Experimental and simulation assessment to mitigate the emission of sulfide toxic gases and removing main impurities from Zn + Pb + Cu recovery plants

Abstract An integrated novel approach employing the Taguchi method and Aspen Plus software has been applied to evaluate a new configuration for the industrial process of Zn + Pb + Cu recovery from sphalerite ore, in order to minimize the toxic gas emission. The optimum operating condition achieved by the Taguchi method has been used as initial data for the process simulation. The impact of operating parameters on the process performance is considered. The optimum condition for the conversion of sulfide toxic gases to H2SO4 have been found to be: acid concentration of 0.867 mol/L, reaction temperature of 120 °C, stirring speed of 400 rpm, leaching time of 120 min, sulfide ore particle size of 0.01 mm; solid-to-liquid ratio of 30 wt%, additives amount of 50 kg/ton and oxygen pressure of 200 psi. Under optimum condition, H2SO4 production from sulfide toxic gases is 99%, the removal percentage of Fe, Co, Mn, Ni and Cd impurities is 99% and the recovery percentage of Zn + Pd + Cu is more than 97%.