Platinum mining

Slow-cooled matte A process for extracting platinum metals from copper-nickel matte. The molten matte is cooled slowly, over several days. This causes the platinum metals to enter a nickel-iron phase which can be separated magnetically from the other components. Operated by Rustenberg Platinum Mines in South Africa, and INCO in Canada. 

In 1803 William Hyde Wollaston, a British physician who became famous for his research in metallurgy, mineralogy, and optics, succeeded in extracting a white metal from platinum. He named the new element palladium, after the asteroid Pallas, which had just been discovered the previous year. In the same year the English chemist Smithson Tennant obtained two new metals, which he named iridium and osmium, from platinum. And in 1828 the Russian chemist Karl Karlovich Klaus reported that he had obtained three new metals from platinum mined in the Urals. However, the existence of only one of them, which Klaus called ruthenium, was confirmed. 

Initially catalytic converters were used to control just carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons. The nitrogen oxide standard of 3.1 g/mile and later 2 g/mile could be met by using exhaust gas recirculation which leads to the formation of less nitrogen oxide in the engine. The catalysts used through 1980 were oxidation catalysts containing the noble metals platinum and palladium. A typical catalyst used by General Motors contained 0.05 oz t noble metal per converter, with a 5/2 ratio of platinum to palladium. New platinum mines were opened in South Africa to supply noble metals for these catalysts. 

Arlene Anderson (202) 586-3818 Arlene.Anderson ee.doe.gov H2 Production Natural Gas, Petroleum Feedstocks Coordinate with Fossil Energy on Coal-Based H2 Production 5-Year R,D D Plan Development Platinum Mining Recovery... 

The paper discusses the requirements and status of the current South African standard, SANS 10208-4, focusing on the design pressure for full rock passes and impact loads from large rocks plunging down empty rock passes. A series of measurements of the forces applied to a boxfront during normal operation have recently been made at an underground platinum mine owned by Lonmin. These measurements are described, and the inferred rock pressures and rock impacts are presented. Comparison of these measured loads with SANS 10208-4 shows that the measured pressures and impacts are of the order of only 20% of the SANS 10208-4 requirements. Possible reasons for, and the opportunities and pitfalls offered by, this large discrepancy are discussed. 

Hildyard MW, Milev A, Linzer LM, Roberts MKC, Jager AJ, Spottiswoode SM (2005) PLATMINE 3.7 Assess the hazard posed by dynamic failure of pillars in the back areas of platinum mines. PLATMINE final project report Under... 

The amount of platinum mined each year is 133 tons, less than one-tenth of the 1,782 tons of gold mined each year. 

In Russia, nickel-laterite ores are mined in South Africa, cobalt is obtained as a significant by-product from platinum mines. 

A member of the platinum group, ruthenium occurs native with other members of the group in ores found in the Ural mountains and in North and South America. It is also found along with other platinum metals in small but commercial quantities in pentlandite of the Sudbury, Ontario, nickel-mining region, and in pyroxinite deposits of South Africa. 

Iridium occurs uncombined in nature with platinum and other metals of this family in alluvial deposits. It is recovered as a by-product from the nickel mining industry. 

South Africa is by far the largest producer of primary (newly mined) PGMs. It suppHed 76% of the platinum used in the West in 1993, and over 50% of all PGMs. South African PGMs are mined as primary product. Other metals such as nickel, copper, and cobalt are by-products. The principal PGM mining houses in South Africa are Anglo American Platinum Corporation (Amplats), Impala Platinum, Lonrho South Africa, and Northam Platinum. 

The most significant PGM deposit in the United States is at Stillwater, Montana, where PGMs are mined as the primary product. The grade has been estimated as between 13 and 22 g/1, having a platinum—palladium ratio of 1 3.5. The first ore was extracted from Stillwater in 1987 and full production of 1000 t/d was reached in 1990. 

PGM Concentration. The ore mined from the Merensky Reef in South Africa has a maximum PGM content of 8.1 g/1, of which 50—60% is platinum, and 20—25% palladium. The PGMs are in the form of a ferroplatinum alloy, or as their sulfides, arsenides, or teUurides. The aim of the concentration process is to separate from the ore a cmde metal concentrate, having a PGM content of 60%. The majority of other metals, such as nickel and copper, are separated out at this stage for further refining. 

Carboplatin (96) is significantly less toxic in the clinic than cisplatin. Most particularly, it is much less nephrotoxic. Use of a bidentate ligand also ensures formation of a ds complex. Its synthesis begins with cis-diammine platinum diiodide (94) which is reacted with silver sulfate to give cis-diaquodiam mine platinum sulfate (95). This is reacted with the barium salt of 1,1-cyclo-butanedicarboxylic acid to yield carboplatin [23],... 

Serious research in catalytic reduction of automotive exhaust was begun in 1949 by Eugene Houdry, who developed mufflers for fork lift trucks used in confined spaces such as mines and warehouses (18). One of the supports used was the monolith—porcelain rods covered with films of alumina, on which platinum was deposited. California enacted laws in 1959 and 1960 on air quality and motor vehicle emission standards, which would be operative when at least two devices were developed that could meet the requirements. This gave the impetus for a greater effort in automotive catalysis research (19). Catalyst developments and fleet tests involved the partnership of catalyst manufacturers and muffler manufacturers. Three of these teams were certified by the California Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Board in 1964-65 American Cyanamid and Walker, W. R. Grace and Norris-Thermador, and Universal Oil Products and Arvin. At the same time, Detroit announced that engine modifications by lean carburation and secondary air injection enabled them to meet the California standard without the use of catalysts. This then delayed the use of catalysts in automobiles. 

For the noble metals used in oxidation, the loading is about 0.1 oz per car, with calls for a million ounces per year. The current world production rates of platinum, palladium, and rhodium are 1.9, 1.6, and 0.076 million ounces respectively the current U,S. demand for platinum, palladium, rhodium, and ruthenium are 0.52, 0.72, 0.045, and 0.017 million ounces respectively (72, 73). The supply problem would double if NO reduction requires an equal amount of noble metal. Pollution conscious Japan has adopted a set of automobile emission rules that are the same as the U.S., and Western Europe may follow this creates a demand for new car catalysts approaching the U.S. total. The bulk of world production and potential new mines are in the Soviet Union and South Africa. The importation of these metals, assuming the current price of platinum at 155/oz and palladium at 78/oz, would pose a balance of payment problem. The recovery of platinum contained in spent catalysts delivered to the door of precious metal refiners should be above 95% the value of platinum in spent catalysts is greater than the value of lead in old batteries, and should provide a sufficient incentive for scavengers. 

Platinum group metals, from Mineral Facts, 1971. U.S. Bureau of Mines, Washington, D.C., 1971. 

Platinum, MCP-22, Bureau of Mines, United States Department of Interior, Sept. 1978. 

Lippert and co-workers have reported a similar series of A-,O-bridged platinum(III) dimers in which the bridging ligands are the pyrimidines, 1-methyluracil, 1-methylthymine, or 1-ethylthy-mine. Chemical oxidation of dimeric platinum(II) complexes gave [Pt2XY(L)2(NH3)4]2+, X,Y = N03", N02, H20, Cl", or Br", L=l-MeU, 1-MeT, 1-EtT. 27 t30 They too found that the HT dimers are more stable than the HH.430... 

Recent developments in three-way catalyst (TWC) technology may have potential to decrease the amount of rhodium needed in TWC formulations. Current TWC formulations contain platinum (Pt) and rhodium (Rh). The amount of Rh used in the TWCs, that have desired durability, is considerably higher than the mine ratio of Pt/Rh of 17-19. For large scale vehicle application, it is necessary to find ways to minimize the use of this scarce material. Recent findings show that improved net NOx activity, with minimum NH-j formation, is accomplished by the... 

Plant data from the Copper Cliff Mine showed that about 85% of the platinum was recovered in a Cu-Ni concentrate, most of which was from the nickel concentrate. The... 

McCallum, I.S., Loucks, R.R., Carlson, R.R., Cooley, E.F., and Doerge, T.A., Platinum Metals Associated with Hydrothermal Copper Ores of the New Rambler Mine, Medicine Bow Mountain, Economic Geology, Vol. 71, pp. 1429-1459, 1976. 

Sour natural gas, 23 597 Sour syngas defined, 6 829 Sour taste, 11 566 South Africa, platinum-group metal deposits in, 19 604, 612 South African gold mines, 12 686 South African manganese mining, 15 555 South America... 

Platinum is the 75th most abundant element and, unlike many elements, is found in its pure elemental form in nature, as are deposits of silver and gold. Platinum is widely distributed over the Earth and is mined mainly in the Ural Mountains in Russia and in South Africa, Alaska, the western United States, Columbia in South America, and Ontario in Canada. When found in the mineral sperryhte (PtAs ), it is dissolved with aqua regia to form a precipitate called sponge that is then converted into platinum metal. It is also recovered as a by-product of nickel mining, mainly in Ontario, Canada. 

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