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Study of the Effect of Spinel Composition on Metallic Copper Losses in Slags

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Abstract

In both primary and secondary copper production, copper losses in slags are a decisive factor confining the process efficiency. An important cause for mechanical entrainment of metal droplets in slags is their attachment to solid spinel particles present in the slag phase, hindering sedimentation. To further optimize the production process, it is important to gain insights in the fundamental mechanisms governing this attachment. In the present study, the influence of the spinel composition on the attachment of copper droplets is investigated. First, the attachment is studied in an industrially relevant synthetic PbO–CaO–SiO2–Cu2O–Al2O3–FeO–ZnO slag system. Second, the wetting of copper on two spinel substrates (ZnFe2O4 and MgAl2O4) has been studied in the absence of a slag system, by sessile-drop experiments. Based on the results of both types of experiments, a clear influence of the spinel composition on the sticking behavior of copper droplets is noted. These observations might be transferred to industrial processes to adapt processing parameters to diminish copper losses in industrial slags.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the Agency for Innovation by Science and Technology in Flanders (IWT, Project 110541) and Umicore for its financial support; and, in particular, they thank Maurits van Camp, Luc Coeck, Saskia Bodvin, Kristel Van Ostaeyen, Eddy Boydens, Danny Leysen, and the technical staff of the Umicore R&D for their support with the experiments and characterization. Pieter L’Hoëst is thanked for the help with the EPMA measurements. Jeroen Heulens and Joris Van Dyck are thanked for the help with the development of the sessile-drop set-up and for the help with the sessile-drop experiments, respectively. Lisa Claeys and Tim De Seranno are thanked for their help with the experimental work during their internship.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Ghent University, Technologiepark 903, Zwijnaarde, 9052, Ghent, Belgium

    Evelien De Wilde, Inge Bellemans & Kim Verbeken

  2. Umicore R&D, Kasteelstraat 7, 2250, Olen, Belgium

    Evelien De Wilde & Mieke Campforts

  3. Department of Materials Engineering, KU Leuven, Kasteelpark Arenberg 44, Bus 2450, Heverlee, 3001, Leuven, Belgium

    Muxing Guo, Kim Vanmeensel, Bart Blanpain & Nele Moelans

Authors
  1. Evelien De Wilde
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  2. Inge Bellemans
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  3. Mieke Campforts
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  5. Kim Vanmeensel
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  6. Bart Blanpain
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  7. Nele Moelans
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  8. Kim Verbeken
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Correspondence to Inge Bellemans.

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The contributing editor for this article was K. Yamaguchi.

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De Wilde, E., Bellemans, I., Campforts, M. et al. Study of the Effect of Spinel Composition on Metallic Copper Losses in Slags. J. Sustain. Metall. 3, 416–427 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40831-016-0106-0

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