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US 5,180,422 AGranted
Copper smelting process
AssigneeMitsubishi Materials Corporation
InventorsNobuo Kikumoto, Mineo Hayashi
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A copper smelting process is disclosed in which copper concentrate is smelted in a furnace to produce purified copper. Flue gas discharged from the furnace is treated to produce sulfuric acid. Furthermore, waste liquid discharged during the production of sulfuric acid is treated to produce gypsum, and the gypsum thus produced is recycled to the furnace as a flux. The flue gas may be exhausted from either or both of a smelting furnace and a converting furnace, and the gypsum may be preferably introduced into the converting furnace.
Claims4
A copper smelting process comprising the steps of:
- smelting copper concentrate in a furnace to produce copper;
- treating flue gas discharged from said furnace to produce sulfuric acid;
- treating waste liquid discharged during the production of the sulfuric acid to produce gypsum;
- and
- introducing said gypsum into said furnace as a flux.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.