US 4,393,032 A · Production of phosphoric acid and additional products from phosphate ore

Abstract

Phosphate rock, including low grade phosphate ore, is treated to recover phosphoric acid and other valuable products by a series of steps including contacting phosphate ore with a weak phosphoric acid to form a suspension of at least a portion of the slimes contained in the ore so that the slimes can be separated from the ore, and separating the slimes to provide a deslimed phosphate ore. Deslimed phosphate rock is solubilized with phosphoric acid to convert at least a portion of the calcium contained in the rock and form a solution of monocalcium phosphate and phosphoric acid. After removal of solids, this solution can be treated with sulfuric acid in a gypsum crystallizer to form gypsum and the phosphoric acid product wherein filterable gypsum crystals are obtained by maintaining a total SO.sub.3 content of 1.5-4 wt. % in a first crystallizer and neutralizing the SO.sub.3 in a second crystallizer. In other aspects of the invention, at least a portion of the phosphoric acid produced may be recycled to convert additional ore and the slime suspension may be treated to recover the weak acid recovered from the suspension. Further, wash water from the gypsum filter may be recycled to the desliming stage, the filtrate from the deslimer may be cycled to the acidulation reactor and monocalcium phosphate may be recovered as a separate product from phosphoric acid and connected to other useful products.

Claims55

Dependent claims

A process for the production of phosphoric acid from deslimed phosphate ore which comprises the steps of:

(a) contacting said deslimed phosphate ore with a sufficient amount of a phosphoric acid solution in an acidulator to solubilize said phosphate ore and convert at least a portion of the calcium contained in the ore so as to form a solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid containing sand solids and residual slimes;
(b) passing said solution through a separator to remove the sand solids from the solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid and dividing the solution into two portions, said solution still containing residual slimes;
(c) contacting one of said portions which still contains residual slimes, with sufficient sulfuric acid in a first crystallizer to convert all the incoming calcium equivalent to the calcium in the ore to calcium sulfate, and wherein the sulfuric acid is added to the said portion at a sufficient rate to maintain a total SO.sub.3 content in the first crystallizer solution of about 1.5 to 4.0 wt.% and form a mixture containing phosphoric acid and calcium sulfate;
(d) reacting the mixture from the first crystallizer with the remaining portion of the said solution which still contains residual slimes, in a second crystallizer, there being sufficient calcium in the said remaining portion to neutralize the SO.sub.3 content contained in the mixture from the first crystallizer and form a slurry containing calcium sulfate and phosphoric acid;
(e) removing the resulting slurry, passing to a separator and separating the calcium sulfate solids from the phosphoric acid solution;
and
(g) recovering the phosphoric acid.

4 more elements

A process for the production of phosphoric acid from deslimed phosphate ore which comprises the steps of:

(a) contacting said deslimed phosphate ore with a sufficient amount of a phosphoric acid solution in an acidulator to solubilize said phosphate ore and convert at least a portion of the calcium contained in the rock so as to form a solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid containing sand solids and residual slimes;
(b) passing said solution through a separator to remove the sand solids from the solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid and dividing the solution into two portions, said solution still containing residual slimes;
(c) contacting one of said portions which still contains residual slimes with sufficient sulfuric acid in a first crystallizer to convert all the incoming calcium equivalent to the calcium in the ore to calcium sulfate, and wherein the sulfuric acid is added at a sufficient rate to maintain a total SO.sub.3 content in the first crystallizer solution of about 1.5 to 4.0 wt.% and form a mixture containing phosphoric acid and calcium sulfate;
(d) reacting the mixture from the first crystallizer with the remaining portion of the said solution which still contains residual slimes, in a second crystallizer, there being sufficient calcium in the said remaining portion to neutralize the SO.sub.3 content contained in the mixture from the first crystallizer and form a slurry of calcium sulfate and phosphoric acid;
(e) removing the resulting slurry to a settler and separating into a phosphoric acid solution overflow and a calcium sulfate slurry underflow;
(f) recycling at least a portion of the calcium sulfate slurry underflow to the said first crystallizer;
and the remaining portion of the underflow to a separator;
(g) passing the phosphoric acid solution overflow to the first acidulator;
and
(h) separating said remaining portion of the underflow to recover calcium sulfate and phosphoric acid product.

7 more elements

A process for the production of phosphoric acid from phosphate ore which comprises the steps of:

(a) contacting phosphate ore in a deslimer with a weak phosphoric acid solution to form a suspension of at least a portion of the slimes contained in the ore so that the slimes can be separated from the ore;
(b) separating the slimes as a suspension in the weak phosphoric acid to provide a deslimed phosphate ore;
(c) containing said deslimed phosphate ore with a sufficient amount of a phosphoric acid solution to solubilize said phosphate ore so as to convert at least a portion of the calcium contained in the ore and form a solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid containing sand solids and residual slimes;
(d) passing said solution through a separator to remove the sand solids from the solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid and dividing the solution into two portions, said solution still containing residual slimes;
(e) contacting one of said portions which still contains residual slimes with sufficient sulfuric acid to convert all the incoming calcium equivalent to the calcium in the ore to calcium sulfate, and wherein the sulfuric acid is added to the said portion at a sufficient rate to maintain a total SO.sub.3 content in the first crystallizer solution of about 1.5 to 4.0 wt.% and form a mixture containing phosphoric acid and calcium sulfate;
(f) reacting the mixture from the first crystallizer with the remaining portion of the said solution which still contains residual slimes, in a second crystallizer, there being sufficient calcium in the said remaining portion to neutralize the SO.sub.3 content contained in the mixture from the first crystallizer and form a slurry of calcium sulfate and phosphoric acid;
(g) removing the resulting slurry from the second crystallizer to a separator and separating solid calcium sulfate from a phosphoric acid solution;
and
(h) recovering at least a portion of the phosphoric acid solution.

6 more elements

A process for the production of phosphoric acid from phosphate ore which comprises the steps of:

(a) contacting said phosphate ore in a deslimer with a weak phosphoric acid solution to form a suspension of at least a portion of the slimes contained in the ore so that the slimes can be separated from the ore;
(b) separating the slime suspension to provide a deslimed phosphate ore;
(c) contacting said deslimed phosphate ore with a sufficient amount of a recycle phosphoric acid solution in at least one acidulator to solubilize said phosphate ore so as to convert at least a portion of the calcium contained in the ore and form a solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid containing sand solids and residual slimes;
(d) passing said monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid solution through a separator to remove the sand solids from the solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid, said solution still containing residual slimes;
(e) dividing said solution into two portions, each of said portions still containing residual slimes;
(f) contacting one of said portions with sufficient sulfuric acid in a first crystallizer to convert all the incoming calcium equivalent to the calcium in the ore to calcium sulfate, and wherein the sulfuric acid is added to the said portion at a sufficient rate to maintain a total SO.sub.3 content in the first gypsum crystallizer solution of about 1.5 to 4.0 wt.% and form a mixture containing phosphoric acid and calcium sulfate;
(g) reacting the mixture from the first crystallizer with the remaining portion of the said solution in a second crystallizer, there being sufficient calcium in the said remaining portion to neutralize the SO.sub.3 content contained in the mixture from the first crystallizer and form a calcium sulfate and phosphoric acid slurry;
(h) removing a portion of the slurry from the second crystallizer and recycling to the at least one acidulator;
(i) passing the remainder of the slurry to a separator and separating the calcium sulfate from the phosphoric acid, the amount of calcium sulfate slurry being passed to said gypsum separator being sufficient to remove an amount of P.sub.2 O.sub.5 in the phosphoric acid product which is equivalent to the P.sub.2 O.sub.5 content of the entering phosphate ore;
(j) washing the calcium sulfate solids with water and recycling the wash water as a weak phosphoric acid solution to the deslimer to deslime additional phosphate ore;
(k) recycling a portion of the phosphoric acid from step (i) to said at least one acidulator to solubilize additional phosphate ore;
and
(l) recovering at least a portion of the phosphoric acid as product acid.

10 more elements

A process for the production of phosphoric acid from phosphate ore which comprises the steps of:

(a) contacting phosphate ore in a deslimer with a weak phosphoric acid solution to form a suspension of at least a portion of the slimes contained in the ore so that the slimes can be separated from the ore;
(b) separating the slime suspension to provide a deslimed phosphate ore;
(c) contacting said deslimed phosphate ore with a sufficient amount of a recycle phosphoric acid solution in at least one acidulator to solubilize said phosphate ore so as to convert at least a portion of the calcium contained in the ore and form a solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid containing sand solids and residual slimes;
(d) passing said monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid solution through a separator to remove the sand solids from the solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid, said solution still containing residual slimes;
(e) dividing said solution into two portions, each of said portions still containing residual slimes;
(f) contacting one of said portions with sufficient sulfuric acid in a first crystallizer to convert all the incoming calcium equivalent to the calcium in the ore to calcium sulfate, and wherein the sulfuric acid is added to the said portion at a sufficient rate to maintain a total SO.sub.3 content in the first crystallizer solution of about 1.5 to 4.0 wt.% and form a mixture containing phosphoric acid and calcium sulfate;
(g) reacting the mixture from the first crystallizer with the remaining portion of the said solution in a second crystallizer, there being sufficient calcium in the said remaining portion to neutralize the SO.sub.3 content contained in the mixture from the first crystallizer and form a phosphoric acid and calcium sulfate slurry;
(h) removing the slurry from the second crystallizer, passing to a settler, separating into a phosphoric acid solution overflow and a calcium sulfate slurry underflow, recycling at least a portion of the slurry underflow to the said first crystallizer, and recycling the remaining portion of the underflow to a separator, passing a portion of the overflow to the first acidulator, and passing the remaining portion of the overflow to the separator;
and
(i) removing calcium sulfate in the separator recovering product phosphoric acid.

7 more elements

A process for the production of phosphoric acid from phosphate ore which comprises the steps of:

(a) contacting said phosphate ore in a deslimer with a weak phosphoric acid solution to form a suspension of at least a portion of the slimes contained in the ore so that the slimes can be separated from the ore;
(b) separating the slime suspension to provide a deslimed phosphate ore;
(c) removing the deslimed phosphate ore to an acidulator and contacting said deslimed phosphate ore with a sufficient amount of a recycle calcium phosphate-phosphoric acid mixture in at least one acidulator to solubilize said phosphate ore so as to convert at least a portion of the calcium contained in the ore and form a solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid containing sand solids, non-acidulated ore, and residual slimes;
(d) passing said solution, sand solids, non-acidulated solids and residual slimes through a separator to remove non-acidulated solids and sand as a slurry from a solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid, said solution still containing residual slimes;
(e) passing the non-acidulated solids-sand slurry to at least a second acidulator and completing the solubilization of the phosphate ore by reaction of the slurry with recycle phosphoric acid and form a mixture of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid, sand solids, and residual slimes;
(f) removing the resulting mixture to a separator, separating the sand solids, and recycling the solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid, which still contains residual slimes, to the first acidulator;
(g) removing the solution of monocalcium phosphate in phosphoric acid from step (d) and dividing into two portions, both of said portions still containing residual slimes;
(h) contacting one of said portions with sufficient sulfuric acid in a first crystallizer to convert all the incoming calcium equivalent to the calcium in the ore to calcium sulfate, and wherein the sulfuric acid is added to the said portion at a sufficient rate to maintain a total SO.sub.3 content in the first crystallizer solution of about 1.5 to 4.0 wt.% and form a mixture containing phosphoric acid and calcium sulfate;
(i) reacting the mixture from the first crystallizer with the remaining portion of the said solution in a second crystallizer, there being sufficient calcium in the said remaining portion to neutralize the SO.sub.3 content in the mixture from the first crystallizer and form a phosphoric acid and calcium sulfate slurry;
(j) removing a portion of the resulting slurry and recycling to the second acidulator to solubilize additional phosphate ore;
(k) removing the remainder of the slurry to a separator and separating calcium sulfate solids from the phosphoric acid;
(l) recovering the phosphoric acid as product;
and
(m) washing the calcium sulfate solids with water or weak phosphoric acid and recycling the resultant wash water to the deslimer to deslime additional phosphate ore.

11 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Production of phosphoric acid and additional products from phosphate ore

Life of this patent

Production of phosphoric acid and additional products from phosphate ore

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims55