Treating deep sea nodules by segregation roasting
AssigneeCombustion Engineering, Inc.
InventorTage L. B. Jepsen
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A process for recovering nonferrous nickel, copper and cobalt from deep sea nodules to obtain a concentrate rich in the nonferrous metals, a middlings less concentrated in the nonferrous metals and a tailings with a very low concentration of the nonferrous metals. The crushed nodules are mixed with middlings, a carbonaceous reductant and a chlorinating agent which is a mixture of sodium chloride with either calcium carbonate or calcium hydroxide. In a non-oxidizing atmosphere, the mixture is roasted at a temperature about 850.degree. C. and then cooled. The roasted material is finely ground, slurried and magnetically separated into the three fractions.
Claims3
A process for recovering a concentrate upgraded in the content of at least one nonferrous metal value selected from the group consisting of nickel, copper and cobalt from deep sea nodules comprising the steps of:
- a. producing a feed material comprising mixing:
- i. 100 parts by weight of said nodules;
- ii. 40 to 60 parts by weight of middlings as defined in step (f) (ii);
- iii. 30 to 60 parts by weight of a chloridizing agent comprising a mixture of sodium chloride and a calcium compound selected from the group consisting of calcium carbonate and calcium hydroxide in the ratio of about 1 mole of calcium compound to 2 moles of sodium chloride;
- and
- iv. 2 to 10 parts by weight of a carbonaceous reductant;
- b. roasting said feed material in a non-oxidizing atmosphere wherein said feed material is heated to a temperature above 850.degree. C.;
- c. cooling said roasted material in a non-oxidizing atmosphere;
- d. grinding said cooled roasted material to at least minus 270 mesh;
- e. forming a slurry of said ground material;
- and
- f. separating from said slurry by magnetic separation:
- i. a material having relatively high magnetic properties and concentrated in said non-ferrous metal values;
- ii. a middlings material having lower magnetic properties and less concentrated in said non-ferrous metal values;
- and
- iii. a non-magnetic tailings material low in said nonferrous metal values.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.