Abstract

MIHAJLOVIC, I; STRBAC, N; NIKOLIC, D  and  ZIVKOVIC, Z. Potential metallurgical treatment of copper concentrates with high arsenic contents. J. S. Afr. Inst. Min. Metall. [online]. 2011, vol.111, n.6, pp.409-416. ISSN 2411-9717.

SYNOPSIS This paper investigates a potential method for arsenic removal from copper concentrates using hypochlorite leaching. The problems concerning pyrometallurgical processing of copper concentrates with high arsenic contents are discussed. A possible solution to the problem by leaching of natural enargite crystals with sodium hypochlorite under alkaline oxidizing conditions, with enargite converted into crystalline CuO and the soluble arsenic forming AsO₄^3-, was experimentally investigated and results are presented. Kinetic parameters were calculated for enargite leaching, using a model-free approach. Advanced isoconversional methods were used to investigate the dependence of activation energy (E_a) on reaction rate (α).

Keywords : Enargite; copper concentrate; isoconversional method; kinetics; activation energy.

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