Extraction of copper from chalcopyrite concentrates without sulfuric acid generation via chlorination - Part 3: Integration of gaseous chlorination and selective oxidation

A three-stage fluidizing-bed process consisting of chlorination, selective oxidation and sulfur chloride conversion was tested for processing chalcopy rite concentrate. It was found that the use of excess oxygen was essential for the stable operation of the oxidation reactor. The excess-oxygen gas in evitably causes the oxidation of the sulfide concentrate in the chlorinatio n and sulfur chloride conversion reactors. A new flowsheet is proposed to s eparate the chlorination and selective oxidation steps with separate flow p aths of the fluidizing gases, thereby, preventing the passage of excess-oxy gen gas in the chlorination and sulfur chloride conversion reactors. The fe asibility of the proposed flowsheet was demonstrated in a laboratory-scale fluidizing bed setup.