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Metso’s BIOX® technologyTechnology has been in commercial operationOperation for over 35 years with 14 plants successfully commissioned in 11 countries. The technologyTechnology has proven to be robust and effective and boasts over 36 million ounces (Oz) of goldGold production to date. In 2019, Metso launched its combination mesophileMesophile-thermophileThermophile biooxidation process which was aimed at reducingReducing the cyanide consumption on conventional mesophileMesophile biooxidised residue leachingLeaching. This approach of utilising mesophilesMesophile at 40 °C for the initial extent of sulphide oxidation is quite novel as it lowers the sulphide loading and duty for the subsequent higher temperature (68–70 °C) thermophileThermophile stage, thus resulting in a less onerous mass transferMass Transfer requirement at the higher thermophileThermophile temperatures. Applying the MesoTHERM approach on various base metalMetal sulphides yielded feasible metal recoveriesMetal recovery (>98%) for the mineral’s chalcopyriteChalcopyrite, carrollite, and borniteBornite. An integrated piloting trial was therefore undertaken to develop a commercial hydrometallurgical processingProcessing circuit and validate the key performancePerformance metrics of an envisioned plant flow sheet on a high-gradeGrade copper concentrateCopper concentrate hosting primary and secondary copperCopper sulphides and a refractoryRefractories goldGold content. An important designDesign feature of the trial involved the closed-loop integrationIntegration of a continuous solvent extractionSolvent extraction-electrowinningElectrowinning (SX-EW) piloting campaign which saw the return of raffinate to the biooxidation circuit proving that the fresh acid requirement could be largely offset. Three LME-gradeGrade copperCopper cathodesCathode were produced from the trial. The trial was successful and enabled the relevant understanding, circuit nuances, and process designProcess design criteria to be backed out for the designDesign and engineeringEngineering of a commercial processingProcessing facility. The trial showed that a MesoTHERM biooxidation circuit is effective to realise the oxidation of primary (notably chalcopyriteChalcopyrite) and secondary copperCopper sulphide minerals resulting in high metal recoveriesMetal recovery.

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Integrated Circuit Trialling and Process Development of Metso’s Novel Mesophile-Thermophile (MesoTHERM™) Biooxidation Technology for a Primary (and Secondary) Copper Sulphide Concentrate

  • 会议论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年

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  • C. B. van Buuren,
  • J. A. van Niekerk,
  • K. Haavanlammi,
  • J. A. Strauss,
  • M. Lampi

摘要

Metso’s BIOX® technologyTechnology has been in commercial operationOperation for over 35 years with 14 plants successfully commissioned in 11 countries. The technologyTechnology has proven to be robust and effective and boasts over 36 million ounces (Oz) of goldGold production to date. In 2019, Metso launched its combination mesophileMesophile-thermophileThermophile biooxidation process which was aimed at reducingReducing the cyanide consumption on conventional mesophileMesophile biooxidised residue leachingLeaching. This approach of utilising mesophilesMesophile at 40 °C for the initial extent of sulphide oxidation is quite novel as it lowers the sulphide loading and duty for the subsequent higher temperature (68–70 °C) thermophileThermophile stage, thus resulting in a less onerous mass transferMass Transfer requirement at the higher thermophileThermophile temperatures. Applying the MesoTHERM approach on various base metalMetal sulphides yielded feasible metal recoveriesMetal recovery (>98%) for the mineral’s chalcopyriteChalcopyrite, carrollite, and borniteBornite. An integrated piloting trial was therefore undertaken to develop a commercial hydrometallurgical processingProcessing circuit and validate the key performancePerformance metrics of an envisioned plant flow sheet on a high-gradeGrade copper concentrateCopper concentrate hosting primary and secondary copperCopper sulphides and a refractoryRefractories goldGold content. An important designDesign feature of the trial involved the closed-loop integrationIntegration of a continuous solvent extractionSolvent extraction-electrowinningElectrowinning (SX-EW) piloting campaign which saw the return of raffinate to the biooxidation circuit proving that the fresh acid requirement could be largely offset. Three LME-gradeGrade copperCopper cathodesCathode were produced from the trial. The trial was successful and enabled the relevant understanding, circuit nuances, and process designProcess design criteria to be backed out for the designDesign and engineeringEngineering of a commercial processingProcessing facility. The trial showed that a MesoTHERM biooxidation circuit is effective to realise the oxidation of primary (notably chalcopyriteChalcopyrite) and secondary copperCopper sulphide minerals resulting in high metal recoveriesMetal recovery.