PERSPECTIVE OF THE EMPLOYMENT OF ALTERNATIVE LIXIVIANTES AGENTS TO THE CYANIDE FOR THE RECOVERY OF GOLD AND SILVER

Main Article Content

Maylin Laurel Gómez

Abstract

There is growing concern in the world about the conditions of safe use of cyanide to leach gold ores, which has sparked increased interest in the search for alternative methods for the recovery of this precious metal. Among alternative to cyanide leaching is ammonium thiosulfate or sodium, which has a very favorable performance for ores that contain copper and certain amount of carbonaceous materials, in addition to being a non-polluting alternative compared to the high toxicity of cyanide. The process requires the presence of copper and ammonia leach solutions in order to achieve adequate leaching and to be competitive with those achieved with cyanide speeds. The ion pair Cu (NH3)42+ / Cu (S2O3)35- (corresponding to Cu2+ / Cu+) is mainly responsible for the oxidation of the gold, but also the decomposition of thiosulphate. The behavior of this ion pair is strongly influenced by the ammonia content, the copper concentration, the pH and the solution potential. In the present work we have carried out a study on the use of ammonium thiosulfate worldwide in obtaining gold from different minerals in which there have been similar to those obtained with cyanide recoveries. Although this process has yet to industrial applicability continue to develop methods to recover gold from its solutions. Applying this method to recover gold in our country could be satisfactory mainly those minerals containing copper, which negatively influences the cyanidation process.

Article Details

How to Cite
Gómez, M. L. (2019) “PERSPECTIVE OF THE EMPLOYMENT OF ALTERNATIVE LIXIVIANTES AGENTS TO THE CYANIDE FOR THE RECOVERY OF GOLD AND SILVER”, INFOMIN, 6(2), pp. 74–84. Available at: https://infomin.edicionescervantes.com/index.php/i/article/view/63 (Accessed: 11 June 2026).
Section
Reseñas