Difficult phase separation in copper extraction
Thread Content
This post was last edited by FILTRATION-MAN on 2011-8-8 at 20:40. In the newly established copper extraction plant, after 7 days of extraction using LIX984N, the separation process became slower, and both the organic phase used for extraction and that used for back-extraction contained large amounts of water. Could this phenomenon be related to silicon present in the liquid or to small amounts of solid particles? Are there any other reasons that could cause this phenomenon? The components of the extract obtained in the workshop are as follows: the pH is around 2.2, with 3.8 grams per liter of copper, 30 grams per liter of zinc, and 5 grams per liter of iron; trace amounts of other elements such as cobalt, nickel, and cadmium are present. The leachate is reused.
Compared to poor mixing ratios, it’s necessary to conduct measurements and make adjustments; secondly, attention should be paid to recovering the third phase; thirdly, the pH value can be adjusted further below 2.0, with flexibility required based on the actual conditions during production.
pH 2.2, iron content of 5 grams per liter; copper extraction, organic phase viscosity, rising liquid level, severe entrainment! It is recommended that you remove iron first, bringing its level below 500 mg/l, before proceeding with copper extraction. . Alternatively, do not remove iron and lower the pH to around 1.5. Alternatively, reduce ferric iron to ferrous iron and then extract it. Any of the three methods will work to solve your problem. .
Reply to 4# 12yujinhua: Isn’t copper extraction not affected by iron? Why are the requirements for iron so strict?
All of the above methods have been tried, but none were effective. After analyzing the third phase, it was determined that silicon and fine dust are the main causes; solutions are currently being sought in this area
Increase filtration at the source and extend the settling time to completely remove solid particles from the filtrate.
The idea is to reduce silicon leaching, while improving the treatment of the extraction solution; this should help lower both the silicon content and the solid content
Deironing is essentially desiliconization; it is a method of desiliconization. .
Various sources state that flocculants can be added; I’m not sure which type of flocculant provides the best results
-- Soluble solids can be precipitated from the solution after a filtration process. This is mainly caused by changes in time and the chemical properties of the solution. The most important one among them is soluble silicon. Soluble silicon can be flocculated using polyethylene oxide or polyethylene glycol (PEG) with a molecular weight of 12,000–16,000. Adding a flocculant in a counter-current thickener can remove the flocculated soluble silicon through the underflow tailings. During the stirred leaching process, the soluble silicon content in the leachate generally increases as the acidity increases during leaching. --