Extraction of Metallic Copper from Copper Concentrates in a Plasma Reactor.

In searching for new, more efficient and less environmentally harmful methods of copper production, attention has been paid to the possibilities of low-temperature plasma. This paper demonstrates the advisability of using low-temperature plasma in copper metallurgy, in view of the possibility of complex recovery of elements from copper concentrates in one operational cycle. Studies were carried out in a 30-kw plasma reactor with a graphite metal vapor condenser. The products of plasma processing of copper concentrate gathered in the condenser are a nonmetallic phase in the form of slag or metallic sponge containing spheroidal particles of metallic copper and other elements, such as Fe. The reaction gases leaving the condenser chamber of the plasma reactor contained considerable amounts of elementary sulfur and dust.