Chapter 11

Metal Producti on
Davi d A . Mi l l i
gan 2005 Mi
stletoe Lane
Edmond, Okl ahoma 73034
Contents of ChaQter
11.1

INTRODUCTI ON

11.2

CARBON ELUTION

11.2.1
11.2.2

Stri ppi ng Columns

Metal Concentrati on

11.2.2.1
11.2.2.2

El ectrowi nni ng
Zinc Preci pi tation

11.2 .3
11.2 .4

Carbon Hand l i ng
Heati ng Equi pment

11.3

SMELTING

11.3.1

Merri l l -Crowe Preci pitates

11.3.1.1
11.3.1.2
11.3.1.3

Pretreatment
Fl ux Selection
Furnace Operati on

11.3.2

El ectrowi nni ng Cathodes and Sl udge

11.3.2.l
11.3.2.2
11.3.2.3

Pretreatment
Fl ux Selecti on
Furnace Operati on

297-

11.1

INTRODUCT I ON
The prec ious met a l s i n the l each sol u t i on are extr acted , concen tr ated

, and

p u r i f i ed . Several

d i f f erent

processes

are

req u i red

to

con v ert

t he d i ssol v ed prec i ous met a l s i nto pu re met al b ars . The sale of an i

n termed i ate

p rec i ous met al cont a i n i ng prod uct i s poss i b l e ; howev er ,

the v a l ue of the p rec i ou s met a l s is red uced by the v ar iou s charg es and r i
sk s assoc i ated wi th prec i ous meta l p rocess i ng . The prec i ous metal s may be extr
acted from the .l each

sol u t i on by bot h con vent i on a l and uncon ven t i on a l

p rocesses . The con ven t ional

processes are act i v ated carbon /el ectrow i n n i ng

{ACE ) and z i nc p rec i p i t at i on

{Z I P ) . The

uncon vent i on a l processes

are

res i n

i on

exch an ge ,

sol v

ent extr act i on , and d i rect el ectrowi n n i ng .

The cho i ce between the conven t i on a 1 p rocesses , the ACE process or
the Z I P p rocess , i s of ten made based upon the si l ver and go l d con tent of t he l
each solu t i on . I n a l arge p l ant where the si l ver /gol d rat i o exceed s two
or where the met al concent r ati on exceed s two p arts per mi11 i on , the Z I P
process

i s typ ically pref erred . Th i s cho i ce i s based upon mi n i mi z i ng the

oper at i ng cost per ou nce. I n a sma ll oper at i on where ease of oper at i on and
m i n i m i z i ng the cap i t al inv estment are maja r cr iter i a , the ACE process
wi 11 typ i ca l l y be sel ected .
A typ i ca l ACE process h as two circu l at i ng l oops . The f i rst l oop ad
sorbs the cy an i de-metal comp l exes f rom t he d i l u te l each sol u t i on onto the act i
v ated carbon wh i l e the second sol u t i on l oop remov es the cy an i de-met al comp l
exes f rom the act i v ated carbon into a strong sol u t i on , the el ectrow i nn i n g
el ectro l yte . Act i v ated carbon i s tran sf erred from one f l u i d l oop to the other
. A cocon u t shell act i v ated ch arcoal i s p ref erred . The ef f i c i ent ad sorn t i on
and str i pp i ng

of the act i v ated ch arcoa l are cr i t i ca l to good oper at i on

-2-

. The oper at i ng cost

-3-

of the ACE process

i s d i rec t i ona lly propor t i ona l

to

the qu an t i ty of

carbon str i pped and th u s to the q u an t i ty of prec i ous met

a l p rod uced .
A typ i cal ZI P process cont a i ns a si ng l e c i rcu l at i ng l oop . The sol u
t i on i s f i ltered , deaer ated , con t acted
The

w ith z i nc , and

f il t ered

ag a i n .

b arren l each sol u t i on i s then ret u rned to the heap . The z i nc sl ud ge

recovered i n t h e second f il ter i ng step conta i ns the prec i ous met a l . Th i s

sl ud ge i s typ i ca lly dr i ed , fl u xed , and
ent

oper at i on of

sme lted

to

a dore . For

ef f i c i

the Z I P p rocess , the deaer at i on step i s cr it ica l . Z i nc

prec i p itat ion ef f i c i ency i s contr o l l ed by the res i du a l oxyg en af ter deaer at
i on , the r at i o of z i nc added to met al p rec i p i tated , the con t act t i me , the
ag i t at i on l eve l ,

and

cost

process

of

the

ZIP

the ch aracter i st i cs

of

the

z i nc . The

oper at i ng

i s d i rec t i ona lly p ropor t i onal to the q u ant i ty

of sol u t i on treated w i th a sma ll dependence upan the met a l conten t of the sol u t
i on . The Z I P process req u i res near ly f u l l -t i me mon i tor i ng f or ef f i c i
ent gol d and

s i l v er recov ery . Sma l l i nexpens i ve por t ab l e Z I P u n i ts can

be pu rch ased .
A p rec i ous met al sl ud ge i s p rod uced f rom bot h the ACE and the
Z I P p rocesses . Th i s s l ud g e mu st be trea ted by bot h hyd romet a l l u rg i c a l
and pyrometa l l u rg i cal means to f orm pu re met a l

bars . The con ven t i onal

met h od i nvo l ves f i rst a pyromet a l l u rg i ca l tre atmen t w i th the necess ary f l
u xes t o f orm a dore of gol d , sil v er , and copper . The dore may be sol d to
met al ref i ner s . The dore i s ref i ned hyd romet all u rg i ca lly to pu re met a l s .
The pu re met a l s are me lted and cast into b ars of gol d and sil v er for sal e .
An u ncon ve n t i on a l met h od of chemi ca lly ref i n i ng the met a l s h as been dev
e l oped . The s l ud ge i s hyd romet a 11u rg i cally treated to p rod uce pu re met a 1
powders . The p owde rs are then me l ted and pou red i nto bars or i ngot s .

11.2 CARBON ELUTION

The loaded carbon is stri pped of its precious metal content in
the carbon el uti on circui t. The strippi ng circuit contai ns four major
components:

1) Carbon strip col umns; 2) Metal concentrati on equi oment; 3) Carbon

hand l i ng equi pment; and 4) Heat exchange and heati ng equipment .
The carbon strip col umns may be operated i n a countercurrent manner;
however, a sing le vessel is often used. Many strippi ng sol uti on
composi ti ons are possi bl e. The key

operati ng parameters are the

characteri stics of the carbon, the temperature of the strippi ng

col umn, the circul ati on rate, and the effi ciency of the metal
concentrati on eq ui pment. The hot strippi ng col umns generate a hi ghgrade

so1 uti on of preci ous metal s. This soluti on i s cool ed and

passed through the metal concentrati on equipment . The barren strip

soluti on i s then recycl ed to the strippi ng col umn after heati ng.
The stripped carbon is treated in the carbon handl i ng faci l i ti es to
mai ntai n its i ni ti al acti vi ty and kinetic

properti es. The

carbon i s returned to the adsorpti on secti on to be l oaded agai n. The

product from the metal concentrati on equi pment i s washed and dri ed
for further processi ng or for sale.
11.2.1

Stri ppi ng Col umns

The strippi ng col umns provi de contact between the hot strip

soluti on and

the l oaded acti v ated carbon at the conditi ons

necessary for strippi ng of the cyani de-metal compl exes . One or more
vessel s may be used i n a countercurrent

flow arrangement . The strip

col urnn is i nsul ated to reduce heat l oss. The carbon is l oaded into
the str ip column often as a slurry. The system i s seal ed and the
-5-

carbon stripped. The carbon is then unl oaded from the col umn and
transferred back to the adsorpti on ci rcuit. For effi cient contact wi
th the carbon, the vessel i s typi cal ly a col umn wi th a hei ght of
approxi mately eight

-6-

to ten f eet . The character i st i cs

of

the

carbon ,

t he

temper atu re

of

the str i pp i ng col umn , t he c i r cu l at i on r ate , and the ef f i c i ency of t he

met a l concen trat i on equ i pmen t are the key oper at i ng par ameter s .
The equ i l i br i um l oad i ng of carbon for a pa r t i cu l ar l each sol u t i on may
exceed 750 ou nces per ton of carbon ( oz/ ton ) ; however , the oper at i ng l oad i
ng l evel i s much l ower . An oper at i ng carbon l oad i ng l evel of 150 to 200
oz / ton prec i ou s met a 1 can be ach i eved u nder nor ma 1 go 1d 1each i ng cond i t i
on s wit h 1each so1u t i on concentr at i ons above 1 ppm. The carbon may a l so cont
a i n other cyan i de-meta l comp l exes such as copper , mercu ry , and z i nc . To
str i p the carbon , a hot sol u t i on i s c i rcu l ated th rou gh t he carbon .
Many str i pp i ng sol u t i on compos i t i ons are poss i b l e . Th e USBM or i g i n
all y str i pped carbon w i th a sol u t ion of 1 percen t cau st i c , NaOH , p l us 0 .1
percent sod i um cyan i de near the bo i l i ng po i nt of water . Two to three days of str
i pp i ng were req u i red . The sol u t i on compos i t i on sel ect i on i s b ased upon
saf ety , ease of operat i on , cap i t a l cost , and oper at i ng cost compar i son . E ach
sol u t i on mus t oper ate at a pa rt i cu l ar temper atu re and f or a p art i cu l ar t
ime to ob t a i n an ef f i c i ent

str i p

of

the

act i v ated

ch arcoa l . Tab l e

11.1 i l l ust r ates sever a l d i f f erent sol u t i ons w i th t he i r req u i red

imes

and

temper atu res .

Oth er sol u t i ons wit h v ary i ng q uan t i t i es of organ

i cs have been used i n South Af r i ca and Au stra l i a .

TABLE 11.1
Soluti on Strip
Compositi on

STRIPPI NG SOLUTIONS
Time
Hrs

Temgerature

1 % NaOH
0.1% NaCN
1 % NaOH
0.5% Ethanol
1 % NaOH
0.1% NaCN
20 % Ethanol

88

52

120

85

24

77

24

The flow rate of the sol uti on must be suffici ent to provi de good
contact

wi th the carbon. Two bed vol umes of strip sol uti on per hour

i s often selected

to obtai n a compromi se between sweep effici ency and

sol uti on grade . Fl ow rates

of l ess than 0.5 bed vol umes per hour may

resul t i n dead spots i n the col umn whi le sol uti on flow rates i n
excess of six bed vol umes wi l l often generate l ow

grade soluti on.

These parameter may differ if the geometry of the stri p col umns d iffer
greatly from a l ength to di ameter ratio of four.
11.2 .2

Metal Concentrati on

Sol uti ons may be either el ectrowon or preci pitated with zinc to
reduce the preci ous metal content pri or to recycl e back to the el
uti on col umns.

El ectrowi nni ng is the conventi onal method. Zinc

preci pi tati on is used

extensi vely di rectly on l each sol uti on;

recently zinc was used to preci pi tate

gol d from a carbon stri p

sol uti on. Several adv antages for the use of ZIP over
-8-

electrowi nni ng

are cl aimed. These i ncl ude : 1) reduced capi tal i nvestment; 2)

more

effi cient removal of preci ous metal from soluti on; and 3) l ower operati ng
costs .

-9-

11.2.2 .1

E l ectrow i n n i ng

E l ectrow i n n i n g removes the prec i ous met a l s from the str i p sol u t i on
by the passage of cu rrent th rough an el ectrow i nn i ng ce l l . The cathode , the
anode, and an el ectro l yte are p l aced i n a corros i on res i stance

con t a i ner .

These componen ts are k nown as the el ectrow i n n i ng cel l . A d i rect cur ren t
power su pp l y i s con nec ted to

the anode and

cathod e . As

current

p asses

through the ce 11 , met al i s deposi ted upon the cathode . The cel l compartment i
s of a f l ow-th roug h des i gn , e i ther
from the

l i near or rad i a l . As met a l i s removed

el ectrol yte , f resh str i p sol u t i on added to the cel l rep l aces t he

dep l eted sol u t i on throu gh the c i rcu l at i on pat hs prov i ded .

The cathode i s made of an extended su rf ace area cond uctor . The ext en ded
surf ace i s req u i red to mi n im i ze the cur rent dens i ty ( tot al cu r ren t to tot a l
cathode su rf ace area r at i o) . Th i s a i ds i n the tr an sf er of met a l to the surf
ace of the cathode. As t he concen tr at i on of the met al s dec reases , the eff i c
i ency of the cel l dec reases . Th i s i s demonst r ated by the f ormat i on of
hyd rogen at the cath ode at h i gh cu rrent dens i t i es . The cathod e can be of v ar
i ous des i gns . The majar req u i rement s i nc l ude : 1) h i gh su rf ace area ; 2 ) l arge
open area for depos i t i on of meta l s and fl ow of el ectro l yte ; 3) h i gh cond uct
i v ity; and 4 ) good mechan i ca l strength . A typ i cal

ce ll u ses a p l ast i c

frame w i th a steel woo l p ack i ng w i th a th i ck ness of two to f ou r i nches .

The cross-sec t i on al area of the frame i s determi ned by the so1u t i on f1ow th
roug h the e l ectrow i n n i ng ce l l . I n a rect angu l ar cel l w ith l i near f l ow , t
he cathodes are su spe nd ed down the ax i s of the cell altern atel y wi t h
anodes . I n the or i g i n a l Z adr a ce ll wi th r ad i al fl ow , steel wool was l
oose l y wr apped arou nd a st a i n l ess steel spool wi th the anode p l aced concen
tr i cal l y around the cathod e . Cer t a i n ce l l s may u se a f l u i d i zed or a packed
bed of p art i c l es as the cathode .

The anode must al so be a cond uct i ve surf ace , typ i cally fl at or curved
met al . The surf ace may be perf or ated p l ate , sheet , or screen ; a l thou gh i t
may a 1so be an extended su rf ace cond uc tor si mi l ar to the cathode . The anode
must be cor ros ion res i stant u nder h i gh ly ox i d i z i ng con d iti on i n con t act
w i t h the el ectrol yte . Sta i n l ess steel i s the typ i ca l mater i a l of con str uc t i on
, a l thoug h

carbon or t i t an i um may a l so be used . I n cert a i n cell s , the

wa ll s of the cell or the cont a i ner may serve as the anode . I n a rec t an gu l ar
cell , the an ode, a perf or ated
the

ax i s

of

t he

p l ate

or

gr i d

mesh ,

is

suspended

down

cel l a l ter n ately wi t h the cathodes. Power i s tr an smi t t ed

to the el ect rodes by bu ss ba rs on each si de of the cel l. I n the Zad ra cell ,

the anode i s a cyl i nd r i cal sta i n l ess steel screen p l aced concen tr i ca l l y ou ts
i de the cathode . I n f l u i d i zed bed s , t he anode i s of ten the exter n al wa l l s
of the cel l .
The el ectrol yte , at a su it ab l e temper atu re , ent ers the el ectrow i n n i
ng cel l at a rel at i vel y h i gh concent r at i on of p rec i ous met al . The str i p sol
u t i on may be e ircu 1ated through a si ng 1e ce 11 or a ser i es of ce 11s . The
copper , mercu ry , si l v er , and gol d con tent of the sol u t i on i s depos i ted u
pon the cathode as met al s as the sol u t ion f l ows th roug h the ce l l . The sol ut
i on enter s at a concen tr at i on v aryi ng f rom 2 ,000 ppm to 50 ppm i n p rec i ous
met a l s . As the p rec i ous met a l i s str i pped f rom the carbon , the gr ade of sol
ut i on dec reases .

Once the carbon i s str i pped to a res i du al gol d l evel of

approx i mate ly f i ve oz / ton , the carbon i s cons i dered fu lly str i pped . The l
ower the concentr at i on of met al i n the el ect ro lyte , t he more d if f i cu l t
met al remov a l becomes . The el ectro lyte temper atu re i s not cr it i cal

as l

ong as the sol u t i on i s coo l ed be l ow the bo il i ng po i nt p r i or to pass i ng

throug h the el ectr ow i n n i ng ce ll . Where p l ast i cs are used , the sol ut i on may
req u i r e f u rt her coo l i ng to 60 C .

-11-

The operati on of the cell depends upan the circul ati on rate, the
cell voltage, and the sol uti on conducti vi ty. The vel oci ty of the
sol uti on i n the

cel l determi nes the metal transfer characteri

stics of the cel l. Hi gher

circul ati on rates withi n the cell

i ncreases mass transfer and gi ves better

metal deposi ts upon the

cathode surface . The conducti vity of the el ectrol yte,

the di stance

between the anode and the cathode, and the current densi ty

determi ne

the cel l vol tage.

The power requi red for el ectrowi nni ng is determi ned by the cel
l vol tage

and current . Approxi mately 2.5 vol ts are appl i ed

between the anode and cathode of a ce11. Current eff i ci ency wil 1
approach 100 percent at 2,000 ppm of go1d and O percent at 1 ppm of gol d.
The power requi rements are l ow; however, the

capital cost of the cell

s and the power supply can often be si gnifi cant. El ectrowi nni ng
operati ng costs are mai nly operati ng l abor. The el ectrodes must

be

supported wi th conducti ve contact to the el ectrowi nni ng power supply.

When suffi cient metal has been deposi ted upon the cathode, the
cathode,

a rnass of steel wool and sludge, i s removed from the cell.

The cathode i s ri nsed and dri ed for further treatment . The sludge
from the bottom of the

cel l s i s al so period i cal ly removed for

treatment to recover the preci ous metal.

11.2.2.2 Zi nc Preci pi tati on
The strip sol uti on can al so be treated wi th powdered zinc to
preci pi tate

the preci ous metal s. The metal s of other cyani de-

metal s may al so be preci pi tated. These i ncl ude copper and mercury
. The preci pitati on i s simil ar to the ZIP process for hand l i ng
the l each l iquor. Dependi ng upon the vol ume of so1 ution to be

treated, the process may be done i n a cont i nuous or batch manner. The
sol uti on grade is much hi gher than l each sol uti on and the

ef f i c i ency of met a l remov al can be very h i gh . The l ow prec i ous met a l

con ten t of the recyc l e str i p sol u t i on can a id i n t he str i pp i ng r ate .

11.2.3

C ar bon H and l i ng
Three other car bon hand l i ng oper at i ons are

al so

present

in

most

stri pp i ng c i rcu i ts - cl ean i ng , regener at i on , and si z i ng . The object ive

of these opera t i ons i s to prep are the carbon f or f u rt her use . The carbon req
u i res a h i gh surf ace area , good mech an i cal strength , and a pa re si ze d i str
ibut i on wh ich promotes the k inet ics of adsor pt i on of the cy an i de-met a l comp l
exes . The carbon i s si zed to prevent l osses u nder oper at i ng cond i t i ons .
Two typ i cal carbon si zes for ad sorpt i on col umns are 6 mesh by 12 mesh
and 12 mesh by 30 mesh . The sma 11er the si ze , the ch eaper t he carbon and
the f aster the adsor pt i on rate . Smal l si ze al so resu l ts i n l arger car bon
usages and l osses.
Dur i ng car bon cl ean i ng , mud and mi ner al depos i ts are removed f rom the
carbon . The carbon may be c l eaned

either

bef are or af t er the

str i pp i ng

oper at i on . The mud and mi ner a l depos i ts are removed by f i rst r i ns i ng w i t

h water to remove cy an i de and then treat i ng w ith hot ac i d sol u t i on (1 to 3
percen t hyd roch l or i c or n i tr i c ac i ds sol u t i ons ) . The ac i d treatmen t may
be cond ucted at el ev ated ternper atu res up to 190 F . Th i s i s a d angerous oper at
i on and must be perf orrned under

str i ct con t ro l s wi th tr a i ned oper ator s

. The mi ner al depos i ts are of ten calc i urn cornpou nds - calci urn carbo n ate or
calc i urn su l f ate. The ac i d must be cornp at ab l e w i th the d i sso l ut i on of these
deposit s . Hyd roch l or i c ac i d or n itr i c ac i d are cornrnon choi ces . Org an i c ac i d
s shou l d be avoi ded due to the i r ef f ect upan the car bon act i v i ty . Hyd roch l
or i c ac i d i s very cor rosi ve and w i l l req u i re g l ass , p l ast i c , or f i berg l ass
const r u ct i on .

After the carbon has been stripped of metal s and cl eaned of mi

neral deposi ts, the carbon can be reacti vated i n a k i l n at 600-800
C for 15 to 20 mi nutes under
atmosphere contai ni ng water

a neutral

or sl i ghtly oxid i zing

vapor to restore the acti ve sites. Hi gh

carbon l osses may occur i n the k il n.

The heat requi rements are hi gh.

The capi tal i nvestment i s al so hi gh. Both

conventi onal horizontal

furnaces and verti cal furnaces can be used. The carbon exiti ng at the
operati ng temperature of the furnace must be cool ed to prevent oxidizi
ng. The carbon can be q uenched or sl owly cool ed in an i nert atmosphere
.

To red uce the heat duty of the furnace, the carbon shoul d be dri ed

to reduce the water content.

11.2.4

Heati ng Egui pment

The stri p circuit cycl es from a cold circuit wi th col d carbon to

a hot

operati ng circui t. The heati ng equi pment, a boi ler or el ectri cal

heater, heats
sol uti on

the strip sol uti on to operati ng temperature . The hot

heats

the

circui t

components

temperature of the stri p col umn. The

and

rnai

ntai

ns

the

stri p col umn must be i nsul ated

to prevent excessi ve losses of heat. Once the

circuit is hot, a

series of heat exchangers transfer heat to cool the stri p solution

leaving the col umn and heat the strip soluti on enteri ng the col umn.
Heat l osses are hi gh wi th frequent cycl es.
Package hot water or steam boil ers are commonly used to provi de
the energy necessary for heati ng the strip sol uti on. A heat exchanger
transfers heat from the steam of hot water to the strip sol uti on. The
maxi mum duty of

the boi l er can be cal cul ated from start-up

condi ti ons. The duty i s the total

of the heat requi rements far

start-up and the system heat l osses. The equipment, the carbon, and
-15-

the sol uti on must be heated to operati ng temperature from ambi ent
temperature from the mass of the components, the heat

-16-

capac i ty of the components, the temperature i ncrease requ i red, and the
time

al l owed

for attai ni ng

temperature . The energy

operati ng
requi rements

are

calcul ated and then di vi ded by the time al l otted. Heat l osses from
the system

must al so be i ncl uded in the duty. Losses i ncl ude

convecti on and radi ati on from the strip col umn, the pi pi ng, the
heat exchangers, the boi l er piping, and the metal concentrati on
equipment . These heat l osses can be calcul ated based upon the operati
ng temperature of the equi pment and the overal l heat transfer coeffici
ent from the i nsi de of the equi pment to the surroundi ng envi ronment .
The duty is then the sum of the heat-up duty and the heat loss duty.
11.3 SMELTING
Smelti ng the prod ucts from ei ther the Merril l -Crowe operati on
or the el ectrowi nni ng operati on i s the final step i n the producti
on of dore. The fl ux

and equi pment selecti on may si gnifi cantly

affect the efficiency of this

operati on. The sl udge can contai n

signifi cant quanti ties of preci ous metal.

The sl udge, which is to be

smelted, contai ns the preci ous metal s wi th vari ous contami nants .
These contami nants are copper, l ead, mercury, cadmi um, and other metal s.
The sl udge wi l l al so contai n si l ica, gypsum, calcite, and other
components of the heap.
11.3.1

Merri l l -Crowe Preci pi tates

Zinc preci pi tates are produced by the Merri l l -Crowe process for
preci ous metal recovery . The zinc preci pi tates contai n up to 75
percent preci ous metal. Two methods of refi ni ng of these preci pi

tates are possi bl e. The pri nci pal method of treatment i s the
smel ti ng of fluxed preci pi tates ei ther di rectly or

after aci d

treatment. The second i s through the use of chemical refi ni ng

methods

to produce a high-purity gol d wi thout usi ng pyrometal l urgi cal methods.

Prec i ou s met al i s concent r ated

from the

heap

l each

sol u t i on by

cement at i on u si ng z i nc p rec i p i t at i on . These prec i p it ates cont a i n all

met a l s p resen t i n the l each sol ut i on

that

are

above

z i nc

i n the

el

ectromot i ve chem i cal ser i es . These i nc l ude copper , l ead , mer cu ry, cadmi um ,
gol d , and sil ver . The prec i p i t ates a l so cont a i n any excess z inc or f il ter
a i d added to the p rocess to ai d i n recovery
p i t ates

f i rst prod uced

upon

start -up wi l l

of the

prec i p i t ates . P rec i

be much

l ower

gr ade th an

those even tu a l l y p rod uced . G r ades as l ow as 1,500 oz of prec i ous met al per
ton of prec i p i t ates are poss i b l e du r i ng start -up . As the oper ator s gain
exper i ence , prec i p itates g r ades shou l d av erage 6,000 oz / ton where f i l
ter ai d i s add ed to p r omote f i l tr at i on and 12,000 to 20,000 oz / ton
where

no f i l ter

Con ver t i ng
more

aid

i s ad ded .

th i s mater i al

to

ref i ned

prec i ou s met al

g i ves

the

oper ator

cont ra 1 over the cost s , i nven tory , and cu stomer . The costs i ne 1ude red
uced sal es p r i ces , l oss of i n terest wh ile await i ng

assay resu lts, assay

charges , cost s of pack i ng , tran sport at ion , and i nsu r ance , and the ref i ner '
s f ees and prof its .

11.3.1.1 P retreatmen t
The prec i p itates may be treated to remove the b ase met a l s and res i du
a l z i nc . The p rec i p i t ates are f i r st washed to remove the res i d al cyan i
de con ten t . The prec i p it ates are then mi xed wi th su l f u r i c ac i d wh il e
aerea ted . Th i s d i ssol ves the excess z i nc and t he other b ase met al s such
as copg_er and
cadm...i.,u
m.

Lead and mer cury wi ll tend

prec i p it ates

are

washed

aga i n

and

to rema i n w ith the prec i p it ates . The

dr i ed .

If

the

prec i p i t ates

cont

a i n s i gn i f i cant mer cu ry , the dr i ed prec i p itates may be retor t ed i n a merc

u ry retort at 400 C f or sever al hou rs to d r i ve of f the mer cu ry into a

water coo 1ed conden ser . The mer cury i s co 11ected u nder water to prev ent the
escape
of mer cu ry v apor . The prec i p i t ates are then ready f or sme l t i ng .

-309-

11.3.1.2

F l u x Se l ect i on

The z i nc prec i p i tates are dr i ed pr i or to mi x i ng wit h the f l u xes .

The f l u xes

are

cal cu l ated

based

upon

the

an l ays i s

of

the

prec i p i t

ates . The f ol l ow i ng must be analyzed : mo i stu re , si l i ca , z i nc , si l v er , and

gol d . The f l u x rnu st ox i d i ze the rnet all i c z i nc and oth er b ase rnet a l s and
f orm a boros il i cate g l ass sl ag . The n i ter req u i remen t i s based upan the z i nc
con ten t . The sl ag i s next bal anced between ac i d cont ent and base con tent . The
ac i d con ten t i s b ased upon the sil i ca conten t wh il e the base cont ent i s
based upon the z i nc , b ase met al , and n i ter con tent . The b a l ance i s made
by the add it i on of suf f i c i ent si l i ca . The bor ax i s add ed to make a
boros il i cate g l ass of bot h the sil i ca p resent
the

sil i ca

added . Fe l dsp ar

i s added

as

i n the p rec i p i t ates

and

a v i scosi ty mod i f i er ( approx

imatel y 3% of the ch arge ) .

11.3.1.3

F urn ance Oper at i on

The f u rn ace i s oper ated i n a cont i n u ou s mode . Once hot , the f u rn

ace mel ts p rec i p i t ates f or sev er al hou rs . The prec i p i t ates and th e f l u x es
are we l l mi xed i n batches wh i ch are grad u a lly f ed to the f u rn ace . The f u rn
ace , e i ther gas f i red ar i nd uc t i on , i s f i ll ed w i th the mi xt u re and heated
to oper at i ng temper atu re - approx imate l y 1,150 C . As the f i rst ch arge mel t s ,
ad d it i on a l mater i al i s added to the f u r nace and me l t ed u nt i l the f u r n ace
i s f u l l . Approx i matel y h a l f of the f u rn ace i s empt i ed of sl ag and the f i l l -up
cyc l e i s repeated . Th i s cont i n ues u n t il
of prec i ou s met al ,

a ll

of

the

the furn ace i s e i th er 1/3 f u ll

prec i p i t ates

h av e been

melted , or

the

furn ace i s to be
shu t down . The s 1ag above the dore i s pou red and a bo ttom pou r i s th en mad
e
wh i ch cant a i ns the bottom h a l f of the rema i n i ng s 1ag and the dore . W i th
each sl ag pou r , the bottom of the sl ag mu st be checked f ar a dore b u tton to

assu re th at the met al

i s not poured from the f u rn ace . If the sl ag i s very

v i scou s ,
-310-

the composi tion of the mi xture or temperature of the furnace must be

adjusted to reduce the viscosity . A low viscosi ty i s requi red to
prevent metal l osses to the sl ag. The sl ag may be saved for further
processi ng.
El ectrowi nni ng Cathodes and Sludge

11.3.2

Steel wool cathodes from el ectrowi nni ng are the prod uct of the
carbon adsorpti on/el ectrowi nni ng operati on. The preci ous metal
-beari ng steel wool

cathodes and the sludge from the bottom of the

el ectrowi nni ng cel l s contai n up

to 50 percent preci ous metal. Two

methods of refi ni ng these preci pitates are al so possi bl e as wi th

preci pi tates from zinc preci pi tati on. The pri nci pal

method of

treatment i s al so di rect smel ting; however, the fl uxi ng requi rements

are greatly d ifferent. The steel wool cathodes may al so be aci d
treated pri or to smelti ng. The al ternati ve is agai n the use of chemi
cal refi ni ng to prod uce

a high-puri ty gol d.

As previ ously ind icated, the di ssol ved preci ous metal is
transferred from the heap l each soluti on to the steel wool cathodes.
These cathodes

contai n up to 100 oz of gol d per l b of steel wool.

Converti ng thi s materi al to refi ned gol d wi l l reduce the operati ng

costs but wi l l i ncrease capital

i nvestment . A smal l furnace is

requi red. The preci ous metal content i s transferred i nto a dore .The
dore can be sold or further refi ned.
11.3.2.1

Pretreatment

The pretreatment of steel wool cathodes and el ectrowi nni ng sl udge

i s

simil ar to the treatment of the zinc preci pitates . The cathodes

are treated wi th sulfuric acid to rernove the base metal s and the resi
dual i ron. Th i s d i sso 1ves the excess i ron and the other base meta 1s

such as copper. Lead and

mercury wi l l remai n. The resi due is washed

and dried. If the resi due contai ns

-311 -

si gnifi cant mercury, the dri ed preci pi tates may be retorted. The preci
pi tates are then ready for smel ti ng.

11.3.2.2

Flux Sel ecti on

The dri ed cathode and sl udge resi due or the pretreated resi due are
rni xed

wi th the proper fluxes and smelted. The fluxes are cal cul ated

based upon the

analysi s of the preci pi tate. The fol l owi ng must be

analyzed: moi sture, si l i ca,

i ron, silver, and gold. The addi tion of

the oxi dizer, ni ter, is based upon the

base metal content. Si l i ca i s

added to bal ance the aci d-base content of the sl ag. Sodi um borate i s al
so added to form a borosi l i cate gl ass sl ag. Fel dspar

is added as a

viscosi ty mod ifi er. The charge is wel l mi xed.

11.3.2.3

Furnace Operati on

Furnace operati on wi th cathode materi al is simil ar to that with

zinc preci pi tates. The majar difference i s the yi el d of preci ous metal
i s hi gher due to the higher grade preci pitates . The furnace i s fi ll
ed with the mi xture and heated to operati ng temperature. As the charge
mel ts, addi tional materi al is added to the furnace and melted until
the furnace i s full. If the feed materi al grade is hi gh, the furnace wi
ll contai n suffici ent dore for a pour.

Low-grade feed wi 11 require

several sl ag pours to accumul ate suffi cient metal

The sl ag may be saved for further processi ng.

for a pour of dore.

-31 2-