Abstract

Copper extraction from primary copper sulfide ore from a typical porphyry copper deposit from Antofagasta, Chile, was investigated after leaching with a chloride-ferrous media at two temperatures. The study focused on whether this chemical leaching system could be applied at an industrial scale. Leaching tests were conducted in columns loaded with approximately 50 kg of agglomerated ore; the ore was first cured for 14 days and then leached for 90 days. The highest copper extraction, 50.23%, was achieved at 32.9 °C with the addition of 0.6 kg of H2SO4 per ton of ore, 0.525 kg of NaCl per ton of ore, and 0.5 kg of FeSO4 per ton of ore. In respect to copper extraction, the most effective variables were temperature and the addition of NaCl.

Details

Title
Leaching of Primary Copper Sulfide Ore in Chloride-Ferrous Media
Author
Salinas, Karina E 1 ; Herreros, Osvaldo 2 ; Torres, Cynthia M 3 

 Departamento de Ingeniería Química y Procesos de Minerales, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta 1240000, Chile 
 Departamento Ingeniería de Minas, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta 1240000, Chile 
 Departamento de Ingeniería en Metalurgia y Minas, Universidad Católica del Norte, Antofagasta 1240000, Chile 
First page
312
Publication year
2018
Publication date
2018
Publisher
MDPI AG
e-ISSN
2075163X
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2582830912
Copyright
© 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.