Cobalt distribution in the process of hydrometallurgical zinc production

Abstract

Hydrometallurgical zinc production is based on processing sulphide concentrates which, beside zinc, contain a large number of other regular accompanied metals in zinc ores. Those are, usually, lead, cadmium, cobalt, nickel, antimony and some other, and the content of these metals vary depending on ore origin. The possibility of cobalt exploitation presented in sulphide zinc concentrates depends on specific contents in raw material, as well as the way this metal is distributed during the process, i.e. if it is concentrated, where and to which extent. In this paper, based on systematic analytical cobalt monitoring in solutions and precipitates, cobalt distribution in the process of hydrometallurgical zinc production is determined. It was stated that the main quantity of presented cobalt is collected in the treated cobalt precipitate out of cadmium production, that the precipitate contains about 0,85% of cobalt, while the contents of cobalt in other solutions and precipitates are uncomparable less. With these cobalt contents, the precipitate from cobalt treatment that is obtained in the course of the year in the process of hydrometallurgical zinc production in the factory in Šabac means commercially significant cobalt resource.