The pyrochlore concentrates are the world's most widely used large-scale raw material for the production of niobium. Pyrometallurgy is the primary method used in processing the pyrochlore concentrates. It is used to obtain ferroniobium and commercial niobium pentoxide. The hydrometallurgical methods of processing the pyrochlore concentrates are used to obtain, in addition, pure and high-purity niobium compounds, the need for which is increasing steadily. The hydrometallurgical methods also make it possible to selectively extract the tantalum compounds, in spite of the low tantalum content.The Beloziminskii deposit of the apatite/rare-metal raw materials is considered to be one of the most promising sources of niobium production in Russia. The primary niobium-containing mineral is pyrochlore. We shall present the results of tests of the extraction of tantalum and niobium by tributyl phosphate (TBP) from the fluoride/sulfate solutions that are obtained in one of the pyrochlore processing variants. The concentrate we used contained, percent (mass): 30.6 Nb_2O_5; 0.32 Ta_2O_5; 9.6 TiO_2; 2.5 ZrO_2; 0.3 ThO_2; 36.2 Fe_2O_3; 8.9 SiO_2; 2.0 CaO; 1.7 P_2O_5.
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