The invention relates to a method and to an arrangement for refining copper concentrate. The arrangement includes a suspension smelting furnace comprising a reaction shaft, and a settler. The reaction shaft is provided with a concentrate burner for feeding copper concentrate such as copper sulfide concentrate and/or copper matte and additionally at least reaction gas into the reaction shaft to obtain a blister layer containing blister and a first slag layer containing slag on top of the blister layer in the settler, and a slag cleaning furnace. The arrangement includes a feeder configured for feeding blister from the blister layer in the settler and for feeding slag from the first slag layer in the settler into the slag cleaning furnace.

Disclosed is a process for recovering copper from secondary raw materials including in a feed batch smelting in a furnace a feedstock including copper oxide and elemental iron for forming a concentrated copper intermediate, whereby heat is generated by the redox reactions converting iron to oxide and copper oxide to copper, whereby copper collects in a molten liquid metal phase and iron oxides collect in a supernatant liquid slag phase, whereby at the end of the batch the liquid phases separate and may be removed from the furnace as smelter slag and as the concentrated copper intermediate, wherein during the smelting step an excess of elemental iron is maintained in the furnace relative to the amount required for completing the redox reactions, and further heat input is provided by the injection of an oxygen containing gas for oxidizing the excess iron.

The present invention concerns a process for the recovery of metals and of heat from spent rechargeable batteries, in particular from spent Li-ion batteries containing relatively low amounts of cobalt. It has in particular been found that such cobalt-depleted Li-ion batteries can be processed on a copper smelter by: feeding a useful charge and slag formers to the smelter; adding heating and reducing agents; whereby at least part of the heating and/or reducing agents is replaced by Li-ion batteries containing one or more of metallic Fe, metallic Al, and carbon. Using spent LFP or LMO batteries as a feed on the Cu smelter, the production rate of Cu blister is increased, while the energy consumption from fossil sources is decreased.

The invention is a method for producing valuable metals from raw material containing valuable metals including Cu, Ni and Co. The method includes at least: a preparation step for preparing raw material containing Li, Al, and valuable metals; a reduction melting step; and a slag separation step for separating the slag from the reduced product to collect the alloy. One or both of the preparation step and the reduction melting step include adding Ca-containing flux to the raw material. In the reduction melting step, while the furnace walls of the melting furnace are cooled with the cooling means, a solid slag layer having a Ca/Al value smaller than the Ca/Al value of the slag or a solid slag layer containing 15 mass % or more Al and 3 mass % or more Li is formed on the inside surface of the melting furnace.

This invention relates to a method and apparatus for gasifying or liquifying coal. In particular, the method comprises reacting a coal with a molten aluminum or aluminum alloy bath. The apparatus includes a reaction vessel for carrying out the reaction, as well as other equipment necessary for capturing and removing the reaction products. Further, the process can be used to cogenerate electricity using the excess heat generated by the process.

A method for co-producing blister copper by enriching germanium and indium from a copper sulfide ore comprises: mixing a copper sulfide ore containing germanium and indium, a reducing agent and a fluxing agent in proportion and then grinding; subjecting the mixture to reduction matte smelting to obtain volatile smoke containing germanium and indium and copper matte respectively; subjecting the copper matte to oxygen-enriched blowing to volatilize germanium and indium, so as to obtain the blister copper and volatile smoke containing germanium and indium respectively; and oxidizing fumes discharged from bag dust collection by ozone, and then absorbing them by spraying alkali liquor to reach up-to-standard discharge. In the reduction smelting stage, the volatilization rate of germanium and indium is more than 70%; and in the copper matte oxygen-enriched blowing stage, the volatilization rate of germanium and indium is more than 25%.