Process for removing uranium in copper concentrate via magnetic separation

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9790571-B2
Application number	US-201314073674-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 6, 2013
Priority date	Nov 6, 2012
Publication date	Oct 17, 2017
Grant date	Oct 17, 2017

Abstract

The present invention describes a process for removing uranium from a copper concentrate by magnetic separation (low and high field) to reduce the uranium content to commercially acceptable levels.

First claim

We claim:

1. A process for removing uranium from copper concentrates via magnetic separation comprising the steps of:
i. magnetically separating the copper concentrates to provide a magnetic fraction and a non-magnetic fraction with a size distribution of about 15 micron to about 40 micron (P 80 ), the magnetic fraction having a uranium content of about 20 ppm to about 100 ppm, and obtaining about 75% to about 99.99% non-magnetic copper;
ii. grinding the magnetic fraction to produce a magnetic copper concentrate having a fine size distribution of about 5 micron to about 15 micron (P 80 ) and a uranium content of about 100 ppm to about 300 ppm;
iii. fine flotation of the magnetic copper concentrate to produce a recovered copper concentrate having about 0.01% to about 25% by weight copper and a uranium content of about 100 ppm to about 300 ppm; and
iv. mixing the non-magnetic fraction with the recovered copper concentrate of step iii to produce a final concentrate having a uranium content of about 40 ppm to about 150 ppm and about 65% to about 99.99% copper.

2. The process for removing uranium from copper concentrates via magnetic separation, according to claim 1 , wherein the uranium comprises uranium oxides, copper sulfides, magnetite and other oxides.

3. The process for removing uranium from copper concentrates via magnetic separation, according to claim 1 , wherein the non-magnetic fraction comprises a uranium content of about 20 ppm to about 100 ppm.

4. The process for removing uranium from copper concentrates via magnetic separation, according to claim 1 , wherein the final concentrate has a uranium content below about 100 ppm.

5. The process for removing uranium from copper concentrates via magnetic separation, according to claim 1 , wherein the magnetic separation is performed by a wet high intensity magnetic separator (WHIMS).

6. The process for removing uranium from copper concentrates via magnetic separation, according to claim 2 , wherein the copper sulphides, magnetite, and other oxides make up 54%, 14%, and 7%, respectively, of the uranium.

Assignees

• Vale Sa
• Vale Sa

Inventors

• Marques Antonio Euclides Jaques
• Da Silva Wesley José
• Bergerman Mauricio Guimarães
• Rodrigues Wendel Johnson
• Gonçalves Keila Lane De Carvalho

Classifications

• C22B15/0006

  by dry processes · CPC title

• C22B60/0208

  preliminary treatment of ores or scrap · CPC title

• C22B15/0002 Primary

  Preliminary treatment · CPC title

• C22B7/005 Primary

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