US 2013/0171048 A1Published application

Solution mining of ore containing sodium carbonate and bicarbonate

AssigneeSolvay SA

InventorsJames D. PHILLIP, Alain VANDENDOREN

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Abstract

A solution mining method for recovering alkali values from a cavity of an underground ore formation comprising trona and/or wegscheiderite; a manufacturing process using such method to make sodium-based product(s); and a sodium-based product obtained therefrom. The method comprises: an ore dissolution phase (a) in which the incongruent double-salt in trona and/or wegscheiderite is dissolved from an ore face in a first solvent, and a cavity cleaning phase (b) in which sodium bicarbonate deposited on the ore face during the dissolution phase (a) is dissolved into a second aqueous solvent having a higher pH, hydroxide content, and/or temperature and is partly or completely converted in situ to sodium carbonate. The method further comprises withdrawing a liquor resulting from either phase to the ground surface, optionally recycling some liquor to the cavity; and passing some liquor through a crystallizer, a reactor, and/or an electrodialyser, to form at least one sodium-based product which is recovered.

Claims19

Dependent claims

A method for recovering alkali values from at least one cavity of an underground ore formation, said ore comprising trona and/or wegscheiderite, said method comprising:

carrying out an ore dissolution phase (a) into the at least one cavity, said ore dissolution phase comprising dissolving in situ at least a portion of ore from an ore face of the cavity into a first aqueous solvent to form said a liquor comprising sodium carbonate and to deposit sodium bicarbonate on at least a portion of the ore face;
carrying out a cavity cleaning phase (b) into the same cavity where the ore dissolution phase (a) takes place in order for at least a portion of said deposited sodium bicarbonate to be removed from the ore face, said cleaning phase (a) comprising dissolving in situ at least a portion of the deposited sodium bicarbonate and optionally dissolving in situ at least a portion of the ore from the ore face into a second aqueous solvent to form a second liquor comprising sodium carbonate, said second aqueous solvent having a parameter selected from the group consisting of pH, hydroxide concentration, temperature, and any combinations of two or more thereof, which has a higher value than the first aqueous solvent used in the dissolution phase (a);
and
repeating the ore dissolution phase (a).

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 13/726,005Filed 21 Dec 2012
Priority: 23 Dec 2011
Published: 4 Jul 2013
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification8 codes

E21B 43/28
Methods or apparatus for obtaining oil, gas, water, soluble or meltable materials or a slurry of minerals from wells: dissolving minerals other…
C01D 7/12
Carbonates of sodium, potassium or alkali metals in general: preparation of carbonates from bicarbonates or bicarbonate-containing product
C01D 7/126
Preparation of carbonates from bicarbonates or bicarbonate-containing product: multi-step processes, e.g. from trona to soda ash
E21B 43/281
Dissolving minerals other than hydrocarbons, e.g. by an alkaline or acid leaching agent: using heat