A Review of the Extraction of Gallium from Bauxite Ores

In recent years, gallium has garnered significant attention in the semiconductor industry, which constitutes over 80% of the total demand. Gallium is widely dispersed in the Earth’s crust, while only two distinct deposits of this precious metal have been discovered—Gallite (CuGaS2) and Soehngeite (Ga(OH)3). Based on the current investigation, it is estimated that approximately 90% of gallium is extracted from the aluminumAluminum industry. Therefore, it is imperative for us to explore the synergistic extractionSynergistic extraction of aluminum and gallium from bauxiteBauxite, which has been extensively studied by numerous researchers. This paper introduces the trend of gallium in the smelting process of bauxiteBauxite, summarizing a comprehensive overview of the latest trends in the extraction method of gallium from the bauxite process such as ion exchange method, extraction method, fractional precipitation method, and electrolysisElectrolysis, comparing the advantages and disadvantages of each extraction method, which will guide the efficient extraction of valuable components from bauxiteBauxite.