Air Pollution from Lead and Zinc Smelting

The lead bullion is refined using pyrometallurgical methods to remove any 

The secondary production of lead begins with the recovery of old scrap from worn-out, damaged, or obsolete products and with new scrap. The chief source of old scrap is lead-acid batteries other sources include cable coverings, pipe, sheet, and other lead-bearing metals. Solder, a tin-based alloy, may be recovered from the processing of circuit boards for use as lead charge. 

Prior to smelting, batteries are usually broken up and sorted into their constituent products. Fractions of cleaned plastic (such as polypropylene) case are recycled into battery cases or other products. The dilute sulfuric acid is either neutralized for disposal or recycled to the local acid market. One of the three main smelting processes is then used to reduce the lead fractions and produce lead bullion. 

Most domestic battery scrap is processed in blast furnaces, rotary furnaces, or reverberatory furnaces. A reverberatory furnace is more suitable for processing fine particles and may be operated in conjunction with a blast furnace. 

In the most common hydrometallurgical process for zinc manufacturing, the ore is leached with sulfuric acid to extract the lead/zinc. These processes can operate at atmospheric pressure or as pressure leach circuits. Lead/zinc is recovered from solution by electrowinning, a process similar to electrolytic refining. The process most commonly used for low-grade deposits is heap leaching. Imperial smelting is also used for zinc ores. 

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