IMPLICATIONS OF MINERALOGY ON URANIUM ORE PROCESSING

摘要

The single most striking feature of uranium process metallurgy is the diversity of minerals present and therefore the flowsheets adopted. As an interesting sideline, this diversity issue will limit the possibilities of toll milling to decrease CAPEX requirements and create viable projects - a common approach in gold and nickel. By their very nature, the numerous uranium and associated minerals in a deposit are exotic and complex. This creates a considerable challenge for metallurgists and process engineers as not only can the multiple uranium minerals behave very differently but their associated minerals can also pose considerable challenges to process design. Uranium exists as vein ores, in sandstone, pegmatite's, shales, lignite ores, gold ores and copper ores as well as some granites. The implications of mineral composition dictate how the ore will process. In addition the nature of the host rock or gangue can make extraction more difficult, increase reagent consumption or require pre treatment.