Process for Recovering Arsenic Compounds by Sodium Hydroxide Leaching

The invention lies in the field of hydrometallurgical recovery of metals, specifically arsenic.

A process for recovering arsenic is provided which may be used in conjunction with metal recovery processes from slags, flue-dust and the like containing arsenic, wherein the arsenic has been immobilized as an extremely insoluble ferric-arsenic compound and carried through various leach states.

The material containing the insoluble ferric-arsenic compound is leached with a hot sodium hydroxide solution in excess of stoichiometric amounts, the liquor evaporated to a high sodium hydroxide concentration, and a soluble arsenic salt crystallized therefrom.

The residue is then treated with ferric ions to fix any remaining arsenic as an insoluble ferric-arsenic compound suitable for disposal.

A paper, entitled "Hydrometallurgical Recovery or Removal of Arsenic From Copper Smelter By-products" by K. Togawa, Y. Umetsu and T. Nishimura, presented at the 107th A.I.M.E. annual meeting at Denver, Colorado on Feb. 27-Mar. 2, 1978, discusses the problems involved in recovering valuable metals from copper ore refining flue dust, as well as the removal of arsenic as insoluble arsenates and as arsenic sulfide from aqueous solutions, and the hydrometallurgical recovery of arsenic trioxide from arsenic sulfide. The paper does not disclose an integrated process for the successful recovery from the flue dust of metals uncontaminated with arsenic, or the recovery of arsenic as a saleable product, nor does it disclose the other advantages or objectives of the present process.

An earlier article entitled "Recovery of Metals from the Dusts of Flash Smelting Furnace" by Eikichi Mohri and Minoru Yamada presented at the World Mining and Metals Technology Proceedings of the Denver Joint MMIJ-AIME meeting in 1976 discloses a hydrometallurgical process for treating copper smelter dusts by leaching, precipitating some (but not all) copper with hydrogen sulfide, neutralizing to pH2 with calcium carbonate to prevent precipitation of iron arsenate during subsequent copper cementation with iron powder, and finally oxidizing the solution with blowing air to form a stable iron arsenate. This process does not overcome the necessity for handling arsenic in its dangerous soluble forms during metal recovery steps, as does the present invention, nor does it immobilize arsenic in an insoluble state early enough so that substantially complete copper recovery is possible (H.sub.2 S precipitation must be halted at 2-3 grams of copper per liter of solution to avoid precipitating arsenic with the copper in this process). Neither does it provide for the recovery of arsenic in saleable form as sodium arsenate. The present process overcomes these problems and allows for substantially complete recovery of copper, zinc, cadmium, lead, and other metals, as well as sodium arsenate.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,149,880 to Prater, et al., discloses a copper cementation process following an oxygen pressure leach of the ore wherein some arsenic is insolubilized and about 0.5 to 2.0 grams per liter arsenic remain in solution. In this process, no attempt is made to insolubilize essentially all the arsenic value as is done in the present process.

U.S. Pat. No. 2,686,114 to McGauley, et al., discloses the insolubilization of arsenic values in a high pressure, high temperature ore oxidation leach using air. Arsenic is precipitated with iron in the ore and with alkaline earth metals as arsenates of these metals. The advantages of total insolubilization of arsenic with ferric ions apparently are not known to these inventors.

In accordance with the objective of recovering the most valuable metal products first, and processing the arsenic with the least possibility of contamination of recovered products and danger to the environment and to workers handling the materials, copper smelter flue dust is first leached under oxygen pressure with acid, preferably hot sulfuric acid, containing ferric ions to recover one or more of the following: copper, zinc, cadmium, and germanium and to precipitate arsenic as an extremely insoluble ferric-arsenic compound. Next, the residue is leached with hot chloride solution to extract any one or more of the metal values lead, silver, gold, bismuth, and antimony, without solubilizing the arsenic. Finally, the residue is leached with a hot sodium hydroxide solution to recover arsenic as a saleable product, and the tails, after final arsenic fixation, are safely disposed to the environment. The sequential leaching process is summarized as follows:

The process is effective with a wide range of arsenic bearing materials including flue dusts containing in excess of 10% arsenic and less than 6% iron.

In the first leach of the preferred embodiment, copper, zinc, cadmium, and germanium are solubilized by a sulfuric acid leach, which also solubilizes the arsenic. To avoid carrying the arsenic over into the further processing of the liquor to redeem the metal values, the arsenic is oxidized under oxygen pressure and precipitated out as an extremely insoluble ferric-arsenic compound.

The preferred method for supplying the extra ferric ions when necessary for the stoichiometry of completely insolubilizing all the arsenic present is the addition of ferrous sulfate, preferably in excess of the amounts necessary for combination with all the arsenic. The leach system is maintained in an oxidizing mode. The excess ferric ion generated insures precipitation of virtually all of the arsenic.

Although ferric iron may be present in the system in the form of hematite, the solubility of hematite is not high enough to efficiently produce the required excess of ferric ions.

The metal values to be leached are solubilized within a very short time, but because the arsenic present in the flue dust is also extremely soluble, being 50% soluble in water alone, the materials in the system must be allowed to remain in contact for over an hour: depending on temperature and pressure as well as economic requirements, from 1 to 8 hours, and more preferably from 2 to 3 hours. This extended period of time allows for the formation of the insoluble ferric arsenic compound.

An oxidizing mode is maintained at approximately -400 to approximately -500 mv (saturated calomel/platinum electrodes) with oxygen at a pressure of approximately 25 to approximately 75 psi, and more preferably, about 45 to about 55 psi, in order to oxidize the ferrous ions to their ferric state, the arsenic to its pentavalent state, and the sulfides to their more soluble sulfates.

The reaction is conducted at a temperature of between about 90.degree. C. and about 130.degree. C., and more preferably between about 105.degree. C. and about 115.degree. C.

The pH is maintained from about 0.1 to about 1.5, preferably with sulfuric acid, to solubilize as much of the metal values as possible without dissolving the ferric-arsenic compound.

As an optional step, in order to increase the filtration rate of the leach slurry, gypsum may be generated as a filter aid in situ by partially neutralizing the slurry (from 100 to 50 g/l sulfuric acid) with calcium carbonate. This partial neutralization was shown to increase the filter rate in gpm/ft.sup.2 by a factor of approximately 10. This step should be omitted if later arsenic recovery from the residue is desired, as the excesss sulfate in the residue lowers arsenic recovery.

A liquid-solid separation is performed and the leach filtrate is then neutralized to pH approximately 2 to 4 by the gradual addition, with agitation, of calcium carbonate. During neutralization, the arsenic is precipitated to less than 100 parts per million, and preferably less than 10 parts per million. This arsenic appears in the gypsum cake formed during neutralization. The ferric-arsenic compound solubility product is nearly constant at this pH, and thus arsenic precipitation increases with increased ferric ion concentration in solution.

During neutralization, the temperature is permitted to reduce to between about 50.degree. C. and about 60.degree. C., to decrease arsenic solubility, and the materials are allowed to remain in contact for about 1/2 hour to allow time to aid the precipitation.

Copper, zinc, cadmium, and germanium are recovered from the filtrate by conventional methods, including electrowinning of the copper, with sulfuric acid produced in the copper cells being recycled to the sulfate pressure leach. Cadmium and germanium may be recovered by cementation with zinc, and zinc sulfate recovered by evaporation. Because the arsenic has been removed, the filtrate may also be recycled without metal recovery therefrom, to enrich the feed of conventional metallurgical recovery processes for copper and zinc.

Arsenic may be extracted from the residue by means of the sodium hydroxide leach process of this invention described below.

Alternatively, filtered and washed residue from the oxidizing acid leach is advanced to a chloride leach to solubilize lead, silver, gold, bismuth and antimony. A hot chloride solution with an oxidizing agent in the presence of ferric ions extracts the metal values while leaving the arsenic compound undissolved.

Calcium chloride extracts lead as its chloride, which is highly soluble in the chloride solution, from its insoluble sulfate, precipitating gypsum. The chloride solution will contain calcium chloride if extraction of lead is desired, and may also contain sodium chloride, hydrogen chloride, magnesium chloride, and barium chloride as the source of the chloride ions necessary to solubilize the desired metal values.

The oxidizing agent may be sodium chlorate, manganese dioxide, ozone, chlorine, hydrogen peroxide or others, and preferably is sodium chlorate or manganese dioxide.

The oxidizing agent (added in amounts required to adjust the emf to at least about -700 mv) solubilizes the gold while preventing re-leaching of the arsenic. If gold recovery is not desired, only slight oxidizing conditions need be maintained.

If there is insufficient lead in the oxidizing acid leach residue to merit recovery or lead recovery is otherwise not required, the chloride leach may be adjusted by reduction of the calcium chloride and the temperature in order that the lead sulfate will not be solubilized while silver, gold and bismuth values are leached. The chloride level must be sufficient so as to maintain the silver in solution.

The temperature of between about 80.degree. C. and about 105.degree. C., and preferably approximately 95.degree. C.-100.degree. C., and the pH, adjusted at between about 0.1 to 1.0 and preferably between about 0.4 and 0.6 with sulfuric acid, allow for maximum solubilization of the metal values with minimum arsenic extraction.

The leach materials are allowed to remain in contact for between about one-half and two hours and preferably about one hour to insure complete dissolution of the lead, in the presence of ferric ions in a concentration of about 3 g/l, added if necessary as FeCl.sub.3. These additional ferric ions, in the oxidizing conditions of the leach, insure that the ferric to ferrous ratio will be high enough to prevent formation of gold and prevent re-leaching of the ferric-arsenic compound.

A liquid-solid separation is performed, and the lead crystallized as high purity lead chloride, after which it may be reduced to elemental lead by pelletization with a carbonaceous material such as coke and an alkaline material such as limestone or calcium oxide at between about 800.degree. C. and about 1000.degree. C. producing a CaCl.sub.2 flux which may be recycled to regenerate the chloride leach and return chloride to the system. Silver, gold, bismuth, and antimony may be cemented out of the solution with elemental lead.

Alternatively, the arsenic-free filtrate may be used to enrich feed material for processing of lead ores.

Arsenic is recovered in saleable form from the brine leach residue or from other materials bearing insoluble arsenates in which the arsenic is present in its pentavalent form by leaching in a sodium hydroxide leach of heated, strong, basic solution to extract arsenic as sodium arsenate, according to the generalized reaction-

Excess sodium hydroxide is preferred. In addition to the stoichiometric amount required for the above reaction, an excess improves the performance of the circuit, and provides for better crystallization of the arsenate.

The sodium hydroxide leach is conducted for one-half to two hours, and preferably about one hour to insure maximum arsenate solubilization.

It is noteworthy that where the oxidizing acid leach slurry was partially neutralized with calcium carbonate prior to filtration, arsenic recovery during the caustic leach is somewhat reduced, and thus, when arsenic recovery is to be performed on the residue, calcium carbonate neutralization should be performed on the original leach liquor after it has been separated from the arsenic-containing residue so as not to add large quantities of gypsum to the residue.

The sodium hydroxide leach is performed at at least about 40.degree. C. in order to solubilize the arsenate. Upper temperature limits are determined by the needs of the crystallization step.

After a liquid-solid separation, a soluble arsenate of high purity is crystallized from the liquid by vacuum evaporation and cooling to approximately 25.degree. C., while stirring. The sodium hydroxide is preferably concentrated to from about 58-79 g/l NaOH to about 154-160 g/l NaOH. The crystals are then filtered, and dried.

Excess sodium hydroxide in the liquid insures that substantially all the arsenic will be crystallized when concentrated to about 154-160 g/l NaOH at room temperature. Further concentration is unnecessary and might result in contamination of the product with crystallized sodium hydroxide.

Due to the high solubility of an arsenate like sodium arsenate in water, the crystals are not washed, but are dried at approximately 80.degree. C.

The excess basic filtrate is recycled to the sodium hydroxide leach. The leach residue may be treated with additional ferric ions to fix the small amount of remaining arsenic and allow for safe disposal to the environment.

The following examples are descriptive, but not limiting of the invention.

1. Sulfate pressure leach:

Five-hundred (500) gram samples of copper smelter flue dust were leached in a 2-liter Parr autoclave having an impellor speed of 1550 rpm at 100.degree. C. under an oxygen pressure of 50 psig with an oxygen bleed of 300 cc per minute (except for Test 5 where no oxygen bleed was used). The dust contained 13.9% copper, 2.05% zinc, 9.51% arsenic and 5.60% iron. Test results are summarized in Table 1.

2. Neutralization:

The autoclave slurry of Example 1 is filtered and the liquor neutralized with calcium carbonate. In Test 1, prior to filtration, partial neutralization (from 100 g/l H.sub.2 SO.sub.4 to 50 g/l H.sub.2 SO.sub.4) is effected with calcium carbonate and in Test 2, this partial neutralization is omitted.

The partial neutralization of Test 1 precipitates gypsum which increases the filtration rate for the leach slurry from 0.013 gpm/ft.sup.2 to 0.17 gpm/ft.sup.2. After filtration of the slurry, the liquor is cooled to 50.degree. to 60.degree. C. and vigorously agitated while calcium carbonate is added in order to neutralize the solution to a pH of about 3. After one-half hour, the material is again filtered. The results of these tests are summarized in Table 2.

3. Brine Leach:

250 grams of autoclave residue was leached with 250 g/l NaCl, 25 g/l CaCl.sub.2 and 3 g/l ferric ion as FeCl.sub.3.6H.sub.2 O, at a temperature of 95.degree. C. to 100.degree. C. and a pH of 0.5, adjusted with HCl in an oxidizing mode using NaClO.sub.3 to achieve an emf of -690 to -700 mv. Test 1 residues were those in which the autoclave leach slurry was partially neutralized before filtration with CaCO.sub.3, as described in Example 2, and Test 2 residues were not previously treated with CaCO.sub.3. Test results are summarized in Table 3.

4. Caustic leach and sodium arsenate crystallization:

The residue from the brine leach described in Example 3 was leached in sodium hydroxide at 40.degree. C. to extract arsenic as sodium arsenate. 3 grams of sodium hydroxide were used for each gram of arsenic dissolved plus an excess of 70 g/l. Test 1 residue was the result of the partially neutralized autoclave slurry described in Example 2. Test 2 was as described in Example 2. The leach slurry was then filtered and the liquid evaporated under vacuum to alter the sodium hydroxide concentration from 58-79 to 154-160 g/l NaOH, and cooled to 25.degree. C. while stirring to crystallize sodium arsenate from the liquid. The crystals were then dried on a Buchner funnel without washing, and further dried at 80.degree. C. Test 2 residue was derived from non-neutralized autoclave slurry residue. Test results are summarized in Table 4. The values for "Liquor" and "Residue" resulted from the caustic leach. The values for "Mother Liquor" and "Crystals" resulted from the sodium arsenate crystallization.

A further test was performed on non-neutralized residue using a leach time of 43/4 hours and an excess sodium hydroxide of 80 g/l, and resulting in 88.3% arsenic extraction.

Sodium arsenate crystals from all tests were of good purity, with only minor amounts of entrained sodium sulfate and co-crystallized tin as impurities. Bismuth and germanium, which tended to report in varying degrees to all prior leach liquors and residues, were substantially not present in the sodium arsenate crystals.

5. Arsenic fixation:

Arsenic solubility in the brine and caustic leach residues, for residues initially partially neutralized before filtration of the sulfate pressure leach as described in Example 2 and for non-neutralized residues, was determined after fixing the arsenic by the addition of 2 ml 100 g/l Fe.sup.+3 in the form of Fe.sub.2 (SO.sub.4).sub.3 to 10 grams of residue slurried with 75 ml H.sub.2 O, the emf being adjusted to -500 mv, and the pH being adjusted to approximately 2.0 with sulfuric acid. Calcium carbonate was then added to adjust the pH to 4.0 and the mixture stirred for one hour at 25.degree. C. The solubility of the fixed arsenic was then tested by contacting with demineralized water for up to 5 days. Test results are summarized in Table 5.

These results show extremely low arsenic solubility, even at fairly low pH, thus confirming that the brine and caustic leach residues are environmentally safe for disposal.