XXXI International Mineral Processing Congress 2024 Proceedings Page 1222 (1246 of 3836)

1268 XXXI International Mineral Processing Congress 2024 Proceedings/Washington, DC/Sep 29–Oct 3
Liu, S.L., Fan, H.R., Liu, X., Meng, J., Butcher, A.R.,
Yann, L., Yang, K.F. and Li, X.C., 2023. Global rare
earth elements projects: New developments and supply
chains. Ore Geology Reviews, 157, p.105428.
Liu, W., Feng, X., Noble, A. and Yoon, R.H., 2022.
Ammonium sulphate leaching of NaOH-treated mon-
azite. Minerals Engineering, 188, p.107817.
Luttrell, G.H., Kiser, M.J., Yoon, R.H., Noble, A.,
Rezaee, M., Bhagavatula, A. and Honaker, R.Q., 2019.
A field survey of rare earth element concentrations in
process streams produced by coal preparation plants in
the eastern USA. Mining, Metallurgy &Exploration, 36,
pp.889–902.
Renton, J.J., 1982. Mineral matter in coal. Coal structure,
pp.283–326.
Rozelle, P.L., Khadilkar, A.B., Pulati, N., Soundarrajan, N.,
Klima, M.S., Mosser, M.M., Miller, C.E. and
Pisupati, S.V., 2016. A study on removal of rare
earth elements from US coal byproducts by ion
exchange. Metallurgical and Materials Transactions E, 3,
pp.6–17.
Shergold, H.L., 1976. Two-liquid flotation for the treat-
ment of mineral slimes, Ind. Minerale, 3.,192–205.
Smith, D.W., 1977. Ionic hydration enthalpies. Journal of
Chemical Education, 54(9), p.540.
Stratton-Crawley, R. and Shergold, H.L., 1981. Extraction
of titanium dioxide into oil from cationic surfactant
solutions. Colloids and Surfaces, 2(2), pp.145t154.
Wills, B.A. and Finch, J., 2015. Wills’ mineral processing tech-
nology: an introduction to the practical aspects of ore treat-
ment and mineral recovery. Butterworth-Heinemann.
Yoon, R.-H., 2016, Method of separating and de-watering
fine particles, U.S. Patent 9,518,241.

Previous Page Next Page

Extracted Text (may have errors)

1268 XXXI International Mineral Processing Congress 2024 Proceedings/Washington, DC/Sep 29–Oct 3
Liu, S.L., Fan, H.R., Liu, X., Meng, J., Butcher, A.R.,
Yann, L., Yang, K.F. and Li, X.C., 2023. Global rare
earth elements projects: New developments and supply
chains. Ore Geology Reviews, 157, p.105428.
Liu, W., Feng, X., Noble, A. and Yoon, R.H., 2022.
Ammonium sulphate leaching of NaOH-treated mon-
azite. Minerals Engineering, 188, p.107817.
Luttrell, G.H., Kiser, M.J., Yoon, R.H., Noble, A.,
Rezaee, M., Bhagavatula, A. and Honaker, R.Q., 2019.
A field survey of rare earth element concentrations in
process streams produced by coal preparation plants in
the eastern USA. Mining, Metallurgy &Exploration, 36,
pp.889–902.
Renton, J.J., 1982. Mineral matter in coal. Coal structure,
pp.283–326.
Rozelle, P.L., Khadilkar, A.B., Pulati, N., Soundarrajan, N.,
Klima, M.S., Mosser, M.M., Miller, C.E. and
Pisupati, S.V., 2016. A study on removal of rare
earth elements from US coal byproducts by ion
exchange. Metallurgical and Materials Transactions E, 3,
pp.6–17.
Shergold, H.L., 1976. Two-liquid flotation for the treat-
ment of mineral slimes, Ind. Minerale, 3.,192–205.
Smith, D.W., 1977. Ionic hydration enthalpies. Journal of
Chemical Education, 54(9), p.540.
Stratton-Crawley, R. and Shergold, H.L., 1981. Extraction
of titanium dioxide into oil from cationic surfactant
solutions. Colloids and Surfaces, 2(2), pp.145t154.
Wills, B.A. and Finch, J., 2015. Wills’ mineral processing tech-
nology: an introduction to the practical aspects of ore treat-
ment and mineral recovery. Butterworth-Heinemann.
Yoon, R.-H., 2016, Method of separating and de-watering
fine particles, U.S. Patent 9,518,241.

Help

1269
Full-Value Copper Mining: A Gateway to
Critical Mineral Resources
Dawn Wellman, Saskia Duyvesteyn, Kaci Jenkins, Cory Smith, Lukas Fahle, and Carlos Eyzaguirre
Rio Tinto
ABSTRACT: Innovation and a new look at traditional mine resources are opening advancements necessary
to secure the critical mineral domestic supply chain. What was once viewed as waste or by-product streams
are now becoming key national resources. Through partnerships and technological advancement, Rio Tinto is
turning the copper value chain into a gateway to critical minerals and unlocking new socially-responsible and
economically-viable gateways to critical minerals such as tellurium, rhenium, bismuth, indium, germanium,
gallium, and others. Herein we present an overview of work in the development of these value streams, from
technological innovation to implementation.
CRITICAL MINERALS AND FULL VALUE
MINING
Many critical minerals are only produced as secondary
products. Once primary minerals such as copper, lead, and
zinc are concentrated and smelted, it becomes feasible to
separate and extract trace secondary minerals such as anti-
mony, arsenic, bismuth, cadmium, selenium, tellurium,
and others. For example, approximately 90% of the world’s
tellurium resource is contained in copper ore and no viable
primary mines exist for tellurium. To meet the growing
demand (~5.5% increase per annum) for tellurium, devel-
opment of co-product recovery methods is essential.
Full-value mining design (Figure 1) is transform-
ing what was once viewed as waste or by-product streams
into key national resources. Innovation across the copper
value chain (Figure 2) is enabling Rio Tinto to unlock new
resources of key critical minerals, as well as enhance pro-
duction of strategically important minerals. Additionally,
by partnering with government, universities, and industry,
we are creating an ecosystem to reduce production risk and
unlock new, socially responsible, and economically-viable
gateways to critical minerals.
UNDERSTANDING OCCURRENCE AND
DEPORTMENT OF CRITICAL MINERALS
Key to production of critical mineral resources is under-
standing end-to-end occurrence and deportment. Until
recently, in the processing and recovery of primary base
metals such as aluminum, copper, and zinc, critical min-
eral resources were historically considered gangue—deport-
ing to various waste streams throughout the value chain.
Additionally, critical minerals are generally of such exceed-
ingly low concentration and spatiotemporal variability in
ore body resources that they are generally viewed from a
technoeconomic perspective as untenable to recover. As
noted above, many critical minerals are only recoverable
as co-products via the production of primary metals. The
need for the United States and others to increase produc-
tion of critical minerals necessitates a new paradigm that
re-envisions how mineral resources are valued and charac-
terized to promote recovery of critical co-products.

Previous Page Next Page

XXXI International Mineral Processing Congress 2024 Proceedings/Washington, DC/Sep 29–Oct 3 1267
Also shown in the figure for comparison are the libera-
tion results obtained by grinding. As shown, blunging was
much more efficient than grinding. Work is continuing to
further improve the method of liberating REMs and passiv-
ated IACs from coal.
Conceptual Process Flowsheet
Based on the test results obtained in the present work, a
conceptual flowsheet, as depicted in Figure 8b, may be pro-
posed. A thickener underflow is blunged to liberate REMs
and passivated IACs from the coal matrix in a polyelec-
trolyte solution. The exit stream from the blunger is then
subjected to the two-liquid flotation process i) to obtain
low-ash and low-moisture carbonaceous materials as a
byproduct and ii) to produce a feedstock for activated-IEX
leaching. The material entering the third step will include
both the passivated IACs and REMs. As discussed, NaOH
and a chelating agent are used to overcome the harmful
effects of phosphate passivation. It has also been shown that
the same set of reagents are used to extract REEs from mon-
azite by IEX leaching under relatively mild conditions (Liu
et al., 2022). The product stream exiting the IEX leaching
step is then converted to salable mixed REOs, while the
reject stream is disposed of after appropriate cleanup steps.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors greatly appreciate the financial support (DE-
FE0029900) from the National Energy Technology Center,
Anthony Zinn and Mary Ann Alvin for helpful discussions,
John Morris and Xu Feng for XPS studies and discussions,
and Rick Honaker for providing low-temperature ash
samples.
Disclaimer: This report was prepared as an account
of work sponsored by an agency of the United States
Government. Neither the United States Government nor
any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any
warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability
or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or useful-
ness of any information, apparatus, product, or process
disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe
privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific
commercial product, process, or service by trade name,
trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily
constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or
favoring by the United States Government or any agency
thereof. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein
do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States
Government or any agency thereof.
REFERENCES CITED
Borst, A.M., Smith, M.P., Finch, A.A., Estrade, G.,
Villanova-de-Benavent, C., Nason, P., Marquis, E.,
Horsburgh, N.J., Goodenough, K.M., Xu, C. and
Kynický, J., 2020. Adsorption of rare earth elements
in regolith-hosted clay deposits. Nature communica-
tions, 11(1), p.4386.
Bryan, R.C., Richers, D., Andersen, H.T. and Gray, T.,
2015. Assessment of rare earth elemental contents in
select United States coal basins. United States National
Energy Technology Laboratory.
Cen, P., Bian, X., Liu, Z., Gu, M., Wu, W. and Li, B.,
2021. Extraction of rare earths from bastnaesite con-
centrates: A critical review and perspective for the
future. Minerals Engineering, 171, p.107081.
Dushyantha, N., Batapola, N., Ilankoon, I.M.S.K.,
Rohitha, S., Premasiri, R., Abeysinghe, B.,
Ratnayake, N. and Dissanayake, K., 2020. The story
of rare earth elements (REEs): Occurrences, global dis-
tribution, genesis, geology, mineralogy and global pro-
duction. Ore Geology Reviews, 122, p.103521.
Gaudin, A.M., 1939, Principles of Mineral Processing,
McGraw Hill Book Company, Inc.
Foley, N., Ayuso, R., Hubbard, B., Bern, C. and Shah, A.,
2015. Geochemical and mineralogical character-
istics of REE in Granite-Derived Regolith of the
Southeastern United States. In Mineral resources in a
sustainable world. Proceedings of the 13th Biennial SGA
Meeting (Vol. 2, pp. 725–729).
Foley, N. and Ayuso, R., 2015. REE enrichment in granite-
derived regolith deposits of the Southeastern United
States: Prospective source rocks and accumulation pro-
cesses. Geol. Surv. Pap, 3, pp.131–138.
Krishnamurthy, N. and Gupta, C.K., Extractive metallurgy
of rare earth, Second Edition, CRC Press, New York,
2016.
Huang, K. and Yoon, R.H., 2019. Surface forces in
the thin liquid films (TLFs) of water confined
between n-alkane drops and hydrophobic gold sur-
faces. Langmuir, 35(48), pp.15681–15691.
Huang, K., Strickland, K., Noble, A., Yoon, R.H. and
Basilio, C., 2022. A new method of studying the fun-
damental mechanisms involved in pigment liberation
from recycle papers. TAPPI Journal, 21(10).
Lai, R.W. and Fuerstenau, D.W., 1968. Liquid-liquid
extraction of ultrafine particles. Trans. AIME, 241,
pp.549–556.

Previous Page Next Page

Extracted Text (may have errors)

Help

loading