PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF A PGM-ENRICHED ALLOY

    公开(公告)号:US20180142330A1

    公开(公告)日:2018-05-24

    申请号:US15355971

    申请日:2016-11-18

    摘要: A process for the production of a PGM-enriched alloy comprising 0 to 60 wt.-% of iron and 20 to 99 wt.-% of one or more PGMs selected from the group consisting of platinum, palladium and rhodium, the process comprising the steps of (1) providing a PGM collector alloy comprising 30 to 95 wt.-% of iron, less than 1 wt.-% of sulfur and 2 to 15 wt.-% of one or more PGMs selected from the group consisting of platinum, palladium and rhodium, (2) providing a copper- and sulfur-free material capable of forming a slag-like composition when molten, wherein the molten slag-like composition comprises 40 to 90 wt.-% of magnesium oxide and/or calcium oxide and 10 to 60 wt.-% of silicon dioxide, (3) melting the PGM collector alloy and the material capable of forming a slag-like composition when molten in a weight ratio of 1:0.2 to 1 within a converter until a multi- or two-phase system of a lower high-density molten mass comprising the molten PGM collector alloy and one or more upper low-density molten masses comprising the molten slag-like composition has formed, (4) contacting an oxidizing gas comprising 0 to 80 vol.-% of inert gas and 20 to 100 vol.-% of oxygen with the lower high-density molten mass obtained in step (3) until it has been converted into a lower high-density molten mass of the PGM-enriched alloy, (5) separating an upper low-density molten slag formed in the course of step (4) from the lower high-density molten mass of the PGM-enriched alloy making use of the difference in density, (6) letting the molten masses separated from one another cool down and solidify, and (7) collecting the solidified PGM-enriched alloy.

    PROCESS FOR DIGESTION OF A METALLIC IRIDIUM- AND/OR IRIDIUM OXIDE-COMPRISING MIXTURE OF SOLID PARTICLES

    公开(公告)号:US20180112290A1

    公开(公告)日:2018-04-26

    申请号:US15566332

    申请日:2016-02-24

    IPC分类号: C22B3/00

    摘要: Process for digestion of fine iridium, comprising the steps of: (a) alkaline oxidative digestion of 1 part by weight fine iridium and 3 to 20 parts by weight of a combination comprising 40 to 70 parts by weight sodium hydroxide, 15 to 30 parts by weight sodium nitrate, and 10 to 40 parts by weight sodium peroxide in the melt, whereby the sum of the weight fractions adds up to 100 parts by weight; (b) cooling the digestion material formed in step (a) to 20 to 70° C.; (c) dissolving the acid-soluble fractions of the cooled digestion material in water/halogen hydracid until an acidic aqueous solution with a pH value in the range of −1 to +1 is obtained; and (d) boiling the acidic aqueous solution obtained in step (c) until the formation of nitrous gases is completed; whereby a step (e) of separating insoluble ingredients from the acidic aqueous solution can take place before or after step (d), if needed.

    Procedure for efficient recovery of diamonds, gold from tailings

    公开(公告)号:US09855563B2

    公开(公告)日:2018-01-02

    申请号:US14906005

    申请日:2014-07-21

    申请人: Claudio Sasso

    摘要: The value-minerals are captured by gravity-separation, from a low-grade slurry. The ratio of liquids-to-solids in the slurry affects the efficiency of capture, and an ideal liquids/solids ratio is the ratio at which the efficiency of capture is at a maximum. The ideal ratio is different for different particle-sizes. The procedure includes dewatering the slurry, dividing the dry particles by particle-size, and feeding the several size-divided dry-streams into respective capture-stations. Prior to each dry-stream entering its respective capture-station, make-up water is added to the dry-stream in such quantity as to bring the liquids/solids ratio up to the ideal, for that particle-size. The procedure makes it simple to provide accurate measurement of, and accurate control of, the liquids/solids ratio.