MULTI-METAL RECOVERY FROM FLOTATION TAILINGS WITH CITRIC ACID ON THE NACl MEDIA

Abstract

After the flotation process of oxidized lead-zinc ores, the high amount of metal (especially zinc metal) in its content cannot be recovered and is stored as waste. Ore and (therefore) tailings are found together with gangue minerals such as calcite, and dolomite, which are oxide/carbonate minerals. Precious minerals are zinc, lead, silver, and iron-containing minerals such as smithsonite, hydrozincite, plumbojarosite, and goethite. The particle size of the sample taken from this waste was determined as d80= 78.22µm. In order to recover these ore wastes with high metal content, the dissolution of citric acid, which is a weak organic acid, in NaCl medium was investigated. When the study was examined at a concentration of 0.5 M citric acid and 200 g/L NaCl, for 1 hour at 60 ℃, 10% solids, it was found that 66.85% Zn, 56.53% Pb, 40.68% Ag, and 27.74% Fe were dissolved. According to the results of this experiment, keeping each of these parameters constant, 0.125-1 M citric acid, 50-400 g/L NaCl, 15-120 minutes leaching time, 25-95 ℃ leaching temperature, and 5-40% solids metal. The efficiency of the gain yields was tried to be determined. When the final results are examined, there are 60-80% zinc, 40-70% lead, 0.01-35% iron, and 11-83% silver recovery efficiencies. In light of these results, it is thought that industrial-scale improvements in multi-metal recovery from oxidized ore wastes may improve positive results.

Keywords

• Flotation tailings
• Oxidized lead-zinc
• Silver
• Citric acid
• NaCl
• Leaching

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