US919130A - Process of extracting copper from ores. - Google Patents

Description

Patented Apr. 20, 1909..

2 BHEETS-8 HEBT 1.

wfimsms.

G. G. COLLINS.

PROCESS OP EXTEAGTING COPPER PROM ()RES.

APPLIOATIOH 11.51) 150v. 27, 1907. RENEWED SEPT. 19, 1008.

Patented Apr. 20, 1909.

- 2 SHEETS- 8151531 2.

7/////////// V//// fl////////////// CALEB e. COLLI-NS, or WOODMERE,

NEW YoRmassIeNoR TO CALVIN AMORY STEVENS, or

NEW YORK, N. Y..-

rnocnssor .nx'rnac rme corrnn FROM ORES.

Speeificati'on of Letters Patent.

Patented April 20, 1909..

Application filed November 27, 1907, Serial No. $04 189. Renewed September 19, 1908. Serial No. 453,823.

To all whom it may concern:

l 3e it known that I, CALEB G. COLLINS, a c1t1zen of the United States, residing at Woodmere, Nassau county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Im rovements in Processes for Extracting opper from Ores, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the extraction of copper from its several oresespecially the more refractory thereof, such as those containing copper and silica, and is designed to afford an economical process by means of whlch practically all the copper may be separated from the ores and collected in a metallic state. V

I am aware that heretofore comminuted carbonaceous material has been used in a closed furnace to reduce the oxids of co per to a metallic state, but I have found rom practical investigation and-experimentation that carbon alone is insuflicient to effect the reduction of all the copper in the various ores, so that only imperfect results have heretofore been attained in this respect.

My invention consists primarily in the use of carbonates of the alkalies and alkaline earths in conjunction with, carbonaceous material in the reduction of copper ore; and secondarily in the use in conyunction with carbonaceous material and carbonates of the alkalies and. alkaline earths, 0.1) hypochlorites of the alkalies and alkalineearths, substantially as hereinafter set forth.

Incidentally my invention includes certain other features herein described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1, is a top view of a furnace adapted to the re guirements of my improved process of reucing copper ore; Fig. 2,. is a horizontal section thereof, taken upon plane of line 22-' Fig. 3; Fig. 3, a verticalsection taken upon plane of line 33 Fig. 1;-

vertical section taken upon plane of line 4 t Fig. 1.

While I do not restrict myself to the identical form and construction of furnace shown I have found the same afiords good practical results.

R represents an elongated vertical retort chamber terminating in a water basin B below from which it is separated b a movable bottom I), which may be rocked om the exterior'by means of a bar 6, I (see Fig. 4). The upper portion of the retort R is proabout the same vided with a hopper H capable of being sealed. Combustion chambers O, O, are located on each sideof theretort chamber R, the products of combustion passing therefrom into the vertical side flues c, c, which in turn open into the end or chimney flues 0, c. It will be seen that the side flues 0, 0, and the end flues c, c, constitute practically- 'a single chamber surrounding the greater charge to be treated is fed into the retort R by gravity or otherwise, care being taken that the hopper H is well filled to exclude air.

In practice I grind the ore to the degree .of fineness desired according to the hardness of the ore say, so that it will pass through 'a No. 10 mesh screen. With the comminuted ore I put ground charcoal, coal or other carbonaceous material; also comminuted carbonates of the alkalies or alkaline earths, which combination is suitable for the ores known as cuprite, malachite, and azurite. If the ore to be treated contains sulfur or silicate, as bornite or chrysocolla either alone or mixed with other ores, I add to the charge hypochlorites of the alkalies or alkaline earths to break up the combination of sulfur and silica with the copper, as otherwise such copper would pass through the furnace Without being reduced to the metallic state. After the retort is filled with the charge it is sealed to exclude air. andprevent the re-oxidization of the copper after it has been reduced to the metallic state. The water seal afforded by the basin B protects the lower end of the retort, and by receiving and cooling the copper as it descends from the retort retains it in themetallic state, so that it may be collected by any well known process of concentration. From five to twenty per cent. by weight of carbonaceous material and roportion of pulverized lime stone (calcium carbonate) may be mixed with the ground ore, according to the nature and requirements of the latter.

Where'sulfid or silicate of copper is present in the ore chlorite of lime in the proportion approximately of from 12 to 13 per cent. 0 calcium hypochlorite to each 1 per cent. of sulfur in the ore maybe addedto the combination, all the ingredients being in any case thoroughly mixed together before the charge is introduced into the retort. After the retort is charged and seale'd, fires are built in the combustion chambers C, G, the heat being continued, the ore in theretort is brought to a bright red state of incandescenoe. The bottom I), is then rocked and tilted to allow of the descent of the metallic copper into the water in the basin B, Where it is cooled and from which it is collected for concentration as before stated. The metallic copper is thus removed from time to time as may be found expedient. When the metallic copper descends into the basin B, it causes the formation of steam which rises into the retort where it is united with the calcium and results in the generation of internal heat which materially aids in the reduction of the ore and eiiects a saving of fuel. In other words the reduced 'metal and the angue both red hot as they drop from the urnace into the Water under the furnace generate steam which coming in contact With the red hot carbon mixed with the ore is decomposed into hydrogen and an exactly equal volume of carbon monoxid gas both of which are when heated owerful reducers of metallic oxids and sulds to the metallic state.

Considering the process technically, the first action under influence of heat of the mixture of copper sulfid, alkaline carbonates and carbon is to reduce copper.carbonate and calcium sul d thus:

CuCO3-l-CaS I-C =Cu+CaS+3CO.

When the carbonate and silicate of copper unmixed with or uncombined With sulfur is in the case the reaction is in some respects more simple, metallic copper, calcium silicate and carbon monox d gas being produced thus:

some cause not yet determined, than other copper ores of apparently the same charac er. In cases like this I add to the m x-.

ture from five to fifteen per centi the w'eight of the copper ore of calcium hypochlorite or bleaching powder OaOCl in which case I the reactions may be represented thus:

GuS+CaOG1 +CaOO +C= Cu+S O,+CaCl |-CaO+CO, and where an unusually, refractory copper silicate is to be treated, thus Where there is much silica mixed or com.-

substituting of course the symbols of the carbonates of barium, potassium or sodlum according to which is used, When the carbonates of barium, potassium or sodium are used With the carbonate of calcium the "reduction of the on per ore to the metallic state, especially i the ore be silicious, is effected at a lower temperature than when the only alkali used is carbonate of lime, but as before indicated there are some ores inwhich carbonate of calcium alone is the only alkali necessary. Where powdered limestone is used on the charge as before stated it is reduced to quicklime during the roasting process so thatthe steam evolved during the operation of dumpin a portion of the charge into the water in the basin B, slakes the l me and thereby contributes materially to the heat of the sealed retort. this connection it is to be noted that I am the first to utilize the heat of the reduced 'ore to form steam which is decomposed Within the retort producing hydrogen which, being in a nascent state, is most eifective 1n producing the desired chemical reactions within the retort.

By n process I am enabled to extract practica 1y all the copper from all'the several copper ores, and to accomplish this desirable result in the most economical man- By the use in combination with the carbon and carbonates of the alkaliesand alkaline earths owerful bases having a stronger afinity t an copper for sulfur and silica, I render orescontaining either or both of the lat er t ac ab nd ro ab1e, -a, re sult not he et for a ta ned: so far as I em aware.

What I claim as m invention nd esire to secure by Letters atent is,

1. The herein described process of separating copper from its ore which consists ,in mlxmg the ore in a comminuted state with comminuted carbonaceous material, and with comminuted carbonates of the alka lies and the alkaline earths, and subjecting the mixture to heat in a closed retort.

2. The herein described process of separating copper from its ore which consists in mixing the ore in a comminuted state with commlnuted carbonaceous material, and with comminuted carbonates of the alkalies and the alkaline earths, subjecting the mixture to heat in a closed retort, and discharging the resultant metallic copper into water, for the purpose described.

3. The herein described process of separating copper from its ore which consists in mixing the ore in a comminuted state with commlnuted carbonaceous material, and

with comminuted carbonates of the alkalies and the alkaline earths, together with hypochlorites of the alkalies and the alkaline earths, and subjecting the mixture to heat in a closed retort.

4. The herein described process of separatingcopperfrom its ore which consists 1n mlxing the ore in a comminuted state with comminuted carbonaceous material, and with comminuted carbonates of the alkalies and the alkaline earths, together with hypochlorites of the alkalies and alkaline earths subjecting the mixture to heat in a closed retort, and discharging the resultant metallic copper into water, for the purpose described. 4

5. The herein described process of separating copper from its ore which consists in mixing the ore in a comminuted state with comminuted carbonaceous material, and with comminuted calcium carbonate, and subjecting the mixture to heat in a closed retort.

6. The herein described process of separating copper from its ore which consists in mixing theore in a comminuted state with comminuted carbonaceous material,

and with comminuted limestone, subjecting the mixture to heat in a closed retort, and discharging the resultant metallic copper into water, for the purpose described.

7 The herein described process of separating copper from its ore which consists in mixing the ore ma comminuted state with commniuted carbonaceous material, and with commlnuted calcium carbonate comminuted and hypochlorite of calcium, subjecting the mixture to heat in a closed retort.

8. The herein described process of separating copper from its ore which consists in mixing the ore in a comminuted state with comminuted carbonaceous material, and with comminuted calcium carbonate and hypochlorite of calcium, subjecting the mixture to heat in a closed retort, and discharging the resultant metallic copper into Water, for the purpose described.

9. The herein described process of separating copper from its ore consisting in mixing the ore in a comminuted state with comminuted carbonaceous material and comminuted limestone, subjecting the mixture to heat in a closed retort, and admitting steam to the retort to slake the quicklime resultant from the heating of the limestone, for the purpose described.

10. The herein described process of separating copper from its ore consisting in mixing the ore in a comminuted state with comminuted carbonaceous material and with comminuted carbonates of the alkalies .or. the alkaline earths, subjectin the mixture to heat in a closed vessel, discharging the resultant metallic copper into water, and utilizing the steam thereby generated to form hydrogen within the retort for the purpose described.

11. The herein described process of separating copper from its ore consisting in mixing the ore in a comminuted state with comminuted carbonaceous material and with comminuted carbonates of the alkalies or the alkaline earth together with hypochlorite of lime or hypochlorites of the other alkalies subjecting the mixture to heat in a closed vessel, discharging the resultant metallic copper into water, and utilizing the steam thereby generated to form hydrogen within the retortffor the purpose descrlbed.

12. The herein described process of separating copper from its ore consisting 1n mixing the ore in a comminuted state wlth carbonaceous material and with a base having an affinity stronger than that of the copper for sulfur and silica, and

then subjecting the mixture to heat in a closed retort.

CALEB G. COLLINS.

Witnesses D. W. GARDNER, Gno. WM. MIA'I'I.

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