Ore

Copper is extracted from sulfide and oxide ores. 80% of all copper is produced from sulfide ores. Since they contain a large amount of waste rock, the ores are enriched before smelting. The actual copper smelting process consists of several operations: smelting, roasting, converting, electrolytic refining and fire refining.

Annealing

Most of the impurity sulfides are converted to oxides during the roasting process. For example, the main impurity of many FeS ₂ copper ores, pyrite, is converted to _{Fe2 O3}. The gases that are formed during the roasting process contain _SO2 and are used to produce sulfuric acid. The oxides of zinc, iron and other impurities that are produced during the firing process are separated as slag during smelting. The copper liquid matte (_Cu2 S and an admixture of FeS) is loaded into a converter, through which air is blown. The conversion process produces raw or blister copper and releases sulfur dioxide.

Fire refining

To extract valuable elements (Ag, Au, Te etc .) and to remove different impurities rough copper is first refined by fire and then by electrolytic refining. Liquid copper is oxygenated during the fire refining process. Zinc, cobalt and iron impurities are oxidized, then converted to slag and then removed, and the copper is poured into molds. These castings serve as anodes for the electrolytic refining process.

Electrolytic refining

The main component of the electrolytic solution is copper sulphate, as it is the most common and cheapest copper salt. Sulfuric acid is added to the electrolyte to increase the electrical conductivity of _CuSO4. Small amounts of additives are also added to the solution to produce a compact copper precipitate. The metal impurities that are contained in "rough" crude (crude) copper are divided into two groups.

Au, Ag, Pb, Sn. Noble metals (Ag, Au) do not undergo anodic dissolution, form together with other impurities anodic sludge which is extracted periodically. Lead and tin are dissolved together with copper, but slightly soluble compounds are formed, which precipitate and are removed.

2. Zn, Fe, Co, Ni. These metals have a much more negative electrode potential than copper, and therefore, they are dissolved together with copper from the anode, but do not precipitate at the cathode, but accumulate in the electrolyte as sulphates. Therefore, the electrolyte needs to be periodically replaced.

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