Analysis of the current state of technologies in the field of recycling technogenic gold-containing raw materials

 In this article, we review existing approaches to recycling technogenic raw materials (ore dumps, metallurgical production slag, mill tailings of ore-dressing plants, etc.), containing non-ferrous and noble metals, which are accumulated in almost non-ferrous metallurgy industries. An analysis of existing technologies for processing technogenic raw materials (pyrite cinders and flotation tailings of concentration plants), which include enrichment, pyro- and hydrometallurgical and combined ways of extracting valuable components, was conducted on the basis of a review of published sources. It was shown that enrichment (screening, desliming in a hydrocyclone, enrichment using a concentration table, magneticliquid separation, flotation), pyrometallurgical and combined ways for extracting noble metals from this type of raw materials are unprofitable. The most satisfactory results were obtained using hydrometallurgical methods to extract valuable components from technogenic raw materials. Various solvents, such as sodium cyanide, thiocarbamide, sodium thiosulphate and sodium sulphite were tested as leaching agents. Cyanation proved to be the most effective way to extract noble metals from technogenic raw materials; however, this process is characterised by a high consumption of sodium cyanide. Therefore, it is of importance to discover an approach to extracting valuable components from such problematic products in order to make their processing more cost-effective by reducing cyanide consumption while maintaining gold extraction. According to the obtained results, gold-containing raw materials are promising in terms of extraction of nonferrous and noble metals using hydrometallurgical technologies. Future research should identify rational methods for processing technogenic gold-containing raw materials in order to make the technology more profitable for extracting valuable components. 

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