# US 2021/0172040 A1 · Improvement in copper/tin/lead production

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 2021/0172040 A1
- Document ID: US20210172040A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 16/771,490
- Filed: 2018-12-11
- Published: 2021-06-10
- Earliest claimed: 2017-12-14
- Assignees: Metallo Belgium
- Applicants: Metallo Belgium
- Inventors: Bert Coletti; Jan Dirk A. Goris; Yves De Visscher; Charles Geenen; Walter Guns; Niko Mollen; Steven Smets; Andy Breugelmans
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20210172040A1

## CPC

- C22B 7/04: Working-up slag
- C22B 15/0056: {Scrap treating}
- C22B 5/02: Dry methods {smelting of sulfides or formation of mattes}
- C22B 13/025: {Recovery from waste materials}
- C22B 15/0028: {Smelting or converting}
- C22B 15/0054: {Slag, slime, speiss, or dross treating}
- C22B 25/02: by dry processes
- C22C 9/02: with tin as the next major constituent
- C22C 9/08: with lead as the next major constituent
- Y02P 10/20: Recycling
- C22B: PRODUCTION AND REFINING OF METALS (electrolytic C25); PRETREATMENT OF RAW MATERIALS
- C22C: ALLOYS (treatment of alloys C21D, C22F)
- Y02P: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS

## Abstract

A disclosed dilute copper metal composition has 57-85% wt Cu, ≥3.0% wt Ni, ≤0.8% wt Fe, 7-25% wt Sn and 3-15% wt Pb. A process includes partially b) oxidizing a black copper composition to obtain a first copper refining slag and a first enriched copper metal. The process further includes oxidizing h) the first enriched copper metal to obtain a second copper refining slag, whereby at least 37.0% wt of the amount of tin and lead processed through steps b) and/or h) is retrieved in the first and second copper refining slags together, partially reducing c) the first copper refining slag to form a first lead-tin based metal composition and a first spent slag, adding the second copper refining slag to the first lead-tin based metal composition thereby forming a first liquid bath, partially oxidizing d) the first liquid bath, thereby obtaining the dilute copper metal composition.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A molten dilute copper metal composition comprising, on a weight basis and relative to its total dry weight:
at least 57% wt and at most 85% wt of copper,
at least 3.0% wt of nickel,
at most 0.8% wt of iron
at least 7% wt and at most 25% wt of tin, and
at least 3% wt and at most 15% wt of lead.

### Claim at position 2

2-10. (canceled)

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

A process for the manufacturing of a first dilute copper metal composition according to any claim 1, the process comprising the following steps:
a) providing a black copper composition comprising at least 50% wt of copper and at least 1.0% wt of tin, together with at least 1.0% wt of lead;
b) partially oxidizing the black copper composition, thereby forming a first enriched copper metal phase and a first copper refining slag, followed by separating the first copper refining slag from the first enriched copper metal phase;
h) partially oxidizing the first enriched copper metal phase, thereby forming a second enriched copper metal phase and a second copper refining slag, followed by separating the second copper refining slag from the second enriched copper metal phase,
whereby at least 37.0% wt of the total amount of the tin and lead that is processed through process steps b) and/or h) is retrieved in the first copper refining slag and the second copper refining slag together;
j) partially oxidizing the second enriched copper metal phase, thereby forming a third enriched copper metal phase and a third copper refining slag, followed by separating the third copper refining slag from the third enriched copper metal phase;
i) adding at least a part of at least one of the second copper refining slag and the third copper refining slag to a metal composition that contains copper together with at least one solder metal selected from tin and lead, thereby forming a first liquid bath; and
d) partially oxidizing the first liquid bath, thereby forming the first dilute copper metal composition according to claim 1 and a first solder refining slag, followed by separating the first solder refining slag from the first dilute copper metal composition.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The process according to claim 11 further comprising the step of
c) partially reducing the first copper refining slag thereby forming a first lead-tin based metal composition and a first spent slag, followed by separating the first spent slag from the first lead-tin based metal composition, and
adding the first lead-tin based metal composition to the first liquid bath as the metal composition of step i) that contains copper together with at least one solder metal selected from tin and lead.

### Claim at position 5

13-16. (canceled)

### Claim 17 (depends on 11)

The process according to claim 11, further comprising the following step:
e) partially reducing the first solder refining slag, thereby forming a first crude solder metal composition and a second solder refining slag, followed by separating the second solder refining slag from the first crude solder metal composition.

### Claim 18 (depends on 17)

The process according to claim 17, further comprising the following step:
partially reducing the second solder refining slag, thereby forming a second lead-tin based metal composition and a second spent slag, followed by separating the second spent slag from the second lead-tin based metal composition.

### Claim at position 8

19-26. (canceled)

### Claim 27 (depends on 11)

The process according to claim 11, further comprising the following steps:
k) at least one of adding at least a part of the third copper refining slag to the first dilute copper metal composition obtained from step d), thereby forming a second liquid bath, and/or adding at least a part of the third copper refining slag to step l); and
l) partially oxidizing the second liquid bath, thereby forming a first high-copper metal composition and a third solder refining slag, followed by separating the third solder refining slag from the first high-copper metal composition.

### Claim 28 (depends on 27)

The process according to claim 27, further comprising the following step:
m) partially reducing the third solder refining slag, thereby forming a second dilute copper metal composition and a fourth solder refining slag, followed by separating the fourth solder refining slag from the second dilute copper metal composition, wherein the second dilute copper metal composition comprises on a weight basis and relative to its total dry weight:
at least 57% wt and at most 85% wt of copper,
at least 3.0% wt of nickel;
at most 0.8% wt of iron;
at least 7% wt and at most 25% wt of tin; and
at least 3% wt and at most 15% wt of lead.

### Claim 29 (depends on 28)

The process according to claim 28, further comprising the following step:
n) partially reducing the fourth solder refining slag, thereby forming a second crude solder metal composition and a fifth solder refining slag, followed by separating the second crude solder metal composition from the fifth solder refining slag.

### Claim 30 (depends on 29)

The process according to claim 29, further comprising the following step:
o) partially reducing the fifth solder refining slag, thereby forming a third lead-tin based metal composition and a third spent slag, followed by separating the third spent slag from the third lead-tin based metal composition.

### Claim at position 13

31-44. (canceled)

### Claim 45 (depends on 11)

The process according to claim 11 in which a black copper or black copper composition is added to at least one of steps b), f) and o), wherein the black copper is produced by a smelter step.

### Claim 46 (depends on 11)

The process according to claim 11 wherein at least one of the first crude solder metal composition and the second crude solder metal composition is pre-refined using silicon metal to produce a pre-refined solder metal composition.

### Claim 47 (depends on 11)

The process according to claim 11 further comprising the step of cooling at least one of the first crude solder metal composition, the second crude solder metal composition and the pre-refined solder metal composition down to a temperature of at most 825° C. to produce a bath containing a first supernatant dross which by gravity becomes floating upon a first liquid molten tuned solder phase.

### Claim 48 (depends on 11)

The process according to claim 11 further comprising the step of adding at least one of an alkali metal, an earth alkali metal, and chemical compounds comprising at least one of an alkali metal and an earth alkali metal, to at least one of the first crude solder metal composition, the second crude solder metal composition, the pre-refined solder metal composition and the first liquid molten tuned solder phase to form a bath containing a second supernatant dross which by gravity comes floating on top of a second liquid molten tuned solder phase.

### Claim 49 (depends on 48)

The process according to claim 48, further comprising the step of removing the second supernatant dross from the second liquid molten tuned solder phase, thereby forming a second tuned solder.

### Claim 50 (depends on 47)

The process according to claim 47 further comprising the step of removing the first supernatant dross from the first liquid molten tuned solder phase, thereby forming a first tuned solder.

### Claim 51 (depends on 49)

The process according to claim 49, further comprising the step of distilling at least one of the first tuned solder and the second tuned solder, wherein lead (Pb) is removed from the solder by evaporation and a distillation overhead product and a distillation bottom product are obtained.

### Claim at position 21

52-53. (canceled)