US3880651A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Chlorine leaching of non-ferrous metal values with ammoniacal solutions
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1972-07-13
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Granted: 1975-04-29
•
Expires: 1992-07-13
Abstract
Abstract A ferruginous material containing at least one nonferrous value selected from the group consisting of nickel, cobalt, copper and manganese is, after reduction, immersed in water and then contacted with gaseous chlorine until the pH value of the immersion decreases to below 4 and sufficient amounts of ammonia or ammonia-containing compounds are added with the chlorine to maintain the pH value between about 4 and 2 so as to dissolve a preponderant part of the non-ferrous metal values and only minor amounts of iron. The non-ferrous value is recovered from the resulting solution. The ferruginous material can be an oxide ore, including sea nodules, or a roasted sulfide ore that has been reduced, advantageously selectively reduced.
Inventors
- 👤 Paul Etienne Queneau
- 👤 Herm Jan Roorda
- 👤 Stanley Charles Townshend
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-07 13:26
CPC Classifications
C; C22; C22B; C22B47/00; C22B47/0018; C22B47/0045; C22B47/0054; C22B23/00; C22B23/04; C22B23/0407; C22B23/0415; C22B23/0423; C22B3/00; C22B3/04; Y; Y02; Y02P; Y02P10/00; Y02P10/20; Y10; Y10S; Y10S423/00; Y10S423/04
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 30
Claim 1
Independent Claim
173 words
A PROCESS FOR SELECTIVELY LEACHING AT LEAST ONE REDUCED NON-FERROUS METAL VALUE SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF NICKEL, COBALT, COPPER, AND MANGANESE FROM A FERRUGINOUS MATERIAL CONTAINING THE NON-FERROUS VALUE WHICH COMPRISES REDUCING SAID FERRUGINOUS MATERIAL TO REDUCE TO METAL SUBSTANTIALLY ALL OF SAID NON-FERROUS MATERIAL VALUE FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF NICKEL, COBALT AND COPPER BUT NOT MORE THAN 5 PARTS OF IRON FOR EACH PART IN TOTAL OF SAID NICKEL, COBALT AND COPPER FORMING AN AQUEOUS IMMERSION OF SAID REDUCED FERRUGINOUS MATERIAL, INTRODUCING GASEOUS CHLORINE INTO THE IMMERISION TO CHLORINATE THE METALLIC NON-FERROUS METAL VALUES AND TO PRODUCE AN AQUEOUS SOLUTION OF THE CHLORINATED NON-FERROUS METAL VALUES, ADDING AT LEAST ONE COMPOUND SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF AMMONIA AND AMMONIA-CONTAINING COMPOUNDS TO THE AQUEOUS SOLUTION IN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO MAINTAIN THE PH VALUE THEREOF BETWEEN ABOUT 4 AND 2 SO THAT SAID REDUCED NON-FERROUS VALUES ARE EXTRACTED FROM THE FERRUGINOUS MATERIAL WHILE CHLORINATION OF SAID REDUCED IRON IS INHIBITED AND RECOVERING THE NON-FERROUS METAL VALUE FROM THE AQUEOUS SOLUTION.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
173 words
A PROCESS FOR SELECTIVELY LEACHING AT LEAST ONE REDUCED NON-FERROUS METAL VALUE SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF NICKEL, COBALT, COPPER, AND MANGANESE FROM A FERRUGINOUS MATERIAL CONTAINING THE NON-FERROUS VALUE WHICH COMPRISES REDUCING SAID FERRUGINOUS MATERIAL TO REDUCE TO METAL SUBSTANTIALLY ALL OF SAID NON-FERROUS MATERIAL VALUE FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF NICKEL, COBALT AND COPPER BUT NOT MORE THAN 5 PARTS OF IRON FOR EACH PART IN TOTAL OF SAID NICKEL, COBALT AND COPPER FORMING AN AQUEOUS IMMERSION OF SAID REDUCED FERRUGINOUS MATERIAL, INTRODUCING GASEOUS CHLORINE INTO THE IMMERISION TO CHLORINATE THE METALLIC NON-FERROUS METAL VALUES AND TO PRODUCE AN AQUEOUS SOLUTION OF THE CHLORINATED NON-FERROUS METAL VALUES, ADDING AT LEAST ONE COMPOUND SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF AMMONIA AND AMMONIA-CONTAINING COMPOUNDS TO THE AQUEOUS SOLUTION IN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO MAINTAIN THE PH VALUE THEREOF BETWEEN ABOUT 4 AND 2 SO THAT SAID REDUCED NON-FERROUS VALUES ARE EXTRACTED FROM THE FERRUGINOUS MATERIAL WHILE CHLORINATION OF SAID REDUCED IRON IS INHIBITED AND RECOVERING THE NON-FERROUS METAL VALUE FROM THE AQUEOUS SOLUTION.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
40 words
The process as described in claim 1 in which the ferruginous material is an oxide material which contains the non-ferrous metal value in the oxidized state and the oxide material is reduced at a temperature between about 500*C. and 950*C.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
58 words
The process as described in claim 2 where the oxide material is selectively reduced in an atmosphere having a reducing potential equivalent to a carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide ratio between about 1:6 and 2:1 to reduce to metal substantially all non-ferrous values from the group consisting of nickel, cobalt and copper and any manganese to manganous oxide.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
47 words
The process described in claim 3 in which the ratio of the iron reduced to metal to the total content of the non-ferrous metal value from the group consisting of nickel, cobalt and copper reduced to metal in the reduced material does not exceed 3:1 by weight.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
32 words
The process described in claim 3 in which the reduced material, before chlorination, is slowly cooled under a protective atmosphere so as to cause disproportionation of wustite therein into metal and magnetite.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
54 words
The process described in claim 3 in which the reduced material, before chlorination, is selectively reoxidized by exposure to an agent from the group consisting of carbon dioxide and water vapor to convert part of the metallic iron to iron oxide without reoxidizing reduced metal from the group consisting of nickel, cobalt and copper.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
26 words
The process described in claim 3 in which the reduced material, before chlorination, is simultaneously cooled and selective reoxidized by direct contact with water or steam.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
19 words
The process described in claim 1 in which the chlorination is performed at a temperature of at least 65*C.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
15 words
The process described in claim 1 in which the water contains chloride ions in solution.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
13 words
The process described in claim 9 in which the water is sea water.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
24 words
The process described in claim 1 in which chlorination is performed with the pH of the chloride solution below about 4, but above 2.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
29 words
The process described in claim 11 in which the last stage of the chlorination is performed with the pH of the chloride solution in the range 2 to 3.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
17 words
The process described in claim 1 in which the chlorination is performed in at least two stages.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
20 words
The process described in claim 13 in which at least one stage after the first is performed at superatmospheric pressure.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
30 words
The process described in claim 1 in which the solution is separated from the solids and the non-ferrous metal value is precipitated from solution as a sulfide, hydroxide or carbonate.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
52 words
The process described in claim 15 applied to a material containing nickel, cobalt and copper in which these metals are precipitated from the solution as sulfides; copper and cobalt are removed from the molten nickel sulfide by fused chloride salt solvent extraction;; and the molten nickel sulfide is oxygen-blown to metallic nickel.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
45 words
The process described in claim 15 applied to a material containing nickel, cobalt and copper in which these metals are precipitated from the solution as hydroxides or carbonates; the hydrates or carbonates are reduced to metal; and nickel is recovered from the metal by carbonylation.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
25 words
The process described in claim 1 in which chlorine is recovered from the aqueous solution and used to chlorinate a further quantity of reduced material.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
21 words
The process described in claim 3 in which the oxide material is an oxide ore of the non ferrous metal value.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
13 words
The process described in claim 19 in which the ore is nickeliferous limonite.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
23 words
The process described in claim 20 in which the ore contains above 40% iron and an iron-oxide-rich residue from the chlorination is recovered.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
31 words
The process described in claim 19 in which the ore is a nickeliferous magnesium silicate ore and the ore is heated during reduction to a temperature of at least about 750*C.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
49 words
The process described in claim 3 in which the oxide material is a calcine made by roasting a ferruginous material containing at least one element from the group consisting of sulfur and arsenic and at least one non-ferrous metal value from the group consisting of nickel, cobalt and copper.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
13 words
The process described in claim 23 in which the material is nickeliferous pyrrhotite.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
25 words
The process described in claim 23 in which the material is pyrite containing a non-ferrous metal value from the group consisting of cobalt and copper.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
32 words
The process described in claim 3 in which the selectively reduced material is subjected to carbonylation or ammonia leaching to extract part of the nickel therefrom and the residue is then chlorinated.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
31 words
The process as described in claim 1 in which the ferruginous material is a manganiferous oxide ore and is reduced to manganous oxide at a temperature between about 300*C. and 950*C.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
47 words
The process as described in claim 27 where the manganiferous oxide ore is manganese sea nodules which are reduced in an atmosphere having a reducing potential equivalent to a carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide ratio between about 1:6 and 2:1 to reduce manganese to manganous oxide values.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
33 words
The process described in claim 28 in which the manganiferous ore is manganese sea nodules, and in which the aqueous immersion medium contains about 2% to about 25%, by weight, of ammonium chloride.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1978-04-28 | 1978-10-28 | 1979-04-29 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1982-04-28 | 1982-10-28 | 1983-04-29 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1986-04-28 | 1986-10-28 | 1987-04-29 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |