Hydrometallurgical process for the production of beryllium
US4729881A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Dec 16, 1986 |
| Grant date | Mar 8, 1988 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 16, 2006 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY02P10/20
- WIPO fieldMaterials, metallurgy
- WIPO sectorChemistry
Abstract
Beryllium is efficiently recovered from silicate ores in a hydrometallurgical, single solvent, process which avoids the complexities, high costs and hazards ofpyrolytic, fluorination and acid leach methods, by contacting the ore in a closed reactor at elevated temperature and autogenous pressure with a concentrated caustic solution and lime or lime hydrate to form a slurry containing dissolved beryllium, reducing the pressure to about one atmosphere and the temperature to below the boiling point of the caustic solution, separating by-product solids to leave a pregnant leach liquor, diluting and digesting the leach liquor to precipitate the beryllium and to leave a caustic mother liquor, and separating the beryllium. The caustic mother liquor can be recycled to the ore contacting step in a closed loop version of the process.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.