Kinetic Study on Extraction of Valuable Metals in Sodium Chloride Solution with Organic Acid Addition

Abstract

The electrochemical leaching experiments have been performed to study the kinetics of extraction of valuable metals (Cu, Ni & Co) from sea-nodules in sodium chloride solution using different organic acid as an additive. These experiments are performed in a glass cell, containing one end closed refractory diaphragm tube having ground sea-nodules mixture with a platinum wire spiral as an inert anode and two identical titanium plates as cathodes. The influence of various organic acids and their concentrations on leaching rate are studied by keeping other conditions constant. It has been observed that extraction rate increases with an increase in concentration of organic acid in sodium chloride solution till a certain concentration. While the extraction rate decreases with increase in the chain length of the organic acid. About 100 % extraction of copper, nickel and cobalt is obtained when formic acid is used as an additive. The high extraction rate of this media is explained and the comparison of extraction rate of different media is made. These experimental results of the present study are compared with those available in literature.