Institute of Metallurgy, Ural Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences

A. I. Okunev, Senior Research Officer, tel.: (343) 267-89-16

OJSC “Ural Scientific Research and Design Institute of Copper Industry”

L. D. Kirr, Scientific Consultant

OJSC “Ural Mining and Metallurgical Company”
G. V. Skopov, Deputy Technical Director

Theoretical bases with chemical-metallurgical technology of copper production dusts and power coals ashes for germanium and satellites-elements extraction are presented. Laboratory researches, semi-industrial and industrial tests of this process are presented. The raw source is copper-pyrite ore (3—4 g/t of Ge). Sulfide — subliming pyrometallurgical dressing was the basis of technology. Germanium content in the dressing products (gram per ton) was: 50–70 in primary dusts, 600–800 in secondary dust, 2500–3500 in velts sublimate, 99.2% of GeO₂ in final product. Pioneer use of germanium sorption, as well as cold expulsion and germanium chloride hydrolysis, have been applied in the hydrometallurgical scheme of sublimates treatment. General extraction of Ge to the rich final product from so low-grade raw materials was achieved about 55%. Satellite-elements extraction (Cd, Tl, Pb, Bi, Au, Ag, Cu, etc.) was the same degree. The production amount of Ge (only from copper ore) has been increased by 1.33 times in the USSR general amount Ge production have been increased by 1.45–1.50 times. The dusts enrichment has been performed with use of the existing equipment. Pioneer use of the Germanium sulfide sublimation had been applied for the power coals ashes treatment. Sulfurous dust of the copper production had been used as sulfidizer. This technology industrial application was the most significant and one of the largest in the XX century metallurgy.

1. Okunev A. I. Povedenie nekotorykh redkikh i rasseyannykh elementov v protsessakh metallurgicheskoy pererabotki mednykh rud i kontsentratov (Behaviour of some less-common and dispersed elements in processes of metallurgical reprocessing of copper ores and concentrates). Moscow, 1960.
2. Davydov V. I. Germaniy (Germanium). Moscow, 1966. 136 p.
3. Galimov M. D., Okunev A. I. Trudy Unipromedi (Proceedings of Ural Scientific Research and Design Institute of Copper Industry). 1963. No. 7. pp. 375–383.
4. Vanyukov A. V., Isakova R. A., Bystrov V. P. Termicheskaya dissotsiatsiya sulfidov metallov (Thermal Dissociation of Metal Sulphides). Alma-Ata, 1978. 272 p.
5. Certificate of authority 121714. Sposob pererabotki pyley medeplavilnykh zavodov (Method of copper smelteries’ dusts reprocessing). A. I. Okunev, P. I. Shvedov, Yu. F. Ryabov, M. D. Galimov; Published 17.01.1958.
6. Okunev A. I., Ryabov Yu. F., Alentova L. N. Polupromyshlennye ispytaniya po vozgonke pyley Mednogorskogo i Karabashskogo medeplavilnykh kombinatov : otchet. Institut «Unipromed» i Karabashskiy medeplavilnyy kombinat (Semiindustrial testing on sublimation of Mednogorsk and Karabash copper smelteries dusts : report of Ural Scientific Research and Design Institute of Copper Industry and Karabash copper smetery). 1957.
7. Okunev A. I., Shvedov P. I. Zadanie na proektirovanie tsekha kompleksnoy pererabotki pyley Mednogorskogo kombinata (Objective for design of the dusts complex processing floor at Mednogorsk copper smeltery). Sverdlovsk, 1957.
8. Burba A. A., Kirr L. D., Okunev A. I. and etc. Promyshlennoe vnedrenie tekhnologicheskoy skhemy pererabotki metallurgicheskikh pyley Mednogorskogo medno-sernogo kombinata : otchet (Commercial introduction of technological scheme of Mednogorsk copper-sulfur combine metallurgical dusts reprocessing : reporting). Sverdlovsk, 1960.
9. Certificate of registration 60964. Razrabotka i promyshlennoe vnedrenie tekhnologii izvlecheniya germaniya iz metallurgicheskikh pyley ot pererabotki rud tsvetnykh metallov (Development and commercial introduction of technology of germanium extraction from metallurgical dusts of non-ferrous metal ores reprocessing). L. D. Kirr, A. I. Okunev, A. A. Babadzhan, M. D. Galimov, A. A. Burba, F. D. Aptekar, E. E. Urubko. Moscow : Committee on Inventions and Discoveries of the USSR Council of Ministers; Published 1963, Priority 06.03.1961.
10. Certificate of registration 61508. Usovershenstvovannaya skhema pererabotki metallurgicheskikh pyley, zol i drugikh metallsoderzhashchikh materialov v usloviyakh Mednogorskogo medno-sernogo kombinata (Advanced scheme of metallurgical dusts, ashes and other metal-containing materials reprocessing at Mednogorsk copper-sulfur combine). A. I. Okunev, L. D Kirr, M. D. Galimov, A. A. Burba, F. D. Aptekar, E. E. Urubko, V. I. Sadykov ; Published 1963, Proiruty 08.01.1963.
11. Okunev A. I., Okonishnikov A. M. Izvlechenie redkikh i rasseyannykh elementov iz syrya tsvetnoy metallurgii. Doklad na soveshchanii SEV (Less-common and dispersed elements extraction from raw materials of non-ferrous metallurgy. Report at the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance meeting). Sofiya, 1960. 40 p.
12. Tanutrov I. N., Sviridova M. N., Sholokhov V. M. Fizicheskaya khimiya v metallurgii. Trudy Imet UrO RAN (Physical Chemistry in Metallurgy. Proceedings of the Institute of Metallurgy, Ural Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences). Ekaterinburg, 2005. pp. 213–217.
13. Chesnokov A. A. Gidrometallurgicheskiy sposob polucheniya chistykh oksidov tsinka i germaniya iz shlaka mednosvintsovogo proizvodstva : Avtoref. dis. ... kand. nauk (Hydrometallurgical method of pure zink and germanium oxides obtainment from slag of copper and lead production : Abstract of a thesis ... Candidate of Engineering Sciences). Saint Petersburg, 2009. 20 p.