DE336910C - - Google Patents

Description

AU SCFi! ALSO old! 17. iuAi IU2I

The invention relates to a method for Treatment of metal ores for the extraction of the valuable components, which are the peculiarities shows that the molten metal, preferably in a mobile melt, was converted into chloride by blowing in chlorine in the converter Metal components of the ore in the form of the chlorides to precipitate and remove the metals to be extracted (such as silver, lead and zinc) with one or more lead or Zinc alloys of magnesium, calcium, sodium or potassium are added.

It is useful before or after the treatment of the mass with the cutting alloy (s) Any iron or manganese present or both together after their conversion into oxide, for example by means of Magnesium, calcium, sodium or potassium oxide, and the insoluble gangue on the Eliminated by means of filtration.

After the mass has been treated with the cutting alloy (s), the remaining Chlorides subjected to electrolysis with cathodes made from the heavier metals to re-form the separating alloys for reuse.

The present process is particularly suitable for extracting non-ferrous metals and for producing sulfur from all types of sulphide ores or concentrates, but especially from those ores which as hard-to-melt ores, concentrates, noncontaining goods, residues, sludge, etc. are known.

To be particularly suitable for carrying out the process prove to be in the trade as "Zinc concentrates" and "lead concentrates" are well-known mineral products that are used today form most of the substances processed on zinc and lead. These concentrates are made by Concentration of the mixed sulphide ores of natural storage, for example the known ones Broken Hill bearings. In addition to some gold and silver, they can roughly follow these Substances contain:

Zinc concentrates:

Lead 7 percent,

Zinc 48

Iron 9 - ..

Manganese 1.1 -

Alumina 0.2

Calcium 0.36 -

Sulfur. 30.0

Insoluble substances .... 4.34 -

100.00

Lead concentrates:

Zinc 10.0 percent,

Lead 68.0

Sulfur 15.0

Gait and other 7.0

100.00

There is also a special type of natural ore that is found in large quantities in Burma well suited for carrying out the procedure. It contains approximately:

Silver (20 to 40 ounces). 1 percent,

Lead 40

Zinc 20

Iron. 3

Sulfur 18

Pebble gait 18

100.00

Other natural ores can also be processed according to the invention, such as those the various amounts of antimony, arsenic, copper, nickel, cobalt or other partly valuable, partly contain disturbing substances.

It is well known that the processing of such ores presents the greatest difficulties, and in spite of this the modern perfection of the procedures used for this purpose so far only an imperfect and costly and cumbersome recovery the valuable ore constituents can be achieved. The present procedure is intended to eliminate all previous difficulties will.

The method can be carried out, for example, as follows.

The first phase of the process consists in converting the metal components of the Ore in chlorides. This conversion is expedient in a converter in the presence a liquid melt, which is best made of anhydrous magnesium chloride, anhydrous calcium chloride or molten sodium chloride or potassium chloride or consists of a mixture of the same.

In a second phase, the elimination of the gait and, if necessary, of iron and manganese can go ahead or behind, become the metal components to be recovered (Silver, lead and zinc) from the chloride mixture obtained in the converter by way of the Fractionation eliminated by the fact that the same suitable proportions of Metal alloys of lead or zinc with magnesium, calcium, sodium or potassium added to make all the heavy metals, so first the silver with a small amount of lead, then the remaining lead and eventually precipitate the zinc. In the presence of gold, this becomes with the silver excreted in order to be separated from him afterwards according to known vaginal procedures. During this precipitation process, chlorides from the separating alloy used can be separated at the same time existing metals.

After this fractional elimination of the heavy non-ferrous metals, the melt becomes Magnesium, calcium, sodium or potassium chlorides and small amounts of others from the ore ingested bodies as inert impurities. Also fluorides of magnesium, Calcium, sodium, or potassium can be present in small amounts.

As a heavier and non-reactive alloying metal, it is alloyed with the light ones active metals: magnesium, calcium, sodium or potassium, lead or zinc used, where lead or zinc in the cutting process for the extraction of gold, silver or lead, and zinc is used in the separation process for the extraction of zinc. on in this way one obtains pure metals of both kinds or in the case of valuable metals rich lead ingots, which are excellently suited for economical refining.

Fractional metal precipitation by means of a lead or zinc alloy of magnesium, Calcium, sodium or potassium can be stored in a second container with a stirrer or in a rotating drum, and the container or drum is with Provided needle holes or arranged tiltable so that the metal during its Extraction can be drained, or the different operations can alternate run in a single converter.

Of course, the heavy metals to be recovered can, instead of by fractionation, also all precipitated together and afterwards from the resulting mixed alloys be weeded out.

Similarly, in the presence of copper, nickel, antimony, arsenic, cobalt, Tellurium and other metals or metalloids the same from the other obtained separating metals after some known separating proceedings to be divorced.

After or before the precipitation of the heavy non-ferrous metals, the Gait and the excreted oxides to achieve pure anhydrous magnesium, Calcium, sodium or potassium chlorides, beneficially by way of passing through the molten chloride through a suitable filter, such as. B. a layer of charcoal or sand, removed, with a complete filtration thanks to the extremely low viscosity the chloride takes place very quickly. The magnesium, calcium, sodium or potassium chloride is then used for electrolytic Processing ready.

Easy and quick filtration in the molten state results in particular in the case of anhydrous magnesium or calcium chloride or a mixture thereof, alone or together with alkali metal chlorides, and this property is extremely valuable for the circulation carried out

conduct of the proceedings. Retain mixtures of any of the named chlorides also their light liquid at relatively low temperatures. S Will elimination of gait as well the iron and manganese oxides before the precipitation of the heavy non-ferrous metals made, then affect the chlorides of the metals mentioned, which are then in

ίο the melt are in no way the free j filtration of the same, provided that the ■ initially existing chloride content in the

Melt is sufficient. J

In certain cases, however, the melt i can be dissolved in water and thereby the solid mass I. are deposited, whereupon the chlorides | fully or partially concentrated again | (or drained).

For the electrolytic processing of the alloys, the methods described in the preceding j Written way from the converter or felling | container recovered molten chloride i as an electrolyte with either metallic zinc j or metallic lead as cathodes, where the alloy of magnesium, calcium, sodium or potassium with the lead or zinc usually occurs in 10 to 30 percent of the lighter metals.

If an ore is treated with a simultaneous content of lead (or silver) and zinc, so the process is carried out in a number of electrolytic cells with lead cathodes and in one A number of such cells are carried out with zinc cathodes, these cathodes in melted j be used in any state.

The process can also be used in connection with the extraction of the following metals: magnesium, Calcium, Sodium and Potassium for use as such or for use within Alloys with lead or zinc are carried out. In this regard, was made by the inventor a suitable method for the extraction of magnesium as a metal was described earlier, and a similar method can be used to obtain calcium. Sodium and potassium or their alloys can be obtained in any known manner. The entire amount of chlorine that results from electrolytic processing, can be introduced into the converter to form chloride, while the sulfur or the sulfur compounds obtained from the converters are collected and applied can be used in any way. The i

The sulfur contained in the ore can be obtained in its entirety by a suitable method of processing the ore in the converter. For example thereby, that in the converter i batch always an excess of |

Using ore and working in the absence of air at a fairly high temperature, pure sulfur is obtained. Letting in air gives SO ₂ under otherwise identical working conditions, while working at a lower temperature and with an excess of chlorine and reducing the ore feed yields sulfuryl chloride as a valuable by-product.

Of course, the alloys and chlorides of magnesium, calcium, sodium and potassium can be used either separately or in any combination.

In their order, the processes described above form a cycle of great importance Simplicity, economy and effectiveness in which those in sulfur or oxidized Ores of the non-ferrous metals contained metals can be recovered completely. The chlorine used in the process is used in the cycle. That in the cycle imported magnesium, calcium, sodium and potassium with that for precipitating about Oxide used in the presence of iron and manganese also exhibits an excess product the actual cycle, which is a by-product both as metal and as' Alloy is negotiable.

The operating costs of the process are extremely low. The required electrical Energy, for example, is approximately 2.5 kilowatt hours per pound of zinc or go analog products, 0.8 kilowatt hours per pound of lead, 7.5 kilowatt hours per pound free metallic magnesium, or 6.8 kilowatt hours per pound of magnesium in alloys.

The individual chemical reactions are known per se, but the one described is Type of use of metals: magnesium, calcium or alkali metals and their fused salts have not yet been proposed.

For a better illustration of the process, in the following example the Metal Magnesium (in an alloy with zinc or lead) as an active metal during excretion of heavy metals adopted. With kai'zium the processes take place in an analogous manner Way.

Example.

100 tons of Burma ore are chosen as the ore. It is also assumed that the approach is 5 t pure molten anhydrous magnesium chloride in the converters and separators a system used to carry out the process and another 5 t of the same material in the electrolytic department of the same are included.

The resulting reactions are as follows:

In the converter:

a) Zn S + Cl ₂ = Zn Cl ₂ + S,

b) PbS + Cl ₂ = PbCl, + S,

c) Ag ₂ S + Cl ₂ = 2 Ag Cl + S,

d) 2 Fe S., + 3 Cl ₂ = Fe ₂ Cl ₆ + 4 S,

e) 3 Mg O + Fe, Cl ₆ = Fe ₂ O ₃ + 3 Mg Cl ₂ .

In the separator:

f) 2 Ag Cl + Pb Mg * = Mg Cl ₂ + Pb Ag ₂ *, g) Pb Cl, + Pb Mg * = Mg Cl ₂ + 2 Pb, h) Zn Cl ₂ + Zn Mg * = Mg Cl ₂ + 2 notes

In electrolysis: k) Mg Cl ₂ + current + Pb = Mg * Pb + Cl ,, 1) Mg Cl ₂ + current + Zn = Zn * Mg. + Cl ₂ .

The "formulas for those with an asterisk (*)

named alloys are purely empirical.

The processing of 100 t of Burma ore according to the above formulas leads to the following theoretical input and yield:

Input:

Mixed sulphide ore 100 t,

25. "Mg Cl ₂ (batch) 10 t,

Mg O 2.2 t. (or Ca O

with 3 t),

Electricity ........... 225,000 kilowatt hours.

Yield:

Precious silver It,

Lead 40 t,

Zinc 20 t,

Sulfur 18 t,

Metallic magnesium. . 1.3 t (or metallic calcium 1.5 t), ' Magnesium chloride (batch) 10 t.

Departure:

Gait.

Iron oxide

18 t, 6 t.

The drawing is intended to explain the scheme of a system for carrying out the process.

A denotes a container for the ore to be treated, B a container for holding, for example, magnesium oxide, C the converter department, D the separation department, E the filtration department and F the electrolytic department; α c and bc denote the connections between the containers A, B and the converter compartment C. The passage for the mixed chlorides from the converter compartment C to the separation compartment D is indicated by cd,

5f, the passage for the magnesium chloride from the separation department D to the filtration department E with de and the passage for the filtered magnesium chloride from the filtration department E \ to the electrolytic department ' F with ef , c means the yield of sulfur or sulfur compounds from the converter department C. The yields of silver, lead and zinc from the separating compartment D are illustrated at d ¹ , d ² and d ^{3, respectively.} The departure of gangue alone or of gangue with iron or manganese oxide from the filtration section E is symbolized at e and the magnesium yield from the electrolysis section F is symbolized at f. The transition of lead and zinc from the filtration department D to the electrolysis department F is marked with d and the return path of the alloys of lead-magnesium and zinc-magnesium from the electrolysis department E to the separation department D with fd . The transition of chlorine from the electrolysis department F to the converter department C is indicated at fc.

From this list of parts it can be seen that the positions of the separating department D and the filtering department E can be reversed so that the gangue alone or the gangue with iron or manganese oxide are removed before the valuable metals are separated out instead of after the same can.

Claims (3)

Patent-on sayings: 1. Process for the treatment of metal ores for the recovery of valuable ones Components, characterized in that the preferably in a movable melt Metal components converted to chloride by blowing in chlorine in the converter of ore in the form of chlorides to precipitate and remove those to be extracted Metals (such as silver, lead and zinc) with one or more lead or zinc alloys of magnesium, Calcium, sodium or potassium can be added. 2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that before or after Treatment of the mass with the separating alloy (s), any iron or manganese present or both together their conversion into oxide and furthermore the insoluble gait on the way of the Filtration to be excreted. 3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that after the treatment the mass with the separating alloy (s), the remaining chlorides of an electrolysis with cathodes from the heavier ones Metals are subjected to re-form the separating alloy for reuse. For this purpose ι sheet of drawings.