Removal of Co(II) and various metal ions from the residue of the zinc plant through solvent extraction using both acid and neutral extractants

Abstract

AbstractThe recovery of cobalt from secondary sources is a crucial issue in technology development, particularly for its numerous applications in various industries. Solvent extraction has proven an effective method for metallic ions separation from secondary sources. The main goal of this work was to study the separation of metals by solvent extraction technique from zinc plant leach waste. Initially, several extractants, including Cyanex 272, Cyanex 301, LIX 5640 H, Alamine 336, and tri‐n‐octylamine (TOA), were tested to treat the leach solution. It was discovered that the saponified extractant di‐(2‐ethylhexyl) phosphoric acid (D2EHPA) (10%) + tri‐n‐butyl phosphate (TBP) (10%) effectively eliminated interfering elements such as manganese, zinc, and iron, with extraction efficiencies of 95%, 98%, and 99.9%, respectively. To increase the concentration of cobalt in the purified solution, the cobalt recovery step was performed using various acids on the loaded organic phase. The best outcome was achieved using ammonium sulphate salt (1 M), which recovered about 50% of the cobalt present in the organic phase. The recovered cobalt was then subjected to the electrowinning process to produce cobalt metal of high purity. A cathodic current density of 100 A/m2 was determined to be the optimal current for the electrolyte solution. Lastly, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X‐ray fluorescence (XRF) analyses were carried out to examine the structure and purity of the resulting metallic cobalt, which was found to have a purity of 99.5%.