Method for the recovery of platinum group metals from catalysts comprising silicon carbide

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11879164-B2
Application number	US-202017791001-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 18, 2020
Priority date	Jan 10, 2020
Publication date	Jan 23, 2024
Grant date	Jan 23, 2024

Abstract

The invention concerns a process suitable for the recovery of platinum group metals (PGM) present in PGM-bearing catalysts comprising silicon carbide (SiC). More particularly, the process for the recovery of PGM present in PGM-bearing catalysts comprising SiC, comprises the steps of preparing a metallurgical charge by mixing the PGM-bearing catalysts with an Fe-oxide compound in an amount sufficient to oxidize at least 65% of the SiC, and feeding the metallurgical charge and slag formers to a smelting furnace operating in conditions susceptible to form a liquid Fe-based bullion, which contains PGM, and a liquid slag. Good to excellent PGM yields are obtained.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A process for the recovery of platinum group metals (PGM) present in PGM-bearing catalysts comprising SiC, comprising the steps of:
preparing a metallurgical charge, by mixing the PGM-bearing catalysts with an Fe-oxide compound in an amount sufficient to oxidize at least 65% of the SiC; and,
feeding the metallurgical charge and slag formers to a smelting furnace operating in conditions susceptible to form a melt comprising a liquid Fe-based bullion, which contains PGM, and a liquid slag.

2. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the PGM-bearing catalysts comprise spent automotive catalysts and/or spent catalyzed diesel particulate filters.

3. The process according to claim 1 , comprising the additional step of slagging part of the Fe present in the Fe-base bullion by blowing oxygen into the melt, thereby concentrating the PGMin the remaining Fe-based bullion.

4. The process according to claim 1 , further comprising feeding a Ni-compound to the smelting furnace and blowing oxygen into the melt, whereby at least 50% by weight of the Fe present in the Fe-base bullion is slagged, thereby concentrating the PGM in a Ni- or FeNi-based bullion.

5. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the SiC amounts to more than 2.5% by weight of the PGM-bearing catalysts.

6. The process according to claim 1 , wherein more than 80% by weight of the metallurgical charge is the PGM-bearing catalysts comprising SiC together with the Fe-oxide compound.

7. The process according to claim 1 , comprising the additional step of separating the Fe-based bullion which contains PGM from the slag.

8. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the Fe-oxide compound is Fe 3 O 4 , Fe 2 O 3 , CaFeO 4 or K 2 FeO 4 .

9. The process according to claim 1 , where, in the step of preparing the metallurgical charge, the PGM-bearing catalysts are comminuted to particles having a d50 of less than 2000 μm.

10. The process according to claim 19 , wherein the Fe-oxide compound is comminuted to particles having a d50 of less than 2000 μm.

Assignees

• Umicore Nv

Inventors

• Crauwels Dirk
• Van Rompaey Tim
• Verbruggen Hilke

Classifications

• C22B11/026 Primary

  from spent catalysts · CPC title

• Y02P10/20

  Recycling · CPC title

• C22B9/16

  Remelting metals (liquating C22B9/02) · CPC title

• C22B7/005

  Separation by a physical processing technique only, e.g. by mechanical breaking · CPC title

• C22B7/009

  General processes for recovering metals or metallic compounds from spent catalysts (for recovering specific metals C22B11/00 - C22B61/00) · CPC title