Method of employing elemental zinc for the purification of aqueous solutions of metallic salts

In a method of purifying an impure zinc sulfate solution containing impurities that consist of metallic sulfate salts of copper and cadmium, wherein the solution is contacted with elemental zinc particles at a temperature effective to cause the zinc to react with the solution so that the copper and cadmium precipitates as a cake on the surface of the zinc particles, the improvement which comprises the steps of substantially filling a single vertically disposed cylindrical reaction chamber with a fixedly grid supported bed of zinc granules to a height of greater than 6m, the quantity of zinc granules being chosen to establish a ratio of about 1000 units of the zinc granules to 1 unit of the cake;

• imparting a continuous turbulent motion to the zinc granules uniformly throughout the height of the cylindrical reaction chamber by contacting the turbulent zinc granules with the solution by flowing the solution upwardly through the turbulent column and out of the chamber in one pass at a velocity in the range of 0.08-0.5 m/sec. so that, because of such turbulence, high frictional forces between the granules and the solution, between the granules and the wall of the reaction chamber and between the granules themselves are generated which instantly separate, from all of the zinc granules, the cake of copper and cadmium precipitated on the surface of the zinc granules, whereby the surfaces of the zinc granules are renewed in situ for further reaction and whereby the upward flow of the purified solution out of the chamber is effective to carry the separated cake out of the chamber with it, and thereafter leaving the purified solution to settle for about two minutes to separate out the cake from the thus purified solution.