RECOVERY OF COPPER FROM WEAK ACID BY CEMENTATION PROCESS

摘要

The weak acid is a byproduct obtained in a pre-treatment of gases from a copper smelter prior to sulfuric acidmanufacture and the main components of this weak acid are:sulfuric acid, copper, arsenic, antimony, bismuth and iron.Usually, this effluent is neutralized with lime and the solidresidues are stored in a landfill as a hazardous waste. This workwas directed at determining the optimal conditions to recovercopper from weak acid using a cementation process before theneutralization of the effluent The variables investigated are:Effluent temperature, iron scrap amount and acid concentrationversus reaction time. The results of these experiments show thatthe cementation process of copper and the co-cementation ofimpurities such as arsenic, antimony and bismuth were in accordwith the theory of the electrode potentials.