The present invention is related to a process for increasing copper or metal recovery in flotation processes, specially of minerals that are dissolved during the grinding stage, by the use of any sulfidizing agent or ionizing sulfide such as, but not limited to, sodium hydrogen sulfide, sodium sulfide, potassium hydrogen sulfide, potassium sulfide, ammonium hydrogen sulfide or ammonium sulfide, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), polysulfides of potassium, calcium, magnesium or ammonium to precipitate during the grinding stage or immediately after the grinding stage, metals that have been dissolved prior or during the milling or grinding stage prior to normal flotation.

A hydrometallurgical process for the removal of arsenic and antimony from a so-called dirty copper concentrate (101) is described. The process comprises the following steps: Step 1: repulping (100) the dirty copper concentrate with an alkaline lixiviant (102, 103), and subjecting the dirty copper concentrate to an alkaline leaching process (the Leach) in a Leach reactor (110). The arsenic and antimony are dissolved in the Leach to produce a clean copper concentrate (138) and leach discharge liquor (132). Step 2: subjecting the Leach discharge liquor (132) to a lime treatment step (151) in order to regenerate (150) the alkaline lixiviant as well as precipitate an impurity rich precipitate (161) containing arsenic and antimony. Then the impurity rich precipitate (161) is separated (160) from the regenerated alkaline lixiviant (162). The impurity rich precipitate is washed and disposed of in an environmentally safe condition. Step 3: recycling the regenerated alkaline lixiviant (162) to the Leach in Step 1, and so employing the recycled alkaline lixiviant (102) in the further extraction of arsenic and antimony from incoming dirty copper concentrate (101).

Methods for recovering a metal value from a metal-bearing material are provided. The method comprises agglomerating the metal-bearing material with an agglomeration solution comprising a raffinate, an oxidant, and citric acid or salts thereof to form an agglomerated metal-bearing material; leaching the agglomerated metal-bearing material with a leaching solution comprising the raffinate and the citric acid or salts thereof to produce a pregnant leaching solution and a leached material; re-oxidizing the leached material with a curing solution comprising the raffinate and the oxidant; and recovering the metal value from the pregnant leach solution to produce the raffinate.

The present invention relates to flotation of sulfidic copper-molybdenum- and gold-containing minerals. More specifically, the invention relates to sulfoxy reagent-assisted floatation for separating of sulfides of copper, molybdenum and gold from pyrite, marcasite, pyrrhotite, arsenopyrite, and other gangue minerals following aerating by an oxidizing gas and contacting by a sulfoxy reagent. To promote collection and flotation the feed mineral materials are preferably not contacted with an externally generated non-oxidizing gas to lower the dissolved molecular oxygen content prior to flotation.

A method of leaching chalcopyrite ores includes the steps of forming agglomerates of fragments of chalcopyrite ores and silver and leaching the agglomerates with suitable leach liquor.

Provided is a method for obtaining a solution having a high concentration of nickel and/or cobalt from an alloy that contains copper as well as nickel and/or cobalt, in a waste lithium-ion battery. A method for treating an alloy comprises: a leaching step S1 for subjecting an alloy that contains copper as well as nickel and/or cobalt to a leaching treatment by using an acid solution in the presence of a sulfiding agent to obtain a leachate and a leaching residue; and a reduction step S2 for adding a reducing agent to a part of the obtained leachate and performing a reduction treatment to obtain a post-reduction solution and a reduction residue, wherein in the leaching step S1, the leachate that has not been provided in the reduction treatment in the reduction step S2, is repeatedly used as part or all of the acid solution added in the leaching treatment.

Systems and methods for basic leaching are provided. In various embodiments, a method is provided comprising leaching a slurry comprising a copper bearing material and an ammonia leach medium, adding copper powder to the slurry, separating the slurry into a pregnant leach solution and solids, and performing a solvent extraction on the pregnant leach solution to produce an loaded aqueous stream.

Provided is a mineral processing method that allows obtaining a concentrate having a low arsenic grade from a raw material having a high arsenic grade. The mineral processing method includes: a repulping step of adding water to a raw material containing a non-arsenic-containing sulfide mineral as a sulfide mineral not containing arsenic and an arsenic-containing sulfide mineral as a copper sulfide mineral containing arsenic to obtain a mineral slurry; a pH adjusting step of adjusting a pH of a liquid phase of the mineral slurry to 10 or more; a conditioning step of adding an oxidant and xanthate alkali metal salt to the mineral slurry; and a flotation step of performing flotation using the mineral slurry to separate the raw material into a floating ore having a grade of the non-arsenic-containing sulfide mineral higher than a grade of the non-arsenic-containing sulfide mineral of the raw material and a precipitating ore having a grade of the arsenic-containing sulfide mineral higher than a grade of the arsenic-containing sulfide mineral of the raw material. The raw material contains the arsenic by 4.4 to 5.8 pts. wt. per 100 pts. wt. of copper.

Methods for recovering a metal value from a metal-bearing material are provided. The method comprises agglomerating the metal-bearing material with an agglomeration solution comprising a raffinate, an oxidant, and citric acid or salts thereof to form an agglomerated metal-bearing material; leaching the agglomerated metal-bearing material with a leaching solution comprising the raffinate and the citric acid or salts thereof to produce a pregnant leaching solution and a leached material; re-oxidizing the leached material with a curing solution comprising the raffinate and the oxidant; and recovering the metal value from the pregnant leach solution to produce the raffinate.

A method of operating a concentrator may comprise producing a final copper concentrate and periodically or continuously analyzing the produced final copper concentrate to obtain a grade value of the produced final copper concentrate. The produced final copper concentrate may be sent to a downstream smelting operation if/when the grade value of the produced final copper concentrate is at or above a minimum acceptable grade threshold and may be sent to a downstream hydrometallurgical operation capable of producing copper cathode, if/when the grade value of the produced final copper concentrate is below or falls below the minimum acceptable grade threshold.