Project status: Completed.

Objective

The objective of the COPPLEX project is upscaling a dust treatment process to demonstrate a solution process for flexible and economic treatment of complex copper ores through impurities management, treatment and revaluation.

The solution (technology)

The process produces an inert residue that contains removed arsenic, precipitated in a stable form, with no effect on wastewater quality, which is currently the main concern when the impurity content in concentrates.

Impact

  • Improvement of the flexibility of smelters to treat complex concentrates
  • Waste minimisation: weak acid recovery and production of a non-hazardous waste
  • Recovery of Cu by electrowinning directly from the purified leach liquor avoiding an intermediate solvent extraction step
  • This process will lead to a better use of European Raw Materials

Partnership