The leaching of sulfide iron (II) with sulfuric acid

Abstract

The leaching of iron (II) sulfate concentrate from Chaabet El Hamra, Algeria bulk sulphide ore with sphalerite concentrate in presence of sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide at low stirring rates (100 rpm). The influence of leaching temperature, leaching time, particle size and sulfuric acid concentration were studied. In this paper we focused our attention on the process of direct leaching of iron (II) sulfate concentrate with sulfuric acid. The results of leaching show that the combination of sulphuric acid and hydrogen peroxide enhances the dissolution of the bulk sulphide ore. The Leaching rate was studied as a function of the leaching temperature, the leaching time, the particle size and the sulfuric acid H2SO4 concentration. The optimal operational conditions were as follows: leaching temperature 100°C; leaching time 2 hours; sulfuric acid concentration 2 mol/L-1; the smaller particle size 63 µm and the solid-toliquid ratio 1:10. In these values the maximum extraction of iron (II) sulfates is 0.0416 mol/L-1.