Method of preventing supersaturation of electrolytes with arsenic, antimony and bismuth

Claim 2

A PROCESS FOR PREVENTING SUPERSATURATION OF AN ELECTROLYTE WITH AN IMPURITY SELECTED FROM THE GROUP WHICH CONSISTS OF ARSENIC ANTIMONY AND BISMUTH WHICH COMPRISE THE STEPS OF: A. TREATING SAID SLECTROLYTE WITH FLOATING PARTICLES OF A CHEMISORBENT ADAPTED TO TAKE UP SAID IMPURITY IN AN ADSORBER; B. DRAINING SAID ELECTROLYTE FROM SAID ADSORBER; C. CIRCULATING A REGENERATING SOLUTION THROUGH SAID ADSORBER AND INTO CONTACT WITH SAID FLOATING PARTICLES TO STRIP SAID IMPURITY THEREFROM; AND

Claim 3

A process for preventing supersaturation of an electrolyte with an impurity selected from the group which consists of arsenic, antimony and bismuth which comprise the steps of: a. treating said electrolyte with floating particles of a chemisorbent adapted to take up said impurity in an adsorber; b. draining said electrolyte from said adsorber; c. circulating a regenerating solution through said adsorber and into contact with said floating particles to strip said impurity therefrom; and d. electrolytically regenerating said solution along the circulating path thereof; wherein said chemisorbent is stannic acid, said electrolyte is a sulfuric acid electrolyte for the electrolytIcally refining of copper and said regenerating solution is sulfuric acid more concentrated than said electrolyte.

Claim 4

A process for preventing supersaturation of an electrolyte with an impurity selected from the group which consists of arsenic, antimony and bismuth which comprise the steps of: a. treating said electrolyte with floating particles of a chemisorbent adapted to take up said impurity in an adsorber; b. draining said electrolyte from said adsorber; c. circulating a regenerating solution through said adsorber and into contact with said floating particles to strip said impurity therefrom; and d. electrolytically regenerating said solution along the circulating path thereof; wherein said chemisorbent is stannic acid, said electrolyte is a sulfuric acid electrolyte for the electrolytIcally refining of copper and said regenerating solution is sulfuric acid more concentrated than said electrolyte.

Claim 5

The process defined in claim 1 wherein said particles are formed by coating said chemisorbent in a filmforming binder system onto foam synthetic resin particles.

Claim 6

The process defined in claim 2 wherein said particles consist of a resin selected from the group which consists of polystyrene and polyurethane and said binder system comprises a water-insoluble binder component selected from the group which consists of polymers of acrylic acid, homopolymers and copolymers of acrylic esters with vinyl esters, styrene, vinyl ethers, vinyl chloride and vinylidene chloride, a further binder component serving as a flocculating agent for said chemisorbent and selected from the group which consists of polyacrylates, polyacrylic esters, acrylic esters copolymers, polyacrylamides and poly-ethylene imines.