Review of Recovery of Platinum Group Metals from Copper Leach Residues and Other Resources |
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Authors: | M. Sadegh Safarzadeh Mark Horton Adrian D. Van Rythoven |
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Affiliation: | 1. Department of Materials and Metallurgical Engineering, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, 501 East Saint Joseph Street, Rapid City, SD, 57701-3995, USA;2. Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold, Chino Mine Hydromet, Phoenix, AZ, USA;3. Department of Environmental, Geographical, and Geological Sciences, Bloomsburg University, Bloomsburg, PA, USA |
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Abstract: | Porphyry copper and mixed copper-gold sulfide deposits contain varying amounts of precious (gold and silver) and platinum group metals (PGMs). Currently, milling and froth flotation is the most common processing route for the treatment of high-grade base metal sulfide ores. During this process, the precious metals and PGMs are also concentrated and represent a possible opportunity for the beneficiation of these metals to increase the overall economic value of the ore. Although not yet commercialized, the high temperature pressure oxidation (POX) of copper concentrates provides an alternative processing route to traditional smelting technology. With increasingly aggressive air quality standards and rising upstream processing costs for smelting, hydrometallurgical processing options become progressively attractive. The treatment of POX residues for the recovery of precious metals has seen significant attention and multiple processing routes have been developed on various scales. Extraction and beneficiation of PGMs from copper concentrate POX residue has garnered significantly less attention and mechanistic questions remain to be answered. Based on a review of the processing options for PGM ores and concentrates, hydrometallurgical processing routes for the extraction of PGMs from copper concentrate POX residues are envisioned. |
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Keywords: | Copper platinum group metals pressure oxidation smelting hydrometallurgy porphyry deposits |
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