A conceptual hybrid process flowsheet for platinum group metals (PGMs) recovery from a chromite-rich Cu-Ni PGM bearing ore in oxidized mineralization through a single-stage leach and adsorption onto ion exchange resin

摘要

The availability of oxidized PGM ore deposits, at or near the earth's surface, present lucrative prospects for future PGM production owing to the large resource estimates, the relatively high PGM grades and they can be mined through relatively lower-cost open-pit mining processes. However, these oxidized PGM ores are currently not mined or treated due to insufficient recoveries using established metallurgical techniques. The complex mineralogy and polymodal distribution of PGM in the oxidized ores pose a number of challenges to the metallurgist from a mineral liberation and extraction perspective.