Evaluation of the Efficiency of Using an Oxidizer in the Leaching Process of Gold-Containing Concentrate

Abstract

This article presents the results of cyanide leaching of gold-containing concentrate using the trichlorocyanuric acid (TCCA) oxidizer. Gold-containing concentrate was obtained from a gold tailings sample from a gold recovery factory (GRF) in one of the deposits of Kazakhstan that have not previously been studied for concentrability. According to X-ray phase analysis and energy dispersive spectrometry (DSM) data, the main compounds in the tailings sample under study are pyrite FeS2, quartz SiO2, calcite CaCO3, albite NaAlSi3O8, muscovite KAl2Si3AlO10(OH)8, dolomite CaMg(CO3)2, and oxidized iron compounds. Microscopic studies of the concentrate have established the presence of ultrafine gold with sizes from Au 0.9 to 10.2 μm in pyrite. Obtaining the gold-containing concentrate with a gold content of 15.95 g/t is possible according to the enrichment scheme, which includes centrifugal separation, classification according to the fineness class −0.05 mm, additional grinding of hydrocyclone sands to a fineness of 90.0–95.0% of the class finer than 0.050 mm, and control centrifugal separation. Since pyrite in technogenic raw materials is the main gold-containing mineral, this paper presents studies on the oxidizability of pyrite with the TCCA oxidizer. The results of studies on the oxidation of pyrite using the TCCA oxidizer show the products of its hydrolysis oxidize pyrite with the formation of various iron compounds on its surface. Pretreatment of gold-containing concentrate with oxidizer TCCA for 3 h before the cyanidation process (20 h) allows for an increase in the recovery of gold in the solution by 5.8%.