Copper from

Langmuir-Blodgett flint deposited on copper. From graphic integration of the data of Ref. 144. See Ref. 158. 

Figure Al.3.27. Energy bands of copper from ab initio pseudopotential calculations [40].

Chen S J, Sanz F, Ogletree D F, Hallmark V M, Devine T M and Salmeron M 1993 Selective dissolution of copper from Au-rich Au-Cu alloys an electrochemical STS study Surf. Sc . 292 289... 

The copper-chelating abihty of sahcylaldoxime has been used to remove copper from brine in a seawater desalination plant effluent. A carbon—sorbate bed produced by sorption of the oxime on carbon proved to be extremely effective in the continuous process (99). In another apphcation, the chelating abihty of sahcylaldoxime with iron and copper was used to stabilize bleaching powders containing inorganic peroxide salts (100). 

In recent years, lime treatment has been advocated for corrosion control by removing lead and copper from distribution systems, mainly by raising the pH to around 7.5, which prevents these heavy metals from solubilizing. This type of treatment is appHcable to all water suppHes, and especially for small systems. Itinvolves the use of hydrated lime, generally deHvered in bags (see Water). 

Many electroless coppers also have extended process Hves. Bailout, the process solution that is removed and periodically replaced by Hquid replenishment solution, must still be treated. Better waste treatment processes mean that removal of the copper from electroless copper complexes is easier. Methods have been developed to eliminate formaldehyde in wastewater, using hydrogen peroxide (qv) or other chemicals, or by electrochemical methods. Ion exchange (qv) and electro dialysis methods are available for bath life extension and waste minimi2ation of electroless nickel plating baths (see... 

AH the operations in the winning of copper from sulfide ores are controUed oxidations using air or oxygen. An important effort has been made to... 

Precipita.tlon, In the simplest case, the solubihty of an impurity in the Hquid metal changes with temperature. Thus the impurity may precipitate as a sohd phase upon cooling. For instance, the removal of iron from tin and of copper from lead are achieved by precipitation. When the soHd is lighter than the Hquid, it floats as a dross on the surface of the melt where it is easily removed by scraping. The process is called dressing. 

The removal of copper from the pregnant nickel solution in the Sherritt-Gordon process is an example of purification by precipitation of a fairly insoluble compound. First, in the copper boil step, ammonia is driven off by heating the solution, and some copper sulfide precipitates. The residual copper is removed by a dding hydrogen sulfide for the chemical precipitation of mote copper sulfide. 

Cementation. A metal can be removed from solution by displacing it with a mote active metal. This simple, inexpensive method has been commonly used to recover copper from dilute (1—3 kg/m ) solution using shredded iron and de-tinned iron cans as reducing agent. 

Reaction of Bisglycinatocopper(II). Bisglycinatocopper(II) [13479-54-4] condenses with ahphatic aldehydes. Removal of copper from the condensate results in P-hydroxy-a-amino acid. This is a classical synthetic method of DL-threonine, but the formation of i //o-isomer is unavoidable. 

The first equation is an example of hydrolysis and is commonly referred to as chemical precipitation. The separation is effective because of the differences in solubiUty products of the copper(II) and iron(III) hydroxides. The second equation is known as reductive precipitation and is an example of an electrochemical reaction. The use of more electropositive metals to effect reductive precipitation is known as cementation. Precipitation is used to separate impurities from a metal in solution such as iron from copper (eq. 1), or it can be used to remove the primary metal, copper, from solution (eq. 2). Precipitation is commonly practiced for the separation of small quantities of metals from large volumes of water, such as from industrial waste processes. 

A classic example of cementation is the removal of copper from solution by elemental iron. 

Recovered copper in electronic scrap (old) is small in comparison representing about 14,000 t/yr of copper from 68,000 t/yr of waste (25). Electronic scrap accounts for iron (27,000 t), tin (14,000 t), nickel, lead, and aluminum (6,800 t each), and zinc (3,500 t). Precious metal value, which is the primary economic reason for the reclamation of electronic waste, accounts for 345 t of gold, twice that in silver, and some palladium. 

Another process, which also generates elemental sulfur as a by-product, has been patented by Envirotech Research Center in Salt Lake City (29). In the Electroslurry process, a ball mill finely grinds a chalcopyrite concentrate, which reacts with an acidic copper sulfate solution for iron removal. The Hquor is electrolyzed and the iron is oxidized to the ferric form. This latter step leaches copper from the copper sulfide for deposition on the cathode. Elemental sulfur is recovered at the same time. 

Nonferrous Metal Production. Nonferrous metal production, which includes the leaching of copper and uranium ores with sulfuric acid, accounts for about 6% of U.S. sulfur consumption and probably about the same in other developed countries. In the case of copper, sulfuric acid is used for the extraction of the metal from deposits, mine dumps, and wastes, in which the copper contents are too low to justify concentration by conventional flotation techniques or the recovery of copper from ores containing copper carbonate and siUcate minerals that caimot be readily treated by flotation (qv) processes. The sulfuric acid required for copper leaching is usually the by-product acid produced by copper smelters (see Metallurgy, extractive Minerals RECOVERY AND PROCESSING). 

In mineral technology, sulfur dioxide and sulfites are used as flotation depressants for sulfide ores. In electrowinning of copper from leach solutions from ores containing iron, sulfur dioxide prereduces ferric to ferrous ions to improve current efficiency and copper cathode quaHty. Sulfur dioxide also initiates precipitation of metallic selenium from selenous acid, a by-product of copper metallurgy (326). 

Most commercial tellurium is recovered from electrolytic copper refinery slimes (8—16). The tellurium content of slimes can range from a trace up to 10% (see Seleniumand selenium compounds). Most of the original processes developed for the recovery of metals of value from slimes resulted in tellurium being the last and least important metal produced. In recent years, many refineries have changed their slimes treatment processes for faster recovery of precious metals (17,18). The new processes have in common the need to remove the copper in slimes by autoclave leaching to low levels (<1%). In addition, this autoclave pretreatment dissolves a large amount of the tellurium, and the separation of the tellurium and copper from the solution which then follows places tellurium recovery at the beginning of the slimes treatment process. 

Metal Extraction. As with other carboxyhc acids, neodecanoic acid can be used in the solvent extraction of metal ions from aqueous solutions. Recent appHcations include the extraction of zinc from river water for deterrnination by atomic absorption spectrophotometry (105), the coextraction of metals such as nickel, cobalt, and copper with iron (106), and the recovery of copper from ammoniacal leaching solutions (107). 

Fig. 1. Recovery of copper from sulfide ore. The residue from electrolytic refining is processed to recover gold, silver, and selenium. Courtesy of Kennecott...

The precipitated copper from this reaction is an important constituent of the slime that collects at the bottom of the electrolytic cells. The accumulation of copper as well as of impurities such as nickel, arsenic, antimony, and bismuth is controlled by periodic bleed-off and treatment in the electrolyte purification section. 

Hydrometallurigcal Processes. In hydrometaHurgical processes, metal values and by-products are recovered from aqueous solution by chemical or electrolytic processes. Values are solubilized by treating waste, ore, or concentrates. Leaching of copper ores in place by rain or natural streams and the subsequent recovery of copper from mnoff mine water as impure cement copper have been practiced since Roman times. Most hydrometaHurgical treatments have been appHed to ores or overburden in which the copper was present as oxide, mixed oxide—sulfide, or native copper. PyrometaHurgical and hydrometaHurgical processes are compared in Reference 34. 

HydrometaHurgical processes for copper can be categorized as (/) acid extraction of copper from oxide ore (2) oxidation and solution of sulfides in waste rock from mining, concentrator tailings, or in situ ore bodies (J) dissolution of copper in concentrates to avoid conventional smelting and (4) extraction of copper from deep-sea manganese nodules. 

Includes electrowon copper from concentrates roast-leached. 

HydrometaHurgical recovery of copper from manganese sea nodules has been studied extensively, as have combined PyrometaHurgical—hydrometaHurgical processes. Advancements in hydrometaHurgy and leaching technology are described in References 35—37. 

Va.t, or Agitated Leeching. Vat or agitated leaching usually extracts copper from oxide or mixed oxysulfide ores containing more... 

Cementation. Cementation is the precipitation of copper from copper leach solutions by replacement with iron. It was formerly the most commonly used method of recovering copper from leach solutions but has been replaced by solvent extraction—electro winning. The type of iron used ia cementation is important, and the most widely used material is detinned, light-gauge, shredded scrap iron. This operation can be performed by the scrap iron cone (Keimecott Precipitation Cone) or a vibrating cementation mill that combines high copper precipitation efficiency and reduced iron consumption (41). 

AH commercial copper extractants selectively extract copper from weakly acidic aqueous leach solutions by the general reaction... 

About 50% of copper in food is absorbed, usually under equitibrium conditions, and stored in the tiver and muscles. Excretion is mainly via the bile, and only a few percent of the absorbed amount is found in urine. The excretion of copper from the human body is influenced by molybdenum. A low molybdenum concentration in the diet causes a low excretion of copper, and a high intake results in a considerable increase in copper excretion (68). This copper—molybdenum relationship appears to correlate with copper deficiency symptoms in cattle. It has been suggested that, at the pH of the intestine, copper and molybdate ions react to form biologically unavailable copper molybdate (69). 

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