Pyrometallurgy: Roasting, Smelting, Refining & Electrowinning

Pyrometallurgy: Roasting, Smelting, Refining & Electrowinning

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Gold Smelting Method (5 replies)

(unknown)
8 years ago
(unknown) 8 years ago

I need your help finding another Gold Smelting Method is known to melt gold concentrate, I use caustic soda and borax.

Bob Mathias
8 years ago
Bob Mathias 8 years ago

You need to explain a bit more, the general fluxes used for smelting of gold concentrates are Borax (40-50%); Soda Ash (10-15%) and Sillica sand (5-10%) of your dry concentrate mass, this also vary on the type of oven and very much on your ore type or your concentrate, thus my figures are normaly used in gold mines with general impurities associated. Refining of gold will have other types etc.

If you are trying to smelt concentrates you need to describe the mineralogy the metal is hosted in. If you are trying to melt metal that is a completely different chemistry.

(unknown)
8 years ago
(unknown) 8 years ago

Correct and since you have chosen not to outline the type of concentrate (EW sludge, Zn precip, float cons etc), suggest you conduct a bench scale investigation w/the following fluxes: SiO2, Borax, Sodaash, CaF2 & KNO3; temps between 1,200-1,400C & reactions times up-to 1.5-hr.

Maya Rothman
8 years ago
Maya Rothman 8 years ago

When is that you set the charcoal to reduce the mineral to metallic values?  If it goes into smelting process, how much the dosification including the amounts of each one of the above? Caustic soda in the molten pool, it form silicates with the silica transforming the base metals into oxide embedded in the slag as well the borax but the potassium nitrate also oxidize most of the bases including some silver, the balance between acid and alkali. How do I get the equilibrium in the flux?

(unknown)
8 years ago
(unknown) 8 years ago

Refer to Bob's comments above; you need to define the constituents in your feed; following that, above stoichiometric proportions of the said fluxes need to be tested on your feed; again, refer to Bugbee's FREE text on the chemistry of fusion...a link is provided: https://archive.org/details/textbookoffireas00bugbrich

(unknown)
8 years ago
(unknown) 8 years ago

It`s really helpful, got it and for me now is like a boy with a new toy, appreciate it!

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