The present invention provides a copper billet horizontal continuous casting apparatus with a vertical shaft furnace for smelting and a corresponding process. The copper billet horizontal continuous casting apparatus with a vertical shaft furnace for smelting includes: a vertical shaft, a refining furnace, a mixing furnace, a holding furnace, and a continuous casting furnace; wherein the refining furnace comprises a furnace body, and a gas flushing device disposed beneath the furnace body, a gas flushing brick is provided at the chamber bottom wall of the furnace body; a gas inlet device is provided on the vertical shaft furnace; the vertical shaft furnace further includes a detecting device and an adjusting device which are connected with the air inlet device.

A method for producing copper metal from copper concentrates without generating waste by: (a) oxidizing copper concentrate; (b) cleaning and cooling the gases; (c) feeding to a reduction reactor; (d) cleaning the gases; (e) discharging hot powders and calcines into water; (f) performing magnetic separation; (g) thickening and filtering the magnetic fraction; (h) floating silica and inert materials; (i) thickening and filtering the silica and inert materials; (j) thickening and filtering the final concentrate containing the copper metal and noble metals; (k) smelting the final concentrate of copper and noble metals; and (l) recirculating ground smelt slag to a roasting reactor.

The present invention provides a copper billet horizontal continuous casting apparatus with a vertical shaft furnace for smelting and a corresponding process. The copper billet horizontal continuous casting apparatus with a vertical shaft furnace for smelting includes: a vertical shaft, a refining furnace, a mixing furnace, a holding furnace, and a continuous casting furnace; wherein the refining furnace includes a furnace body, and a gas flushing device disposed beneath the furnace body, a gas flushing brick is provided at the chamber bottom wall of the furnace body; a gas inlet device is provided on the vertical shaft furnace; the vertical shaft furnace further includes a detecting device and an adjusting device which are connected with the air inlet device.

A method of operating a copper or other metal value concentrator is disclosed. According to some embodiments, the method may comprise producing a final copper concentrate; periodically or continuously analyzing the produced final copper concentrate to obtain a grade value of the produced final copper concentrate; and diverting the produced final copper concentrate 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; or, diverting the produced final copper concentrate to a downstream hydrometallurgical operation capable of producing copper cathode or other saleable copper product from the produced final copper concentrate, if/when the grade value of the produced final copper concentrate is below said minimum acceptable grade threshold. A copper concentrator capable of conducting the aforementioned method steps is also disclosed.

A method for obtaining non-ferrous metals, in particular black and/or raw copper, from scrap containing organic matter, comprises the following steps: i) providing a melting reactor, wherein the melting reactor includes a melting region, a combustion region and a pyrolysis region; ii) supplying the melting reactor with a mixture comprising the scrap such that it first passes through the pyrolysis region and the combustion region before it reaches the melting region, and is at least partially pre-pyrolyzed and/or combusted, such that an energy-containing gas stream is formed; iii) transferring the energy-containing gas stream into a thermal post-combustion chamber, in which the energy-containing gas stream is completely combusted and thermal energy released during combustion is carried off via an energy recovery unit; and iv) melting the scrap containing organic matter at least part of which has been pre-pyrolized and/or combusted.

A process for a producing crude solder product and a copper product includes the steps of providing a black copper comprising >=50% wt of copper together with >=1.0% wt of tin and/or >=1.0% wt of lead, and refining a first portion of the black copper to obtain a refined copper product together with at least one copper refining slag. The process further includes the steps of recovering a first crude solder product from the copper refining slag, thereby forming a solder refining slag in equilibrium with the first crude solder product, and contacting a different portion of the black copper with the solder refining slag thereby forming a spent slag and a lead-tin based metal, followed by separating the spent slag from the lead-tin based metal.

A method for obtaining metals of the 8th to 14th groups, in particular raw copper, comprises the following steps: i) providing and melting down a mixed feed comprising electronic waste in a smelting reactor, so that a first melt with a first metallic phase and a first slag phase is formed; ii) separating out the first slag phase from the smelting reactor; iii) refining the remaining first metallic phase by means of an oxygen-containing gas, possibly with the addition of copper-containing residual materials, so that a second, copper-enriched slag phase is formed; iv) possibly separating off the second slag phase and repeating the step; v) separating off the refined first metallic phase from the smelting reactor; and vi) adding a further mixed feed comprising electronic waste to the remaining second, copper-enriched slag phase and repeating process steps i) to vi).

The content of oxygen in molten metallic copper is reduced during the copper refining process by adding pure carbon monoxide, produced by electrolysis of carbon dioxide in a solid oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC), thereby removing oxygen through the reduction of CuO to Cu. This way, the purity of the metallic copper is increased.

A gas injection device for introducing a process gas into a non-ferrous metal melt and/or slag, in particular a copper melt and/or copper slag, including a hollow-cylindrical lance which is formed from a refractory material and/or graphite, preferably includes a refractory material and/or graphite. The lance has an inlet opening for the process gas and a gas injection module connected to the hollow-cylindrical lance and formed from a refractory material and/or graphite, preferably including a refractory material and/or graphite, with at least one outlet opening for the process gas. The outlet opening includes at least one throughflow element formed from a ceramic material via which the process gas can be introduced into the melt.

A process for a producing crude solder product and a copper product includes the steps of providing a black copper comprising >=50% wt of copper together with >=1.0% wt of tin and/or >=1.0% wt of lead, and refining a first portion of the black copper to obtain a refined copper product together with at least one copper refining slag. The process further includes the steps of recovering a first crude solder product from the copper refining slag, thereby forming a solder refining slag in equilibrium with the first crude solder product, and contacting a different portion of the black copper with the solder refining slag thereby forming a spent slag and a lead-tin based metal, followed by separating the spent slag from the lead-tin based metal.