Adsorption of gold on a resin-impregnated membrane in a fixed bed contractor

Abstract

One of the main problems in operating a resin-in-pulp process is the separation of the ion-exchange beads from the slurry after loading. This problem can be overcome by impregnating an inert woven cloth with an ion exchange resin. Sheets of this membrane could be mounted in parallel within a vertical column to allow a clear solution or a slurry to pass between them.The use of a resin-impregnated cloth was tested in a fixed bed contractor by measuring the kinetics of adsorption of gold from a cyanide solution. The equilibrium isotherm was also determined and the resulting data gave a good fit to the homogeneous solid diffusion model. The internal diffusion coefficient was shown to be independent of solution flow rate and numerically in agreement with previous work. The external film transfer coefficient was fitted successfully by a modified Dawson correlation. The membrane can be easily eluted and regenerated under ambient conditions.