-tion 443,033, which contained 1500 1 of electrolyte analyzing 35 g/l copper (total ionic Cu) 6.4 gpl of cupric and 0.5 g/l of iron. The mixture was aerated using 135 l of air per minute and current was passed at a rate of 700 amps with a voltage of 1.0 V. The cathodes were gently tapped every 15 to 30 minutes and a small vibration imparted to the fibreglass frame to allow the copper powder to travel down the arms in-to the sloping bot-tom of the central container. From the lowest point of this container the copper powder was withdrawn, in slurry form, through a vertical pipe, as required, to a settling chamber where the copper powder separa-ted from the electrolyte which was then passed to a centrifugal pump for transfer back to the cell. The pH of the mixture in the anolyte com-partment remained between 2.2 and 3.0 throughout the test and could be varied slightly by adjusting the amount of air admitted to the cell. A decrease in the amount of air admitted to the cell could lower the pH to the 2.0 to 2.5 pH preferred range. A~ter 3n 10 hours operation the air and current were turned off and the slurry was filtered and the filter cake washed and dried. The filter cake analyzed 0.8~ copper and 24% iron giving a recovery of 97% of the copper from the mineral with an elec-trolysis powder consumption of approximately 0.75 kWh per kilo of copper produced.
The sulphur in the chalcopyrite concentrate was almost completely converted to elemental form and the iron was converted to an oxide and remained substantially in the residue. This example illustrates the single ..
.
,, - .
. .. .
: :. . : ~ . ., ,:,~,.............. .
:. ' ' ' ;
~: :.~ , , , step conversion of copper concentrates to high purity metal and elemental sulphur avoiding atmospheric pollution from sulphur dioxide and using very low energy at atmospheric pressure and moderate temperatures.
The use of perforated heat shrinkable plastics material on cathode rods or tubes provides an inexpensive and efficient means of causing electrolytically deposited metals, often in the form of powders, to grow out from the small holes in the shrink plastics material la at the cathode surface to form "trees" which have a hi~h stress concentration at the cathode surface.
This ~akes it very simple to cause the metal to separate from the cathode surface for collection. For example, a slight vibration imparted to the cathode rods or tubes will cause deposited metal to separate from the cathode surface. It is difficult to produce the effect with flat plates since perforated flat sheets of plastics material tend to lift off a flat plate whereas tubular shrink plastics material tends to hold tightly around rod-like or tubular surfaces.
It will be appreciated that various alterations, modifications and/or additions may be introduced into constructions and parts previously described without departing from the spirit or ambit of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
- . : : .. ~ .
Other problems include:
Difficulties in recovering the metal powder if it falls off the electrodes onto the cell floor or the bags, or difficulties and costs in removing and stripping the electrodes if the metal particulate adheres strongly.
To overcome these problems it has been known ~0 to introduce additives into the electrolyte which inhibit the growth of dendrites of metal powder on the cathode. Further, many attempts have been made to provide a simple and effective recovery of metal powder. However the very design of parallel cathode relationship complicates recovery. In particular, previously it has not been possible to integrate a central recovery system, especially with diaphragm cells, without complex pipework and flushing techniques.
The present invention seeks to mitigate these disadvantages of recovery of deposited product.
Accordingly, in one aspect of the invention, there is provided a cathode for use in an electrolytic cell for the recovery of metal from mineral ores or concentrates, characterized by a conductive portion, and a non-conductive covering overlying a portion of said conductive portion, the non-conductive covering being comprised of a perforated tubular member formed of heat shrinkable plastics material which has been heat-shrunk directly around said cathode to leave only , .~
., ,,, ~`,' ' ., ' : ' .
~ 3~
areas of said cathode exposed which are loc~ted below the perforations in -the tubular member.
The conductive por-tion may be rod shaped, preferably a tube.
The cathode may be a copper cathode.
According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a method of producing a cathode for use in an electrolytic cell for the recovery of metal from minerals, ores or concentrates, characterized l() by providing an elongated conductive member, contacting and surrounding said elongated conductive member with a perforated tubular non-conductive covering formed of heat shrinkable plastic, and heat shrinking said non-conductive covering so as to leave exposed only areas of said conductive member which lie below per-forations of said non-conductive covering.
The invention is diagrammatically illustrated by way of example, with reference to -the accompanying drawings:
Figure 1 is a view of an electrode coated in accordance with the invention.
Figure 1 shows the surface of an electrode 1 in the form of a cathode for the deposition of product of elec-trolysis in an easily detachable form in an electrolytic cell for treating mineral ores and con-centrates to remove product in the form of metal powder, there being a plurality of electrodes in -the cell.
A conduc-tive cathode 19 is partially covered with a non-conductive material 20 which allows product to grow from the electrodes 19 only in certain areas 21. One of the most convenient methods of achieving this effect is by covering rod or pipe electrodes, which are usually copper, with perforated shrlnkable plastics tubing or plastics net. The plastics tubing or net is then heated and shrinks onto the rod or tube. This causes the product to grow out from the electrode in small discrete forms which allows it to be easily detached from the elec~rode (in some cases assisted by a periodic vibration of the electrode) ~0 and easily j, . ". ..
;.... . . . .
... .
.
,, pumped as a slurry.
The foregoing describes the advantages of the cathode design. The following data shows a chemical effect achieved by such electrode in an electrolytic cell.
EXAMPLE
40 kilos of a copper concentrate analyzing 23~
copper and 23.~% iron were added to a cell, as described in the drawings of applican-ts copending applica-tion 443,033, which contained 1500 1 of electrolyte analyzing 35 g/l copper (total ionic Cu) 6.4 gpl of cupric and 0.5 g/l of iron. The mixture was aerated using 135 l of air per minute and current was passed at a rate of 700 amps with a voltage of 1.0 V. The cathodes were gently tapped every 15 to 30 minutes and a small vibration imparted to the fibreglass frame to allow the copper powder to travel down the arms in-to the sloping bot-tom of the central container. From the lowest point of this container the copper powder was withdrawn, in slurry form, through a vertical pipe, as required, to a settling chamber where the copper powder separa-ted from the electrolyte which was then passed to a centrifugal pump for transfer back to the cell. The pH of the mixture in the anolyte com-partment remained between 2.2 and 3.0 throughout the test and could be varied slightly by adjusting the amount of air admitted to the cell. A decrease in the amount of air admitted to the cell could lower the pH to the 2.0 to 2.5 pH preferred range. A~ter 3n 10 hours operation the air and current were turned off and the slurry was filtered and the filter cake washed and dried. The filter cake analyzed 0.8~ copper and 24% iron giving a recovery of 97% of the copper from the mineral with an elec-trolysis powder consumption of approximately 0.75 kWh per kilo of copper produced.
The sulphur in the chalcopyrite concentrate was almost completely converted to elemental form and the iron was converted to an oxide and remained substantially in the residue. This example illustrates the single ..
.
,, - .
. .. .
: :. . : ~ . ., ,:,~,.............. .
:. ' ' ' ;
~: :.~ , , , step conversion of copper concentrates to high purity metal and elemental sulphur avoiding atmospheric pollution from sulphur dioxide and using very low energy at atmospheric pressure and moderate temperatures.
The use of perforated heat shrinkable plastics material on cathode rods or tubes provides an inexpensive and efficient means of causing electrolytically deposited metals, often in the form of powders, to grow out from the small holes in the shrink plastics material la at the cathode surface to form "trees" which have a hi~h stress concentration at the cathode surface.
This ~akes it very simple to cause the metal to separate from the cathode surface for collection. For example, a slight vibration imparted to the cathode rods or tubes will cause deposited metal to separate from the cathode surface. It is difficult to produce the effect with flat plates since perforated flat sheets of plastics material tend to lift off a flat plate whereas tubular shrink plastics material tends to hold tightly around rod-like or tubular surfaces.
It will be appreciated that various alterations, modifications and/or additions may be introduced into constructions and parts previously described without departing from the spirit or ambit of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
- . : : .. ~ .
Claims (4)
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE AS FOLLOWS:
1. A cathode for use in an electrolytic cell for recovery of metal from mineral ores or concentrates, characterized by a conductive portion, and a non-conductive covering overlying a portion of said conductive portion, the non-conductive covering being comprised of a perforated tubular member formed of heat shrinkable plastics material which has been heat-shrunk directly around said cathode to leave only areas of said cathode exposed which are located below the perforations in the tubular member.
2. A cathode according to claim 1, characterized in that said conductive portion is rod shaped.
3. A cathode according to claim 1, characterized in that said conductive portion is a tube.
4. A method of producing a cathode for use in an electrolytic cell for the recovery of metal from mineral ores or concentrates, characterized by providing an elongated conductive member, contacting and surrounding said elongated conductive member with a perforated tubular non-conductive covering formed of heat shrink-able plastics, and heat shrinking said non-conductive covering so as to leave exposed only areas of said conductive member which lie below perforations of said non-conductive covering.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000545463A CA1265095A (en) | 1982-12-10 | 1987-08-26 | Electrolytic cell for recovery of metals from metal bearing materials |
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| AU722382 | 1982-12-10 | ||
| AUPF7223 | 1982-12-10 | ||
| CA000443033A CA1234550A (en) | 1982-12-10 | 1983-12-12 | Electrolytic cell for recovery of metals from metal bearing materials |
| CA000545463A CA1265095A (en) | 1982-12-10 | 1987-08-26 | Electrolytic cell for recovery of metals from metal bearing materials |
Related Parent Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000443033A Division CA1234550A (en) | 1982-12-10 | 1983-12-12 | Electrolytic cell for recovery of metals from metal bearing materials |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1265095A true CA1265095A (en) | 1990-01-30 |
Family
ID=25612237
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000545463A Expired - Fee Related CA1265095A (en) | 1982-12-10 | 1987-08-26 | Electrolytic cell for recovery of metals from metal bearing materials |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1265095A (en) |
-
1987
- 1987-08-26 CA CA000545463A patent/CA1265095A/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKLA | Lapsed |