Hydro-metallurgical method and apparatus

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR LEACHING METAL BEARING MATERIAL TO RECOVER METAL VALUES COMPRISING, A SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICAL ELONGATED REACTION VESSEL CAPABLE OF WITHSTANDING HIGH TEMPERATURES AND PRESSURES, A SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICAL PARTITION WITHIN SAID VESSEL, SAID PARTITION EXTENDING UPWARDLY FROM THE BOTTOM OF SAID VESSEL AND TERMINATING AT A POINT BELOW THE TOP OF SAID VESSEL, SAID PARTITION SERVING TO DIVIDE THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID VESSEL INTO AT LEAST TWO SEPARATE SECTIONS, MEANS FOR INTRODUCING A SLURRY OF PARTICLES OF SAID METAL BEARING MATERIAL INTO SAID VESSEL, MEANS IN THE BOTTOM PART OF SAID VESSEL FOR INTRODUCING A MIXTURE OF GAS AND LIQUID LEACHING AGENTS AND FOR DIRECTING SAID MIXTURE UPWARDLY THROUGH SAID SLURRY IN SAID VESSEL TO AGITATE, TO LEACH AND TO LIFT UP SAID PARTICLES IN SAID VESSEL, MEANS ABOVE THE PARTITIONED SECTION OF SAID VESSEL FOR SEPARATING SAID PARTICLES FROM SAID LIQUID LEACHING AGENTS, AFTER SAID LIQUID HAS PASSED UPWARDLY THROUGH SAID SLURRY, THUS PRODUCING A CLARIFIED PREGNANT LEACHING LIQID, MEANS FOR RECIRCULATING SAID CLARIFIED PREGNANT LEACH ING LIQUID UPWARDLY THROUGH SAID SLURRY IN SAID VESSEL, MEANS FOR WITHDRAWING SAID SLURRY FROM SAID VESSEL AFTER LEACHING OF SAID PARTICLES, AND MEANS FOR VENTING EXCESS GAS FROM SAID VESSEL.