Systems and methods for metal recovery

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9340849-B2
Application number	US-201213716836-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 17, 2012
Priority date	Dec 20, 2011
Publication date	May 17, 2016
Grant date	May 17, 2016

Abstract

Various embodiments provide a process roasting a metal bearing material under oxidizing conditions to produce an oxidized metal bearing material, roasting the oxidized metal bearing material under reducing conditions to produce a roasted metal bearing material, and leaching the roasted metal bearing material in a basic medium to yield a pregnant leach solution.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A process comprising:
roasting a metal bearing material comprising a copper carbonate under oxidizing conditions to produce an oxidized metal bearing material;
roasting the oxidized metal bearing material under reducing conditions, at a temperature of about 475° C. or greater, to produce a roasted metal bearing material; and
leaching the roasted metal bearing material in a basic medium to yield a pregnant leach solution.

2. The process of claim 1 , wherein the basic medium comprises at least one of ammonia, ammonium carbonate and ammonium sulfate.

3. The process of claim 1 , wherein the oxidizing conditions comprise an oxygen gas containing atmosphere.

4. The process of claim 1 , wherein the reducing conditions comprise a hydrogen gas containing atmosphere.

5. The process of claim 1 , further comprising subjecting the pregnant leach solution to a solution extraction process to yield a loaded aqueous stream.

6. The process of claim 5 , wherein an extraction stage of the solution extraction yields a cobalt-bearing raffinate.

7. The process of claim 6 , further comprising precipitating cobalt from the cobalt-bearing raffinate.

8. The process of claim 7 , wherein the precipitating yields cobalt sulfide in a solid phase.

9. The process of claim 8 , wherein the cobalt sulfide is subjected to leaching.

10. The process of claim 5 , subjecting the loaded aqueous stream to electrowinning.

11. The process of claim 1 , wherein the copper carbonate comprises at least one of azurite and malachite.

Assignees

• Freeport Mcmoran Corp
• Freeport Minerals Corp

Inventors

• Robertson Joanna M
• Bolles Thomas R
• Hazen Wayne W
• May Lawrence D
• Smith Jay C
• Baughman David R

Classifications

• C22B3/02

  Apparatus therefor · CPC title

• C25C7/02

  Electrodes (consumable anodes for the refining the metals C25C1/00 - C25C5/00); Connections thereof · CPC title

• C22B23/005

  Preliminary treatment of ores, e.g. by roasting or by the Krupp-Renn process · CPC title

• C25C1/00

  Electrolytic production, recovery or refining of metals by electrolysis of solutions (C25C5/00 takes precedence) · CPC title

• Y02P10/234

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic