Selective Recovery of Metals in Gold Refining Processes using Adsorbents.

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Gold ore processing includes crushing, grinding, leaching by cyanidation, carbon in pulp recovery andelectrowinning. This method is one of the major gold separation procedures used by most such industries.Interference of other metal ions in the ore in upstream and downstream processes has a significant effect on theproduction process efficiency. A substantial amount of heavy metal ions is present in the downstream (tailing)process. This has been identified as a challenge that needs to be overcome. Selective removal of the metal ionsfrom the gold ore in the upstream process before leaching or after leaching will significantly improve goldquality. Separation of these metal ions can lead to a by-product of economic value. We plan to develop and usenovel adsorbents that can specifically recover valuable metals from solution containing mixture of metal ions.Selective recovery of some metal ions from the production line of gold ore will also improve the processingand cost of production. It will enhance the yield and the quality of gold. Interfering metal ions removal beforeleaching or immediately after leaching before refining will enhance gold recovery and will lead to additionalrevenues for the company and the local economy as these metals have a market of their own. The plannedprocedure will also improve the quality of the effluents from the wastewater treatment. In this study, novelenvironmentally friendly adsorbents capable of selective adsorption of heavy metal in a complex mixture ofmetal ions will be developed. The Musslewhite unit of Goldcorp is very keen to address interfering metal ionsissues to increase the efficiency of their process and potentially derive financial benefits from the same. Ourpreliminary studies have shown the novel adsorbents to be effective on laboratory model samples.