Surfactant accelerating leaching of copper ores

Shak-flask test was conducted by adding surfactants to solve problems about the low leaching speed and leaching rate of copper ores. The influences of three different kinds of surfactants on the leaching of copper ores were investigated by measuring the surface tension of solution before and after leaching and the Cu leaching rate. It is found that the surface tension of solution has great influence on the Cu leaching rate; moreover, the anionic surfactant has the greatest effect on accelerating leaching with the Cu leaching rate of 62.5%. In column leaching test, the Cu leaching rate increases by nearly 10% by using the anionic surfactant. The mechanism of accelerating leaching is analyzed based on physical chemistry and permeation fluid mechanics. It can be concluded that the surface tension of solution and the adsorption of surfactants on the ore surface have great effect on the wettability of copper ores. In addition, the persistence of surfactants should be taken into consideration in leaching.