Browsing by Author "Fuls, Herman Franz"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Open Access
    Evaluation of processing options for the treatment of zinc sulphide concentrates at Skorpion zinc
    (2011) Fuls, Herman Franz
    The zinc oxide resource of Skorpion Zinc, an integrated zinc mine and refinery, near Rosh Pinah in southern Namibia, will be depleted by end of 2015 with a possible extension to 2017. Extensive exploration drilling was unsuccessful. With the abundant availability of zinc sulphide concentrates regionally the life of the operation may be extended by processing these concentrates. The leach kinetics of zinc sulphides is vastly slower than oxides, preventing the processing of zinc sulphides using the existing process, under current conditions. The challenge is to identify a suitable zinc sulphide treatment process that can be integrated with the existing plant. Information from the bench scale test work and an update of the economic models will provide sufficient accuracy for Skorpion to select either the pressure or the atmospheric leach process.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Open Access
    Evaluation of processing options for the treatment of zinc sulphide concentrates at Skorpion Zinc
    (Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, 2013-05) Fuls, Herman Franz; Petersen, Jochen
    Skorpion Zinc, an integrated zinc mine and refinery located in the South of Namibia, has a production capacity of 150 000 t/a of special high grade (SHG) zinc. The Skorpion zinc oxide resource will be depleted by 2017. Extensive exploration drilling for additional zinc oxides was conducted without success. With the abundant availability of zinc sulphide concentrates regionally (Black Mountain and Gamsberg in the Northern Cape or Rosh Pinah Zinc and new deposits in the Rosh Pinah region) the life of the operation can be extended by processing of zinc sulphide concentrates. Leach kinetics of zinc sulphides are substantially slower than oxides, preventing the processing of zinc sulphides in the existing process under current conditions, and Skorpion Zinc faces the challenge to identify a suitable zinc sulphide treatment process that can be integrated with the existing plant. Various zinc sulphide processing options were identified through an extensive literature search and non-viable options were eliminated. Mass and energy balances were established for potential options and an economic evaluation (including capital and operating cost estimation) was conducted to identify a suitable process. It is concluded that ferric leaching of sphalerite in a sulphate medium under atmospheric or pressure leach conditions are suitable processes for Skorpion Zinc. These processes present advantages over all other options when elemental sulphur is preferred as the final deportment for sulphide sulphur. Both these processes can be integrated into the existing refinery and will be able to process concentrates with a wide composition range.