Recovering Metal Values from a Metalliferrous Material

A method of treating a metalliferrous material source, comprising:

• providing a metalliferrous material source including at least one target elemental metal comprising metalliferrous material source-based metal sulphide and at least one non-target elemental metal comprising metalliferrous material source-based metal sulphide, wherein each one of the at least one target elemental metal comprising metalliferrous material source-based metal sulphide includes at least one metalliferrous material source-based target elemental metal, wherein the at least one target elemental metal comprising metalliferrous material source-based metal sulphide includes at least one of nickel sulphide and cobalt sulphide, such that the at least one metalliferrous material source-based target elemental metal includes at least one of nickel and cobalt, and wherein each one of the at least one non-target elemental metal comprising metalliferrous material source-based metal sulphide includes at least one metalliferrous material source-based non-target elemental metal, and wherein the at least one non-target elemental metal comprising metalliferrous material source-based metal sulphide includes iron sulphide, such that the at least one metalliferrous material source-based non-target elemental metal includes iron;
• providing a process feed material, wherein the process feed material includes the metalliferrous material source,
• leaching the process feed material in a preliminary leaching zone with a preliminary leachant to effect production of a preliminary leach product including a preliminary leach solution and a preliminary leach solid residue, wherein the preliminary leach solution includes at least one preliminary leach solution-based target elemental metal, wherein each one of the at least one preliminary leach solution-based target elemental metal is a one of the at least one metalliferrous material source-based target elemental metal, and wherein the preliminary leach solid residue includes:
• (i) at least one of nickel sulphide and cobalt sulphide, (ii) at least one of other nickel comprising material and other cobalt comprising material, and (iii) iron comprising material, and wherein the preliminary leachant is an aqueous solution comprising ammonia and ammonium sulphate;
• separating at least a fraction of the preliminary leach solid residue from the preliminary leach product such that a metalliferrous material is provided, wherein the metalliferrous material includes at least a fraction of the separated preliminary leach solid residue;
• leaching at least a fraction of the metalliferrous material with an aqueous solution including dissolved sulphuric acid and dissolved sulphur dioxide in a leaching zone so as to effect production of an operative leach product including a leachate component and a solid residue component, wherein the leachate component includes nickel sulphate, cobalt sulphate, and iron sulphate, and wherein the solid residue component includes at least one of nickel sulphide and cobalt sulphide;
• separating at least a fraction of the solid residue component from the operative leach product to provide a recovered solid residue component;
• and
• recycling the recovered solid residue component to the preliminary leaching zone.

A method of treating a metalliferrous material source, comprising:

• providing a metalliferrous material source including at least one of nickel sulphide and cobalt sulphide, and also including iron sulphide;
• leaching the metalliferrous material source with a preliminary leachant in a leaching zone to effect production of a preliminary leach product including a preliminary leach solution and a preliminary leach solid residue, wherein the preliminary leachant includes an aqueous solution comprising ammonia and ammonium sulphate, and wherein the preliminary leach solution includes at least one of dissolved nickel comprising material and dissolved cobalt comprising material, and wherein the preliminary leach solid residue includes:
• (i) at least one of nickel sulphide and cobalt sulphide, (ii) at least one of other nickel comprising material and other cobalt comprising material, and (iii) other iron comprising material;
• separating at least a fraction of the preliminary leach solid residue from the preliminary leach product such that a metalliferrous material is provided, wherein the metalliferrous material includes at least a fraction of the separated preliminary leach solid residue;
• leaching at least a fraction of the metalliferrous material with an aqueous solution including dissolved sulphuric acid and dissolved sulphur dioxide in a leaching zone so as to effect production of an operative leach product including a leachate component and a solid residue component, wherein the leachate component includes nickel sulphate, cobalt sulphate, and iron sulphate, and wherein the solid residue component includes at least one of nickel sulphide and cobalt sulphide;
• separating at least a fraction of the solid residue component from the operative leach product to provide a recovered solid residue component;
• and
• recycling the recovered solid residue component to the preliminary leaching zone.