Method for improving metals recovery using high temperature pressure leaching

A process for recovering a metal value from a metal-bearing material comprising the steps of:

• subjecting a metal-bearing material to a reactive process to liberate at least one metal value from said metal-bearing material and produces acid;
• utilizing at least a portion of the acid produced by said reactive process in a heap leaching operation or an agitated leaching operation;
• incorporating at least one seeding agent into said reactive process wherein said reactive process comprises pressure leaching at a temperature of from about 170° C. to about 235° C.;
• obtaining a product from said reactive process wherein at least one metal value is present in said product and wherein said metal value is selected from the group consisting of copper, gold, silver, nickel, cobalt, molybdenum, zinc, rhenium, uranium, rare earth metals, and platinum group metals;
• and
• extracting said at least one metal value from said product using electrowinning.

A process for recovering a metal value from a metal-bearing material comprising the steps of:

• subjecting a metal-bearing material to a reactive process to liberate at least one metal value from said metal-bearing material;
• incorporating hematite as at least one seeding agent into said reactive process wherein said reactive process comprises pressure leaching at a temperature of about 170° C. to about 235° C.;
• obtaining a product from said reactive process wherein at least one metal value is present in said product and wherein said metal value is selected from the group consisting of copper, gold, silver, nickel, cobalt, molybdenum, zinc, rhenium, uranium, rare earth metals, and platinum group metals;
• and
• extracting said at least one metal value from said product using electrowinning.