Coalescing elements in copper production

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10988827-B2
Application number	US-201615558697-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 16, 2016
Priority date	Mar 16, 2015
Publication date	Apr 27, 2021
Grant date	Apr 27, 2021

Abstract

A coalescing element for aggregating droplets of an emulsion. The coalescing element includes a nonwoven web substrate. A coalescer that includes the coalescing element can also include a housing and a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet each in fluid communication with the coalescing element. The coalescing element and coalescer may be useful for emulsions that form in solvent extraction/electrowinning copper processing and for other emulsions.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of coalescing droplets in an emulsion, the emulsion comprising:
a continuous aqueous phase having a pH≤5 optionally containing copper ions, and
an organic phase comprising a complex of a lixiviant and copper ions, the method comprising contacting the emulsion with a nonwoven web substrate.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
contacting a coalescer with the emulsion, wherein the coalescer comprises:
a housing;
a coalescing element comprising the nonwoven web substrate located in the housing; and
a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet each in fluid communication with the coalescing element,

wherein a D 50 droplet particle size is bigger by at least a factor of 3 upon flow out of the fluid outlet relative to the D 50 droplet particle size upon flow into the fluid inlet.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate comprises at least one of a spunlaid, spunbond, hydroentangled, or a meltblown nonwoven web substrate.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate has an effective fiber diameter of 1 micrometer to 40 micrometers.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate includes fibers that have different effective fiber diameters.

6. The method of claim 4 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate is hydrophilic.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate comprises a hydrophilic polymer or hydrophilic copolymer covalently bonded to the surface of its fibers.

8. The method of claim 2 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate comprises two or more layers of nonwoven webs.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein at least two of the two or more layers of nonwoven webs have different effective fiber diameters.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate comprises at least one of a spunlaid, spunbond, hydroentangled, or a meltblown nonwoven web substrate.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate has an effective fiber diameter of 1 micrometer to 40 micrometers.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate includes fibers that have different effective fiber diameters.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate is hydrophilic.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate comprises a hydrophilic polymer or hydrophilic copolymer covalently bonded to the surface of its fibers.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate comprises two or more layers of nonwoven webs.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein at least two of the two or more layers of nonwoven webs have different effective fiber diameters.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the emulsion has an organic solvent phase to aqueous acidic phase in a ratio of 1:1 to 1.5:1.

18. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate has a surface energy of less than 35 dyne/cm.

19. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate comprises fibers of inherently hydrophilic polymers selected from the group consisting of polyamides and poly(vinyl alcohol).

20. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nonwoven web substrate has a solidity of less than 20%.

Assignees

• 3M Innovative Properties Co

Inventors

• Waller Jr Clinton P
• Jariwala Chetan P
• Rasmussen Jerald K
• Schmidt John J
• Sierakowski Michael J
• Weilandt Karl D

Classifications

• C22B3/26 Primary

  by liquid-liquid extraction using organic compounds · CPC title

• C22B15/0065

  Leaching or slurrying (with organic compounds C22B3/16) · CPC title

• C22B15/0086 Primary

  by physical methods · CPC title

• B01D17/045

  with coalescers · CPC title

• Y02P10/20

  Recycling · CPC title