Gold Extraction from a Refractory Sulfide Concentrate by Simultaneous Pressure Leaching/Oxidation

Juan Carlos Soto-Uribe*, Jesus Leobardo Valenzuela-Garcia*, Maria Mercedes Salazar-Campoy, Jose Refugio Parga-Torres, Guillermo Tiburcio-Munive, Martin Antonio Encinas-Romero, Victor Manuel Vazquez-Vazquez

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

Most gold deposits occur associated with sulphides like pyrite and arsenopyrite; thus, precious metal dissolution is possible by oxidizing auriferous sulfide concentrate using simultaneous pressure oxidation and cyanidation. The effectiveness of this process of extraction can be influenced by the temperature, cyanide (NaCN) concentration, and oxygen pressure. In this study, we conducted experiments to characterize the effects on gold extraction of ores using a range of sodium cyanide concentrations (1–8 g/L), temperatures (40–75 °C), and oxygen pressures (0.5–1.1 MPa). Characterization of the ores showed that pyrite and quartz were the main minerals present in the concentrate. The best results in terms of the highest extraction of Au were obtained with an oxygen pressure of 0.5 MPa, 6 g/L sodium cyanide, and a temperature of 75 °C, along with a constant stirring speed of 600 rpm. These conditions allowed for approximately 95% gold extraction in 90 min.

Original languageEnglish
Article number116
JournalMinerals
Volume13
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2023

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 by the authors.

Keywords

  • cyanidation
  • gold-bearing
  • pressure leaching
  • pressure oxidation

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