SELECTIVE REMOVAL OF GOLD FROM COPPER-GOLD CYANIDE LIQUORS BY CEMENTATION USING ZINC

Rotating disc electrodes were used to study the kinetics of cementatio n of copper rising zinc discs over a wide range of Cu(I) concentration (0.15-1.57 mM), free cyanide (0-10 mM), pH (pH8-11) and temperature ( 20-50 degrees C). By modelling the speciation of the CII(I) species in the solution, it is able to postulate that Cu(CN)(2)(-) is the electr ochemical active species responsible for the cementation process. By i ncreasing the free cyanide concentration or the solution pH within the above ranges, the concentration of this species decreases dramaticall y, thus causing the cementation rate to drop significantly Under the r est conditions, the cementation process is controlled by a kinetic ste p, with an activation energy of 31.8 kJ/mol. By selecting a high free cyanide concentration and a high pH, gold can be selectively cemented from a gold-copper mixture using zinc, leaving copper completely behin d in the solution.