The invention relates to a method for multi-metal products recovery from pyrolytic waste integrated circuit boards. The method mainly comprises the steps of smelting and blending, atomization, acidolysis and filtration, noble metal recycling, copper extraction and back extraction, nickel extraction and back extraction. Compared with the prior art, the method has the advantages that smoke pollution and the smelting slag treatment in the process of preparing a black copper ingot through multi-metal collaborative smelting are reduced, and the problems of low anode efficiency of the black copper electrolysis process are solved. Meanwhile, the high-temperature high-oxygen atomized gas generated in the atomizing process provides a heat source and an oxygen source for subsequent acidolysis, so that the energy consumption is further reduced. The method has the advantages such as short process, remarkable energy conservation and emission reduction.

A process for recovering a precious metal from a precious metal containing article or composition is disclosed. The process comprises treating the precious metal containing article or composition with an oxidant composition under conditions to oxidise the precious metal in the precious metal containing article or composition to obtain a precious metal salt composition. The precious metal salt composition is then contacted with a sorbent under conditions to adsorb at least some of the precious metal salt to the sorbent to obtain a laden sorbent. At least some of the precious metal is then recovered from the laden sorbent. Alternatively, the precious metal is recovered from the precious metal salt composition by chemical reduction, electrochemical reduction and/or chemical precipitation.

Hydrometallurgical solvent extraction processes for recovering value metal ion species such as any of manganese, cobalt, nickel, and/or lithium from solutions derived from recycled electronics and/or batteries and containing mixed-metal ions by separating the value metal ions using selective stripping techniques as herein described, are provided.

A process disclosed herein is related to the isolation and purification of substantially pure chemicals, including silica gel, sodium silicate, aluminum silicate, iron oxide, and rare earth elements (or rare earth metals, REEs), from massive industrial waste coal ash. In one embodiment, the process includes a plurality of caustic extractions of coal ash at an elevated temperature, followed by an acidic treatment to dissolve aluminum silicate and REEs. The dissolved aluminum silicate is precipitated out by pH adjustment as a solid product while REEs remain in the solution. REEs are captured and enriched using an ion exchange column. Alternatively, the solution containing aluminum silicate and REEs is heated to produce silica gel, which is easily separated from the enriched REEs solution. REEs are then isolated and purified from the enriched solution to afford substantially pure individual REE by a ligand-assisted chromatography. Additionally, a simplified process using one caustic extraction and one acidic extraction with an ion exchange process was also investigated and optimized to afford a comparable efficiency.

A physical and chemical method is provided for de-mixing (e.g. extracting, separating, purifying and/or enriching) the metal constituents of an alloy or mixed material into different droplet or solid particle products that are highly enriched in the respective phases of the metal. The method involves for instance but is not limited to, shearing, separating and segregating metallic droplets and particles in a carrier fluid to form other droplets or particles that are each separately highly enriched in one of some, if not of all, of the constituent phases of the alloy or mixed material.

A physical and chemical method is provided for de-mixing (e.g. extracting, separating, purifying and/or enriching) the metal constituents of an alloy or mixed material into different droplet or solid particle products that are highly enriched in the respective phases of the metal. The method involves for instance but is not limited to, shearing, separating and segregating metallic droplets and particles in a carrier fluid to form other droplets or particles that are each separately highly enriched in one of some, if not of all, of the constituent phases of the alloy or mixed material.

A recycling process that facilitates separation of materials from metallic substrates by cryogenically cooling the recyclable items to induce embrittlement of the metals. Embrittled metals may be shattered more efficiently and with a higher yield of materials bound to the metallic substrates. Metal embrittlement may be induced by mixing the source stream with liquid nitrogen, and cooling the stream to approximately minus 200° F. Multiple recovery stages may be employed to maximize the yield of the target materials. Embodiments may enable recovery of platinum group metals (PGMs) from catalytic converters with metallic foil substrates. Yield of PGMs may be enhanced by employing a primary recovery stage and a secondary recovery stage, by cryogenically cooling input materials for each stage, by mixing the pulverized material in secondary recovery with an aqueous solution to dissipate attractive charges, and by wet screening the pulverized material slurry to obtain the PGM particles.

Provided is a method of inhibiting degradation of an extractant by an anhydrous environment avoiding and metal stripping, the method including the steps of: (a) stopping the addition of soda ash (Na.sub.2CO.sub.3) to an extracting reaction tank; (b) starting solution recirculation and stopping solvent recirculation of a settler; (c) supplying a solvent from a loaded organic tank to a scrubbing reaction tank, in which the scrubbing reaction tank, stripping reaction tank and extracting reaction tank are connected for circulation and operating stirrers of the scrubbing reaction tank, stripping reaction tank and extracting reaction tank; (d) supplying a sulfuric acid solution having a controlled concentration with a diluting solution to the stripping reaction tank; (e) transferring the solvents of the settler, the loaded organic tank and all the pipes to the scrubbing reaction tank; and (f) stopping the step (e) and initiating solvent recirculation.

PGM converting process and jacketed rotary converter. The process can include low- or no-flux converting; partial pre-oxidation of PGM collector alloy; using a refractory protectant in the converter; magnetic separation of slag; recycling part of the slag to the converter; smelting catalyst material in a primary furnace to produce the collector alloy; and/or smelting the converter slag in a secondary furnace with slag from the primary furnace. The converter can include an inclined converter pot mounted for rotation; a refractory lining; an opening in a top of the pot to introduce converter feed; a lance for injecting oxygen-containing gas into the alloy pool; a heat transfer jacket adjacent the refractory lining; and a coolant system to circulate a heat transfer medium through the jacket to remove heat from the alloy pool in thermal communication with the refractory lining.

Described is a process of extracting metals from a wet mass which comprises: a step A of concentrating the metals in a carbonaceous solid by means of a thermochemical treatment of the wet mass, with the ancillary production of a treatment gas; a step B of thermochemical decomposition of the carbonaceous solid in an atmosphere constituted by an operating gas which contains oxygen in substoichiometric quantity to carry out the thermochemical decomposition in order to promote a combination of the metals with substances present in the carbonaceous solid to form salts and others solid compounds and to concentrate the latter in residual ashes of the carbonaceous solid at the same time providing for the formation of a combustible synthesis gas comprising hydrocarbons from the carbonaceous solid; a step C of extraction of the metals from the ashes produced.