Investigation of Alkaline Leaching Parameters on Stibnite Concentrate
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Investigation of Alkaline Leaching Parameters on Stibnite Concentrate Serdar Aktaş 1
&
Burcu Nilgün Çetiner 1
Received: 25 February 2020 / Accepted: 16 July 2020 # Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration Inc. 2020
Abstract According to critical statistical studies, antimony is one of the rarest elements in the world, and global resources could be exhausted by 2050. In light of these observations, its extraction will be costly due to poor-quality ore, deep mining, remote locations, and high energy consumption. In the present study, an alkaline leaching process was carried out on stibnite concentrate to evaluate the effect of reaction parameters on the percentage of antimony extraction. The leaching efficiencies of different sulfur and hydroxide sources were studied and compared to one another to create a better understanding of the reaction process. Kinetic models were investigated to identify the reaction pathway and calculate the activation energy. The activation energy of the stibnite dissolution was assessed as 19.13 kJ/mol using a two-dimensional diffusion-reaction model. The value of activation energy indicates the quantity of energy necessary for a reaction to proceed. As expected, potassium hydroxide leaching was significantly more successful than was sodium hydroxide; however, in terms of economics, the use of sodium hydroxide was found to be more cost-efficient. Interestingly, this finding indicated that caustic leaching is still the most effective method for stibnite extraction. Keywords Stibnite . Antimony . Alkaline . Leaching . Extraction
1 Introduction Antimony is a brilliant white metalloid with a bluish tinge and has a rhombohedral crystalline structure. The melting point and boiling point of antimony are 630 °C and 1635 °C, respectively. It starts to become appreciably volatilized at about 1500 °C. Air has no effect on antimony at ordinary temperatures, but when antimony is heated to redness in air, volatile antimony oxide (Sb2O3) is formed [1]. Antimony trioxide is toxic even at a low concentration, and some of its salts may be carcinogenic upon long-term exposure. Antimony has been employed extensively both in industry and in daily life since the nineteenth century; however, antimony sulfides have been known since around 4000 BC. Its most significant application is as a flame retardant in the manufacture of electronics and
* Serdar Aktaş [email protected] 1
Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Marmara University, 34722 Istanbul, Turkey
textiles, as a catalyst for plastic fabrication, and as paint pigment and fining agent in glassware, opacifier in ceramics and an alloying element in ammunition and battery manufacturing plants. It is also utilized in vehicle brakes and tires. Brake pads contain stibnite, the sulfide compound of antimony. In particular, stibnite is used in automobiles as a lubricant, vibration reducer, and friction stability improver. Anthropogenic activities are the primary source of antimony in the atmosphere [2, 3]. As a result, global consump
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