A two-step process has been developed to recover cobalt from arsenitic ores. In the first step, a ferrous iron solution is oxidized to ferric iron. This reaction is catalyzed by the presence of bacteria. In the second reactor, the ferric solution leaches the ore. This process is mainly of a chemical nature. Cobalt is dissolved and arsenic is precipitated with iron as scorodite. The interest of such a two-step process in comparison with the usual bacterial leaching is that the two main reactions can be optimized independently.
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