Method for the treatment of potassium ores

Claim 1

IN A METHOD OF TREATING POTASSIUM ORE CONTAINING POTASSIUM CHLORIDE WITH A HEATING LEACHING FLUID THEREBY LEACHING THE POTASSIUM CHLORIDE CONSTITUENT TO OBTAIN A POTASSIUM CHLORIDE-RICH BRINE, COOLING THE SAID BRINE, SEPARATING THE CRYSTALLIZED POTASSIUM CHLORIDE THEREFROM AND RECYCLING THE POTASSIUM CHLORIDE-STRIPPED BRINE AS SAID LEACHING LIQUID, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING: ESTABLISHING A TURBULENT FLUIDIZED BODY OF SAID ORE BY INTRODUCING SAID ORE INTO AN UPWARDLY MOVING COLUMN OF SAID LEACHING LIQUID THEN CONTINUOUSLY: (A) FEEDING SAID LEACHANT INTO THE BOTTOM OF THE MOVING COLUMN, WHILE (B) WITHDRAWING THE AFORESAID BRINE FROM THE HEAD OF THE COLUMN, AND (C) INTRODUCING SAID ORE IN THE COLUMN, THEREBY TO KEEP THE ORE WITHIN THE COLUMN IN A TURBULENT, FLUIDIZED AND DOWNWARDLY MOVING STATE, WHEREBY THE KCL CONTENT OF THE ORE IS LEACHED OUT DURING THE PERIOD BETWEEN ITS INTRODUCTION INTO THE COLUMN AND ITS ARRIVAL AT THE BOTTOM OF THE COLUMN, COLLECTING THE LEACHED ORE IN A COLLECTION ZONE UNDERLYING SAID COLUMN, AND WITHDRAWING THE ORE FROM SAID COLLECTION ZONE, THE VELOCITY OF THE MOVING COLUMN OF LEACHANT, AND THE RATE OF INTRODUCTION OF SAID ORE, AND THE WITHDRAWAL OF THE MATERIAL ACCUMULATING IN SAID COLLECTION ZONE, BEING CORRELATED TO MAINTAIN THE PRESSURE WITHIN THE COLUMN AT A VALUE REQUISITE TO KEEP THE ORE IN THE AFORESAID TURBULENT, FLUIDIZED STATE DURING THE DOWNWARD MOVEMENT OF THE ORE THROUGH SAID MOVING COLUMN.