RECOVERY OF ELEMENTAL SULPHUR AND METAL VALUES FROM COPPER SULPHIDE ORE CONCENTRATE OR TAILINGS

摘要

{PG,1 A process for the recovery of copper, molybdenum, gold and elemental sulfur in tailings from hydrometallurgical processing of copper sulfide ores, the process comprising concentrating the tailings containing elemental sulfur and copper, gold and molybdenum to a small bulk volume by froth flotation to reject barren gangue including jarosite, if present, and other impurities, separating the liquids and solids in the float concentrate, leaching the resulting residue with a solvent for sulfur followed by liquid-solids separation and recovering elemental sulfur from the liquid, leaching the residue from the sulfur solvent leach with ferric chloride to selectively dissolve copper and iron therein followed by liquid-solids separation and recovering copper from the liquid or sending it back to the hydrometallurgical circuit, leaching the residue from the ferric chloride leach with cyanide to selectively solubilize gold followed by liquid-solids separation and recovering of solubilized gold from the liquid, recovering molybdenum ore from the residue from the cyanide leach by froth flotation, and recovering molybdenum from the molybdenum ore. The process is particularly applicable to tailings resulting from the treatment of chalcopyrite by hydrometallurgical processes for the recovery of copper.