MEPS 531

INDUSTRIAL
PROCESSES
COPPER
INTRODUCTION/
HISTORY
Copper is a chemical element in the
periodic table that has the symbol Cu (
Latin: cuprum) and atomic number 29.
It is a ductile metal with excellent
electrical conductivity, and finds
extensive use as an electrical
conductor, heat conductor, as a
building material, and as a component
of various alloys.
Copper is an essential nutrient to all high
plants and animals. In animals,
including humans, it is found primarily
in the bloodstream, as a co-factor in
Copper has played a significant part in
the history of mankind, which has used
the easily accessible uncompounded
metal for nearly 10,000 years.
Civilizations in places like Iraq, China,
Egypt, Greece and the Sumerian cities
all have early evidence of using
copper. During the Roman Empire,
copper was principally mined on
Cyprus, hence the origin of the name of
the metal as Cyprium, "metal of
Cyprus", later shortened to Cuprum. A
number of countries, such as Chile and
Nevertheless, the price of copper rose
rapidly, increasing 500% from a 60-year
low in 1999, largely due to increased
demand. This metal has come into the
limelight on account of high volatility in
prices. According to New Scientist (May
26, 2007) the earth has an estimated 61
years supply of copper left.
Copper is a reddish-colored metal, with a
high electrical and thermal conductivity (
silver is the only pure metal to have a
higher electrical conductivity at room
temperature). In oxidation copper is
mildly basic. Copper has its characteristic
color because it reflects red and orange
Copper occupies the same family of the
periodic table as silver and gold, since
they each have one s-orbital electron on
top of a filled electron shell. This
similarity in electron structure makes
them similar in many characteristics. All
have very high thermal and electrical
conductivity, and all are malleable
metals.
In its liquified state, a pure copper surface
without ambient light appears
somewhat greenish, another
characteristic shared with gold. Silver
Due to its high surface tension, the liquid
metal does not wet surfaces but instead
forms spherical droplets when poured on
a surface.
Copper is insoluble in water (H2O) as well
as in isopropanol.
There are two stable isotopes, 63Cu and
65Cu, along with a couple dozen
radioisotopes. The vast majority of
radioisotopes have half lives on the order
of minutes or less; the longest lived,
67Cu, has a half life of 61.8 hours.
Numerous copper alloys exist, many with
Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc. Monel
metal, also called cupronickel, is an alloy
of copper and nickel. While the metal
"bronze" usually refers to copper-tin
alloys, it also is a generic term for any
alloy of copper, such as aluminium
bronze, silicon bronze, and manganese
bronze.
Copper is germicidal, via the oligodynamic
effect. For example, brass doorknobs
disinfect themselves of many bacteria
within eight hours. This effect is useful in
many applications.
The purity of copper is expressed as 4N for
99.99% pure or 7N for 99.99999% pure.
Copper, as native copper, is one of the few
metals to naturally occur as an
uncompounded mineral. Copper was
known to some of the oldest civilizations
on record, and has a history of use that is
at least 10,000 years old. A copper
pendant was found in what is now
northern Iraq that dates to 8700 BCE. By
5000 BCE, there are signs of copper
smelting, the refining of copper from
simple copper compounds such as
malachite or azurite. Among
archaeological sites in Anatolia, Çatal
Höyük (~6000 BCE) features native
copper artifacts and smelted lead beads,
Copper smelting appears to have been
developed independently in several
parts of the world. In addition to its
development in Anatolia by 5000 BCE,
it was developed in China before 2800
BCE, in the Andes around 2000 BCE, in
Central America around 600 AD, and in
West Africa around 900 AD. Copper is
found extensively in the
Indus Valley Civilization by the 3rd
millennium BC. In Europe, Ötzi
the Iceman, a well-preserved male
dated to 3200 BC, was found with a
There are copper and bronze artifacts
from Sumerian cities that date to
3000 BC, and Egyptian artifacts of
copper and copper-tin alloys nearly
as old. In one pyramid, a copper
plumbing system was found that is
5000 years old. The Egyptians found
that adding a small amount of tin
made the metal easier to cast, so
bronze alloys were found in Egypt
almost as soon as copper was found.
In the Americas production in the
The use of bronze became so pervasive
in a certain era of civilization that it has
been named the Bronze Age. The
transitional period in certain regions
between the preceding Neolithic period
and the Bronze Age is termed the
Chalcolithic ("copper-stone"), with
some high-purity copper tools being
used alongside stone tools. Brass was
known to the Greeks, but only became
a significant supplement to bronze
during the Roman empire. In Greek the
metal was known by the name chalkos.
In Roman times, it became known as aes
Cyprium (aes being the generic Latin
term for copper alloys such as bronze
and other metals, and Cyprium
because so much of it was mined in
Cyprus). From this, the phrase was
simplified to cuprum and then
eventually Anglicized into the English
copper. Copper was associated with
the goddess Aphrodite/Venus in
mythology and alchemy, owing to its
lustrous beauty, its ancient use in
producing mirrors, and its association
Mining for copper in the Philippines dates
back to the 14th century when crudely
smelted copper was traded by the
Chinese. Significant production did not
start until 1842 when the San Remegio
Copper Mines, Inc. opened the
Carawisan Mine in Antique. This was
followed by Mankayan Mine in Benguet
that was operated by the Contrabro-
Filipino Co. from 1864 to 1874.
The American took little interest in the
metal up until 1936 when the
Mankayan Mine was reopened. Soon in
1939, the Hixbar Mine in Rapu-Rapu
The years after the war saw a rapidly
emerging interest in copper and other
base metals, almost at the expense of
gold, which was plagued with
depressed prices and mine
rehabilitation problems. For its high-
grade copper ore, the Lepanto
Consolidated Mining Company
reopened Mankayan Mine in 1948. New
technologies were introduced for the
economic extraction of large low-grade
porphyry copper deposits. Thus, Atlas
Mine in Cebu started production in
By the 1960s, a full-blown copper boom
dominated the mining industry. The boom
was accompanied by extensive
exploration activities, which led to the
discovery and opening of new porphyry
copper mines such as Sto. Nino Mine in
1971 and Boneng-Lobo Mine in 1974. By
1974, 18 copper producing mines were in
operation.
The latter part of the 1970?s saw some of
the newly opened copper mines
struggling against high inflationary
trends, high cost of money, and marginal
ores. Ino-Capayang and the nearby
Mogpog Mine of Consolidated Mines Inc.
Despite these indications of trouble,
however, several new mines managed
to start operation. Basay Mine in Negros,
Dizon Mine in Zambales, Sabena and
North Davao Mines in Davao del Norte,
and Hercules Mine in Ilocos Norte
opened between 1979 and 1981.
During the early 1980?s the Philippines
had 20 primary and secondary copper
producers. However, due to the sluggish
economic and political condition in the
country, coupled with the outdated
mining laws and regulations, most
companies were forced to either scale
down or shutdown its mining operations.
 USES AND
ECONOMICS
Copper is malleable and ductile, a good
conductor of heat and, when very pure, a
good conductor of electricity.
It is used extensively, in products such as:
 Piping, including, but not limited to,
domestic water supply
 Electronics:

 Copper wire.

 Electromagnets.

 Printed circuit boards.

 Electrical machines, especially

electromagnetic motors, generators
 Electricalrelays, electrical busbars
and electrical switches.
 Vacuum tubes, cathode ray tubes,
and the magnetrons in
microwave ovens.
 Wave guides for microwave radiation.

 Integrated circuits, increasingly

replacing aluminium because of its
superior electrical conductivity.
 As a material in the manufacture of
computer heat sinks, as a result of its
superior heat dissipation capacity to
 Structural Engineering:
 Copper has been used as water-proof
roofing material since ancient times,
giving many old buildings their
greenish roofs and domes.
 Statuary: The Statue of Liberty, for
example, contains 179,220 pounds
(81.3 tonnes) of copper.
 Alloyed with nickel, e.g. cupronickel
and Monel, used as corrosive
resistant materials in shipbuilding.
 Watt's steam engine.
 Household Products:
 Copper plumbing fittings and
compression tubes.
 Doorknobs and other fixtures in
houses.
 Roofing, guttering, and rainspouts on
buildings.
 In cookware, such as frying pans.

 Most flatware (knives, forks, spoons)

contains some copper (nickel silver).
 Sterling silver, if it is to be used in
dinnerware, must contain a few
 Coinage:
 As a component of coins, often as
cupronickel alloy.
 Coins in the following countries all contain
copper: European Union (Euro), United
States, United Kingdom (sterling) and
Australia.
 Ironically, U.S. Nickels are 75.0% copper by
weight and only 25.0% nickel.
 Biomedical applications:
 As a biostatic surface in hospitals, and to
line parts of ships to protect against
barnacles and mussels, originally used
pure, but superseded by Muntz Metal.
Bacteria will not grow on a copper surface
 Copper(II) sulfate is used as a
fungicide and as algae control in
domestic lakes and ponds. It is used
in gardening powders and sprays to
kill mildew.
 Copper-62-PTSM, a complex
containing radioactive copper-62, is
used as a
Positron emission tomography
radiotracer for heart blood flow
measurements.
 Copper-64 can be used as a
 Chemical applications:
 Compounds, such as Fehling's solution,
have applications in chemistry.
 As a component in ceramic glazes, and
to color glass.
 Others:
 Musical instruments, especially
brass instruments and cymbals.
 Class D Fire Extinguisher, used in powder
form to extinguish lithium fires by
covering the burning metal and
performing similar to a heat sink.
 Textile fibers to create antimicrobial
PRODUCTION
STATISTICS
America is noted to have the richest
mineable copper deposit in the world
recorded at 7.68 million metric tons (MT),
which is more than 62% of the total mine
production for 1999. Leading producers
like Chile and U.S.A at 4.38 million MT
and 1.59 million MT, respectively were
also noted in the same region. Combined
mine production of Europe, Asia, Africa
and Oceana accounts for about 48% for
the same year which is minimal
compared to that of Americas annual
contribution. Mine production has been
growing annually at an average growth
This was followed by 1998 at 6.9%
growth, or 12.3 million MT. The highest
mine production was recorded in 1999
at 12.36 million MT.
In terms of world production of refined
copper by region, America ranks the
highest at 4.0 million metric tons or
44.9% of the world total for 1999. Chile
and U.S.A are the top producers from the
same region, contributing 2.7 million
metric tons and 2.1 million metrics tons,
respectively. Likewise, top producers
from Asia, such as Japan and China,
posted as much as 1.3 million metric tons
and 1.0 million metric tons, respectively.
Production of refined copper grew at an
annual average growth rate of 2.9% from
1990 to 1999. The highest growth periods
were noted in 1996 at 7.8% and in 1997
Consumption of refined copper grew at an
annual average growth rate of 2.8%
from 1990 to 1999. The highest annual
growth was noted in 1996 at 6.4% and
lowest in 1991 at a negative annual
growth of 0.9%. The major consumer of
refined copper in 1999 was noted in Asia
at 5.2 million metric tons, or 37.4% of
the world consumption. This was
followed by America at 4.2 million
metric tons, or 30.5% and Europe at
30.1%, or at 4.1 million metric tons. The
top four (4) countries comprising the
leading consumers of refined copper in
1999 were U.S.A. at 3.0 million metric
World copper prices for the past ten (10)
years from 1990 to 1999 were basically at a
declining trend. This was reversed in 1995
when world price posted a 24.6% increase
from 111.0 5c/lb in 1994 to 138.33 c/lb in
1995. The highest decline in world copper
price was noted between 1997 and 1998,
from 103.22 c/lb to 74.97 c/lb or a negative
growth of 27.4%. This negative trend was
due to the economic recession that hounded
most economies throughout the nineties.
The prolonged depressed state has played
havoc to the supply and demand pattern.
The gap in supply and demand occurred
during the period since there was an
Copper reserve was estimated at 4.79 million
metric tons in 1996. The biggest deposit was
found in Cordillera Autonomous Region that is
estimated at 1.83 million metric tons followed
by Region 7 at 1.15 million metric tons.
Production of copper decreased from
698.17 dry metric tons (DMT) in 1990 to
151.22 dry metric tons (DMT) in 1999.
The years 1992 and 1993 posted an
increase in volume from 491.75 dry
metric tons (DMT) to 526.22 dry metric
tons (DMT), or at a rate of 8.0%, due to
the increase in production of Marcopper
Mining Corporation?s San Antonio Project
and Maricalum Mining Corporation.
As of 1999, there were three (3)
remaining primary producers, namely:
Philex Mining Corp., Maricalum Mining
Corp. and Manila Mining Corp. Of the
three (3) producers, Philex Mining Corp. ?
The price of Philippine copper (metal) had been
fluctuating between a low of P44,793/DMT in
1993 to a high of P66,803/DMT in 1995. In
terms of year-to-year growth, the highest was
recorded between 1994 to1995 at an increase
of 27.99%. Likewise, a negative growth of
14.27% was noted between 1995 to 1996.
RAW MATERIAL
Any mineral from which copper is
extracted, including native copper, Cu;
chalcocite, Cu2S; chalcopyrite, CuFeS2;
bornite, Cu5FeS4; azurite,
Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2; malachite,
Cu2CO3(OH)2; and chrysocolla,
CuSiO3.2H2O. Native copper and the
copper sulphides are usually found in
veins associated with igneous intrusions.
Chrysocolla and the carbonates are
products of the weathering of copper-
bearing rocks. Copper was one of the
first metals to be worked, because it
occurred in native form and needed little
refining. Today the main producers are
 Copper ores may refer to:
 Bornite

 Chalcocite

 Cuprite

 Tennantite

 Tetrahedrite

 Malachite
Bornite is a sulfide mineral with chemical
composition Cu5FeS4 that crystallizes in the
orthorhombic system. It has a brown to copper-
red color on fresh surfaces that tarnishes to an
iridescent purple. Its purple to bronze
iridescence gives it the nickname peacock
copper or peacock ore.
Bornite is an important copper ore mineral
and occurs widely in porphyry copper
deposits along with the more common
chalcopyrite. Chalcopyrite and bornite are
both typically replaced by chalcocite and
covellite in the supergene enrichment
zone of copper deposits. Bornite is also
found as disseminations in mafic
igneous rocks, in contact metamorphic
skarn deposits, in pegmatites and in
sedimentary cupriferous shales. It is
important for its copper content of about
63 percent by mass and is found in
Arizona, Butte, Montana, and Mexico.
It has been reported since 1725, but in
Chalcocite, copper(I) sulfide (Cu2S), is an
important copper ore mineral. It is opaque,
being colored dark-gray to black with a metallic
luster. It has a hardness of 2½ - 3. It is a sulfide
with an orthorhombic crystal system.
Chalcocite is sometimes found as a primary vein
mineral in hydrothermal veins. However, most
chalcocite occurs in the supergene enriched
environment below the oxidation zone of
copper deposits as a result of the leaching of
copper from the oxidized minerals. It is also
often found in sedimentary rocks.
It has been mined for centuries and is one of the
most profitable copper ores. The reasons for
this is its high copper content (67% atomic ratio
and nearly 80% by weight) and the ease at
which copper can be separated from sulfur.
Still, it is not considered a primary source of
copper ore due to its scarcity. Fine crystals of
chalcocite are quite uncommon and are much
Since chalcocite is a secondary mineral
that forms from the alteration of other
minerals, it has been known to form
pseudomorphs of many different
minerals. A pseudomorph is a mineral
that has replaced another mineral atom
by atom, but it leaves the original
mineral's crystal shape intact. Chalcocite
has been known to form pseudomorphs of
the minerals bornite, covellite,
chalcopyrite, pyrite, enargite, millerite,
galena and sphalerite.
The term chalcocite comes from the
Cuprite is a mineral composed of copper(I) oxide
Cu2O, and is a minor ore of copper.
Its dark crystals with red internal reflections are
in the isometric system hexoctahedral class,
appearing as cubic, octahedral, or
dodecahedral forms, or in combinations.
Penetration twins frequently occur. In spite of
its nice color it is rarely used for jewelry
because of its low Mohs hardness of 3.5 to 4. It
has a relatively high specific gravity of 6.1,
imperfect cleavage and a brittle to conchoidal
fracture. The luster is sub-metallic to brilliant
adamantine. The "chalcotrichite" variety
typically shows greatly elongated capillary or
needle like crystals forms.
It is a secondary mineral which forms in the
oxidized zone of copper sulfide deposits. It
frequently occurs in association with
native copper, azurite, chrysocolla, malachite,
Tennantite is a copper arsenic sulfosalt
mineral. Its chemical formula is
Cu12As4S13. It is found in hydrothermal
veins and contact metamorphic deposits.
It is grey-black, steel-gray, iron-gray or
black in color. A closely related mineral,
tetrahedrite (Cu12Sb4S13) has
antimony substituting for arsenic and the
two form a solid solution series. The two
have very similar properties and is often
difficult to distinguish between tennantite
and tetrahedrite. Iron, zinc, and silver
substitute up to about 15% for the copper
site.
is a copper antimony sulfosalt mineral
with formula: . It is the antimony
endmember of the continuous
solid solution series with arsenic
bearing tennantite. Pure endmembers
of the series are seldom if ever seen in
nature. Of the two, the antimony rich
phase is more common. Other
elements also substitute in the
structure, most notably iron and zinc
along with less common silver, mercury
and lead. Bismuth also substitutes for
the antimony site and bismuthian
Tetrahedrite gets its name from the
distinctive tetrahedron shaped cubic
crystals. The mineral usually occurs
in massive form, it is a steel grey to
black metallic mineral with Mohs
hardness of 3.5 to 4 and
specific gravity of 4.6 to 5.2.
It occurs in low to moderate
temperature hydrothermal veins and
in some contact metamorphic
deposits. It is a minor ore of copper
and associated metals. It was first
Malachite is a carbonate mineral, copper(II
) carbonate hydroxide Cu2CO3(OH)2. It
crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system,
and most often forms botryoidal, fibrous, or
stalagmitic masses. Individual crystals are
rare, but do occur as slender to acicular
prisms. Pseudomorphs after more tabular or
blocky azurite crystals also occur. Malachite
often results from weathering of copper ores
and is often found together with azurite
(Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2), goethite, and calcite.
Except for the vibrant green colour, the
properties of malachite are very similar to
those of azurite and aggregates of the two
minerals together are frequently found,
The stone's name derives (via Latin and
French) from Greek molochitis, "mallow-
green stone", from molochē, variant of
malachē, "mallow". Malachite was used
as a mineral pigment in green paints
from antiquity until about 1800. The
pigment is moderately lightfast, very
sensitive to acids and varying in colour.
The natural form was being replaced by
its synthetic form, verditer amongst
other synthetic greens. It is also used for
decorative purposes, such as in the
Malachite Room in the Hermitage which
features a huge malachite vase. "The
Tazza", one of the largest pieces of
Large quantities of malachite have been
mined in the Urals. It is found in the
Democratic Republic of Congo; Tsumeb
, Namibia; Ural mountains, Russia;
Mexico; Broken Hill, New South Wales;
England; Lyon; and in the
Southwestern United States especially
in Arizona at Bisbee and Morenci.
In Israel, malachite is extensively mined
at Timna, often called
King Solomon's Mines. Archeological
evidence indicates that the mineral has
been mined and smelted at the site for
PROCESS DIAGRAM
 The process of extracting copper
from copper ore varies according to
the type of ore and the desired
purity of the final product. Each
process consists of several steps in
which unwanted materials are
physically or chemically removed,
and the concentration of copper is
progressively increased. Some of
these steps are conducted at the
mine site itself, while others may be
conducted at separate facilities.
Mining
 1 Most sulfide ores are taken from huge
open-pit mines by drilling and blasting
with explosives. In this type of mining,
the material located above the ore,
called the overburden, is first removed
to expose the buried ore deposit. This
produces an open pit that may grow to
be a mile or more across. A road to
allow access for equipment spirals down
the interior slopes of the pit.
 2 The exposed ore is scooped up by
large power shovels capable of loading
500-900 cubic feet (15-25 cubic meters)
Concentrating
 The copper ore usually contains a large
amount of dirt, clay, and a variety of
non-copper bearing minerals. The first
step is to remove some of this waste
material. This process is called
concentrating and is usually done by
the flotation method.
 3 The ore is crushed in a series of cone
crushers. A cone crusher consists of an
interior grinding cone that rotates on
an eccentric vertical axis inside a fixed
4 The crushed ore is then ground even
smaller by a series of mills. First, it is
mixed with water and placed in a rod
mill, which consists of a large
cylindrical container filled with
numerous short lengths of steel rod. As
the cylinder rotates on its horizontal
axis, the steel rods tumble and break
up the ore into pieces about 0.13 in (3
mm) in diameter. The mixture of ore
and water is further broken up in two
ball mills, which are like a rod mill
except steel balls are used instead of
5 The slurry is mixed with various
chemical reagents, which coat the
copper particles. A liquid, called a
frother, is also added. Pine oil or
long-chain alcohol are often used as
frothers. This mixture is pumped into
rectangular tanks, called flotation
cells, where air is injected into the
slurry through the bottom of the
tanks. The chemical reagents make
the copper particles cling to the
bubbles as they rise to the surface.
The bubbles are allowed to condense and the
water is drained off. The resulting mixture,
called a copper concentrate, contains about
25-35% copper along with various sulfides of
copper and iron, plus smaller concentrations
of gold, silver, and other materials. The
remaining materials in the tank are called
the gangue or tailings. They are pumped
into settling ponds and allowed to dry.
Smelting
 Once the waste materials have been
physically removed from the ore, the
remaining copper concentrate must undergo
several chemical reactions to remove the
iron and sulfur. This process is called
smelting and traditionally involves two
6 The copper concentrate is fed into a
furnace along with a silica material, called
a flux. Most copper smelters utilize oxygen-
enriched flash furnaces in which
preheated, oxygen-enriched air is forced
into the furnace to combust with fuel oil.
The copper concentrate and flux melt, and
collect in the bottom of the furnace. Much
of the iron in the concentrate chemically
combines with the flux to form a slag,
which is skimmed off the surface of the
molten material. Much of the sulfur in the
concentrate combines with the oxygen to
form sulfur dioxide, which is exhausted
It is a mixture of copper sulfides and iron
sulfides and contains about 60% copper by
weight.
7 The molten matte is drawn from the
furnace and poured into a second furnace
called a converter. Additional silica flux is
added and oxygen is blown through the
molten material. The chemical reactions in
the converter are similar to those in the
flash furnace. The silica flux reacts with the
remaining iron to form a slag, and the
oxygen reacts with the remaining sulfur to
form sulfur dioxide. The slag may be fed
back into the flash furnace to act as a flux,
and the sulfur dioxide is processed through
Refining
 Even though copper blister is 99% pure
copper, it still contains high enough levels of
sulfur, oxygen, and other impurities to
hamper further refining. To remove or adjust
the levels of these materials, the blister
copper is first fire refined before it is sent to
the final electrorefining process.
 8 The blister copper is heated in a refining
furnace, which is similar to a converter
described above. Air is blown into the molten
blister to oxidize some impurities. A sodium
carbonate flux may be added to remove
traces of arsenic and antimony. A sample of
the molten material is drawn and an
experienced operator determines when the
9 Each copper anode is placed in an individual
tank, or cell, made of polymer-concrete. There
may be as many as 1,250 tanks in operation at
one time. A sheet of copper is placed on the
opposite end of the tank to act as the cathode,
or negative terminal. The tanks are filled with
an acidic copper sulfate solution, which acts as
an electrical conductor between the anode and
cathode. When an electrical current is passed
through each tank, the copper is stripped off
the anode and is deposited on the cathode.
Most of the remaining impurities fall out of the
copper sulfate solution and form a slime at the
bottom of the tank. After about 9-15 days, the
current is turned off and the cathodes are
removed. The cathodes now weigh about 300 lb
(136 kg) and are 99.95-99.99% pure copper.
Casting
11 After refining, the copper cathodes are
melted and cast into ingots, cakes, billets, or
rods depending on the final application. Ingots
are rectangular or trapezoidal bricks, which
are remelted along with other metals to make
brass and bronze products. Cakes are
rectangular slabs about 8 in (20 cm) thick and
up to 28 ft (8.5 m) long. They are rolled to
make copper plate, strip, sheet, and foil
products. Billets are cylindrical logs about 8 in
(20 cm) in diameter and several feet (meters)
long. They are extruded or drawn to make
copper tubing and pipe. Rods have a round
cross-section about 0.5 in (1.3 cm) in
Leaching phase:  A leach pad or heap is
sprinkled with an aqueous acidic solution.  In
this schematic it is described as the acidified
liquor spray.  This comes from the raffinate
of the extraction stage(s).  The liquid passes
through the heap, dissolving minerals along
the way.  It is typically collected in a pond,
which is affectionately called the pregnant
leach solution or PLS.
In-situ leaching
 In-situ leaching is also called "solution
mining." The process initially involves
drilling of holes into the ore deposit.
Explosives or hydraulic fracturing are used
to create open pathways within the deposit
for solution to penetrate into. Leaching
Heap leaching
 In heap leaching processes, crushed (and
sometimes agglomerated) ore is piled in a
heap which is lined with an impervious layer.
Leach solution is sprayed over the top of the
heap, and allowed to percolate downward
through the heap. The heap design usually
incorporates collection sumps which allow
the "pregnant" leach solution (i.e. solution
with dissolved valuable metals) to be
pumped for further processing.
Dump leaching
 Dump leaching combines characteristics of
heap leaching and in-situ leaching. In a
dump leach, an impervious layer may or
may not be used depending on the dump
Vat leaching
 Vat leaching involves contacting material,
which has usually undergone size
reduction and classification, with leach
solution in large tanks or vats. Often the
vats are equipped with agitators to keep
the solids in suspension in the vats and
improve the solid to liquid contact. After
vat leaching, the leached solids and
pregnant solution are usually separated
prior to further processing.
Other leaching techniques
 In some cases, special leaching processes
are required due to refractory nature of
the material. These techniques include
After leaching, the leach liquor must
normally undergo concentration of the
metal ions that are to be recovered.
Additionally, some undesirable metals
may have also been taken into solution
during the leach process. The solution
is often purified to eliminate the
undesirable components. The
processes employed for solution
concentration and purification include:
 Precipitation

 Cementation
Solvent extraction
 A mixture of an extractant in a diluent is
used to extract a metal from one phase
to another. In solvent extraction this
mixture is often referred to as the
"organic" because the main constituent
(diluent) is some type of oil.
 The PLS (pregnant leach solution) is
mixed to emulsification with the stripped
organic and allowed to separate. The
metal will be exchanged from the PLS to
the organic. The resulting streams will be
a loaded organic and a raffinate. When
dealing with electrowinning, the loaded
organic is then mixed to emulsification
The resulting streams will be a stripped
organic and a rich electrolyte. The
organic stream is recycled through the
solvent extraction process while the
aqueous streams cycle through
leaching and electrowinning processes
respectively.
Ion exchange
 Chelating agents, natural zeolite,
activated carbon, resins, and liquid
organics impregnated with chelating
agents are all used to exchange
Metal recovery is the final step in a
hydrometallurgical process. Metals
suitable for sale as raw materials are
often directly produced in the metal
recovery step. Sometimes, however,
further refining is required if ultra-high
purity metals are to be produced. The
primary types of metal recovery
processes are electrolysis, gaseous
reduction, and precipitation.
Electrolysis
 Electrowinning and electrorefining
respectively involve the recovery and
Precipitation
 Precipitation in hydrometallurgy involves
the chemical precipitation of either
metals and their compounds or of the
contaminants from aqueous solutions.
Precipitation will proceed when, through
reagent addition, evaporation, pH change
or temperature manipulation, any given
species exceeds its limit of solubility. In
order to improve efficiency in
downstream processes, seeding to
initiate crystallization is often used.
Extraction phase:  Through gravity or
from the suction of the pumper mixer in
the Extract Stage, PLS is mixed in a
pump-box (mixer, pumper stage) with an
organic solution often referred to as the
barren organic (here called Regenerated
Extractant coming from the Strip Stage)
to form a liquid-liquid dispersion.  Mass
transfer occurs and ideally only the
desired mineral transfers selectively from
the aqueous phase to the organic phase. 
In this schematic, the mineral is copper.
In most SX plants, there is usually a pump-
box followed by one or more auxiliary
mixing tanks.  Their purpose is to
maintain the dispersion and give more
residence time for the extraction to take
place.  Then the dispersion is sent to a
settler, where the two phases disengage. 
The lighter fluid (organic) is removed
from the top, while the heavier fluid
(aqueous phase) is removed from the
bottom of the end of the settler.  The
aqueous is now called raffinate and is
returned to the heap or leach pad.  It
contains lots of dissolved minerals, but
very little of the desired mineral.  The
Stripping phase:  The loaded organic
extractant is mixed with the aqueous lean
electrolyte (hear strip solution) to form
another liquid-liquid dispersion.  Due to a shift
in pH, the desired mineral transfers back from
the organic phase to the aqueous phase. 
Once again, it is not unusual to find one
pump-box followed by one or more auxiliary
mixing tanks to achieve the desired residence
time and mass transfer efficiency.  The
dispersion is again sent to a settler so that the
two liquid phases can be separated again.  A
portion of the aqueous phase, called here the
Concentrated Copper Electrolyte, is pumped
to the Electrowinning house, while the rest is
recycled back to the Strip Stage Pure copper
(desired purity is called five-nines = 99.999%)
is deposited on plates, pulling the copper out
of solution.  This solution is called the lean
This method almost doubles the
throughput of copper, because E1P (or
E3(P)) replaces the former S2 allowing
essentially twice the copper to be
processed.  Although the single stage E1P
will not have the same transfer efficiency
as the dual stage E1-E2, the copper
remaining in the raffinate goes back to
the pad and will eventually come back to
the plant to be processed another day. 
Regardless of the SX circuit layout, each
stage is treated in the same way with
CFD.  The only difference is the density
(and other properties) and flow rates
through each stage.  E1 and S1 are often
POLLUTION AND
ABATEMENT
Byproducts/Waste
The recovery of sulfuric acid from the
copper smelting process not only
provides a profitable byproduct, but
also significantly reduces the air
pollution caused by the furnace
exhaust. Gold, silver, and other
precious metals are also important
byproducts.
Waste products include the overburden
from the mining operation, the tailings
from the concentrating operation, and the
slag from the smelting operation. This
waste may contain significant
concentrations of arsenic, lead, and other
chemicals, which pose a potential health
hazard to the surrounding area. In the
United States, the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) regulates the
storage of such wastes and the
remediation of the area once mining and
processing operations have ceased. The
sheer volume of the material involved—in
some cases, billions of tons of waste—