# US 2014/0151472 A1 · Ore slurry production method and metal refining method > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2014/0151472 A1 - Document ID: US20140151472A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 14/237,593 - Filed: 2012-11-01 - Published: 2014-06-05 - Earliest claimed: 2011-11-04 - Assignees: Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. - Applicants: Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. - Inventors: Hiroyuki Mitsui; Keisuke Shibayama; Hirofumi Shoji; Tatsuya Higaki; Yoji Kyoda; Osamu Nakai - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20140151472A1 ## CPC - C22B 23/0407: {Leaching processes} - B02C 19/00: Other disintegrating devices or methods (for grain B02C9/00) - C22B 1/00: Preliminary treatment of ores or scrap - C22B 23/005: {Preliminary treatment of ores, e.g. by roasting or by the Krupp-Renn process} - Y02P 10/20: Recycling - C22B: PRODUCTION AND REFINING OF METALS (electrolytic C25); PRETREATMENT OF RAW MATERIALS - B02C: CRUSHING, PULVERISING, OR DISINTEGRATING IN GENERAL; MILLING GRAIN ({household tools and machines for pulverising foodstuffs, e.g. coffee and spice mills A47J42/00; pharmaceutical mortars A61J3/02; mechanical processing of refuse and garbage B03B9/06; dressing mould materials by grinding B22C5/04}; obtaining metallic powder by crushing, grinding or milling B22F9/04; {recovery of plastics by disintegrating B29B17/00; crushing raw materials in starch making C08B30/02; beaters for papermaking D21D1/02; crushing devices specially for transport in mines E21F13/002; slag crushing devices F23J1/00; fuel milling devices in combustion apparatus F23K1/00; household devices for crushing coal F24B15/02; ice disintegrating devices F25C5/02}) - Y02P: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS ## Abstract Disclosed is a method for producing an ore slurry that can suppress a rise in the viscosity of the ore slurry and consequently prevent a failure in transporting the slurry, and also to provide a metal refining method utilizing such a slurry producing method. The present invention includes: a pulverizing/classifying step of pulverizing raw material ores and classifying the resulting ores at a predetermined classifying point so that oversized ore particles are removed so as to obtain a coarse ore slurry composed of undersized ore particles; a grain size measuring step of measuring the grain size of the resulting coarse ore slurry; and an ore slurry condensing step of loading the coarse ore slurry to a solid-liquid separation device and separating and removing moisture contained in the coarse ore slurry therefrom so as to condense ore components. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method for producing an ore slurry from raw material ores comprising: a pulverizing/classifying step of pulverizing the raw material ores and classifying the resulting ores at a predetermined classifying point so that oversized ore particles are removed so as to obtain a coarse ore slurry composed of undersized ore particles; a grain size measuring step of measuring the grain size of the coarse ore slurry obtained by the pulverizing/classifying step; and an ore slurry condensing step of loading the coarse ore slurry to a solid-liquid separation device and separating and removing moisture contained in the coarse ore slurry therefrom so as to condense ore components, wherein in the case when the grain size measured in the grain size measuring step is lower than a predetermined value, one portion of the oversized ore particles that have been removed in the pulverizing/classifying step is loaded and added to the solid-liquid separation device in the ore slurry condensing step. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method for producing an ore slurry according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined value for the grain size is set to such a value corresponding to a grain size that causes a failure in transportation of the ore slurry due to a rise in viscosity of the ore slurry thus produced. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The method for producing an ore slurry according to claim 2, wherein the predetermined value for the grain size corresponds to a grain size that causes a yield stress of the ore slurry to exceed 200 Pa. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The method for producing an ore slurry according to claim 3, wherein the predetermined value for the grain size is 20 μm. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method for producing an ore slurry according to claim 1, wherein upon loading and adding the oversized ore particles to the solid-liquid separation device in the ore slurry condensing step, the oversized ore particles are adjusted so as to have a particle size in a range from 20 to 100 μm and added thereto. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method for producing an ore slurry according to claim 1, wherein the oversized ore particles are added at a rate of 1 to 30 weight % relative to the entire ore particles to be loaded into the solid-liquid separation device. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method for producing an ore slurry according to claim 1, wherein the raw material ores are nickel oxide ores. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The method for producing an ore slurry according to claim 7, wherein the ore slurry is used for a process for recovering nickel and cobalt from the ore slurry by a high-temperature pressure leaching method by the use of sulfuric acid. ### Claim 9 A metal refining method for recovering a metal contained in raw material ores from the raw material ores comprising: a pulverizing/classifying step of pulverizing the raw material ores and classifying the resulting ores at a predetermined classifying point so that oversized ore particles are removed so as to obtain a coarse ore slurry composed of undersized ore particles; a grain size measuring step of measuring the grain size of the coarse ore slurry obtained by the pulverizing/classifying step; and an ore slurry condensing step of loading the coarse ore slurry to a solid-liquid separation device and separating and removing moisture contained in the coarse ore slurry therefrom so as to condense ore components, wherein in the case when the grain size measured in the grain size measuring step is lower than a predetermined value, one portion of the oversized ore particles that have been removed in the pulverizing/classifying step is loaded and added to the solid-liquid separation device in the ore slurry condensing step. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The metal refining method according to claim 9, wherein the raw material ores are nickel oxide ores and nickel and cobalt are recovered from the nickel oxide ores. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The metal refining method according to claim 10, wherein the ore slurry produced by the ore slurry producing steps is added to sulfuric acid and leached out under high temperature and high pressure so that a leached liquor containing nickel and cobalt is obtained.