Chalcopyrite Dissolution: Challenges

Chalcopyrite is the main source of copper in the world, amounting to nearly 70% of the copper reserves. Nonetheless, chalcopyrite is highly recalcitrant to chemical and biological processing for copper extraction. Concentration by flotation and Cu recovery by pyrometallurgical techniques are still t...

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Detalhes bibliográficos
Autores: Bevilaqua, Denise [UNESP], Toledo, Ailton Guilherme Rissoni [UNESP], Crocco, Laíze Guimarães [UNESP], Peres, Riberto Nunes [UNESP], da Costa, Rachel Biancalana [UNESP], Benedetti, Assis Vicente [UNESP], Tuovinen, Olli H.
Tipo de documento: capítulo de livro
Estado:Versão publicada
Data de publicação:2024
País:Brasil
Recursos:Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP)
Repositório:Repositório Institucional da UNESP
Idioma:inglês
OAI Identifier:oai:repositorio.unesp.br:11449/299368
Acesso em linha:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-43625-3_2
https://hdl.handle.net/11449/299368
Access Level:Acceso aberto
Palavra-chave:Chalcopyrite bioleaching
Electrochemical techniques
Galvanic interactions
Polarization
Redox potential control
Descrição
Resumo:Chalcopyrite is the main source of copper in the world, amounting to nearly 70% of the copper reserves. Nonetheless, chalcopyrite is highly recalcitrant to chemical and biological processing for copper extraction. Concentration by flotation and Cu recovery by pyrometallurgical techniques are still the main route for processing chalcopyrite concentrates, although they are unfeasible for copper extraction from low-grade ores that make up the most copper reserves. Acid bioleaching is a promising technique for extracting copper from low-grade copper ores, and the technology has been studied for decades, but there is still no commercial-scale bioleaching application for copper recovery from chalcopyrite concentrates. Bioleaching is practiced with low-grade chalcopyrite ores in heap leaching processes with ores of multiple sulfide minerals. Research in this area has probed electrochemical reactions, biological activities, and interactions with microbes and mineral surfaces to integrate operational models for chalcopyrite bioleaching. The purpose of this chapter is to review the evolution in the understanding of the chemical leaching and bioleaching of chalcopyrite in the last 20 years, and the progress achieved so far.