Mineral Processing and Extractive Metallurgy Review · 2012 · 34 citations · 13 references
Natural SciencesEarth SciencesMining EngineeringInorganic ChemistryMetallurgyMineral ProcessingExtractive MetallurgyMetal SulfidesSulfide MineralsSulfur ChemistryImpuritiesOxidationOxidation TreatmentSulfide Mineral ChemistrySulfide Ore DepositsSulfide Removal
Abstract Sulfide minerals are one of the most important sources of metal values. On the other hand, some sulfides such as pyrite are considered as one of the major impurities in solid fossil fuels such as coal. Oxidation of these sulfides has been one route to obtain base metals and to remove sulfur by leaching. This work summarizes the results obtained regarding the use of ozone in the oxidation of sulfide ores containing gold, silver, and copper. Results show that the extraction of gold and silver is increased by at least 15%, with lower cyanide consumption; the extraction of copper increased by 16% and in less time; and in the case of coal, sulfur is removed above 70%. These results indicate that oxidation treatment with ozone could be a promising clean technology to optimize ore processing, which is difficult to treat by current industrial methods. Keywords: coalcoppergoldhydrometallurgyozonesilversulfide ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors thank CGEPI-UAdeC and CONACYT for financial support (Project 67039 and Project 2000405010).
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