A Model of the Dump Leaching Process that Incorporates Oxygen Balance, Heat Balance, ancl Air Convection

L. M. CATHLES AND J. A. APPS

A one d i m e n s i o n a l , n o n s t e a d y - s t a t e m o d e l of the copper w ast e dump l e a c h i n g p r o c e s s has been d e v e l o p e d which i n c o r p o r a t e s both c h e m i s t r y and p h y s i c s . The m o d el is b a s e d upon t h r e e equations r e l a t i n g oxygen balance, heat balance, and a i r convection. It a s s u m e s that the dump is c o m p o s e d of an a g g r e g a t e of r o c k p a r t i c l e s containing nonsulfide copper m i n e r a l s and the s u lf i d e s , c h a l c o p y r i t e and p y r i t e . Leaching o c c u r s through c h e m i c a l and d i f fusion c o n t r o l l e d p r o c e s s e s in which p y r i t e and c h a l c o p y r i t e a r e oxidized by f e r r i c ions in the l i x i v i a n t . Oxygen, the p r i m a r y oxidant, is t r a n s p o r t e d into the dump by m e a n s of ai r convection and o x i d i z e s f e r r o u s ion through b a c t e r i a l c a t a l y s i s . The heat g e n e r a t e d by the oxidation of the sulfides p r o m o t e s a i r convection. The m o d el was used to s i m u l a t e the l e a c h i n g of c o p p e r f r o m a s m a l l t e s t dump, and e x c e l l e n t a g r e e m e n t with field m e a s u r e m e n t s was obtained. The m o d e l p r e d i c t s that the m o s t i m p o r t a n t v a r i a b l e s a f f e c t i n g copp e r r e c o v e r y f r o m the t e s t dump a r e dump height, p y r i t e c o n c e n t r a t i o n , copper grade, and l i x i v i a n t ap p l i c a ti o n r a t e . T H E l e a c h i n g of l o w - g r a d e c o p p e r - b e a r i n g w a s t e has been p r a c t i c e d e i t h e r by accident or through design for s e v e r a l hundred y e a r s . During the l a s t fifty y e a r s , i n c r e a s i n g attention has been paid to the s y s t e m a t i c l e a c h i n g of l o w - g r a d e w a s t e r e s u l t i n g f r o m the open pit m i n i n g of p o r p h y r y copper d e p o s i t s in the w e s t e r n United States. By now, this a c t i v i t y is yielding an i m p o r t a n t s e c o n d a r y s o u r c e of d o m e s t i c copper, t Indeed, s o m e mining o p e r a t i o n s have been planned and a r e o p e r a t i n g e x c l u s i v e l y f r o m the production of copper obtained f r o m l each i n g . Many of t h e s e o p e r a t i o n s a r e exploiting oxide c o p p e r d e p o s i t s w h e r e copper is r e a d ily l e a c h e d by the a p p l i c a t i o n of dilute s u l f u r i c acid. L o w - g r a d e was t e d i s c a r d e d as a r e s u l t of open pit m i n i n g of p o r p h y r y c o p p e r d e p o s i t s is dumped in gull i e s s u r r o u n d i n g the d e p o s i t . The d i s p o s a l site is d e t e r m i n e d p r i m a r i l y by the convenience of the site to the m i n i n g o p e r a t i o n , and is not u s u a l l y b a s e d on c o n s i d e r a t i o n s n e c e s s a r y f o r o p t i m u m l e a c h in g . In the w e s t e r n United States s e v e r a l billion tons of waste has a c c u m u l a t e d in this m a n n e r . During the l a s t d e c a d e , many people have b e c o m e c o n s c i o u s of the fact that this e n o r m o u s r e s o u r c e of c o p p e r is not being e x p l o i t e d e f f e c t i v e l y b e c a u s e i n sufficient attention is being paid to those f a c t o r s which could lead to i m p r o v e d design and layout of w a s t e dumps. It is b e l i e v e d that if the l e a c h i n g p r o c e s s w e r e c o m p l e t e l y u n d e r s t o o d , then it would be p o s s i b l e to d e s i g n and l each c o p p e r f r o m w a s t e dumps in a far m o r e e f f i c i e n t m a n n e r than is c u r r e n t I y being p r a c ticed. The p r o b l e m is a l a r g e one. Not only m u s t the c h e m i s t r y of l e a c h i n g be understood, including both kinetic and t h e r m o d y n a m i c a s p e c t s , but the e f f e c t of L. M. CATHLES is a senior geophysicist at the Ledgemont Laboratory, Kennecott Copper Corporation, Lexington, Massachusetts. J. A. APPS, formerly a scientist at the Metal Mining Division Research Center, Kennecott Copper Corporation, Salt Lake City, Utah, is now staff scientist, Energy and Environment Division, Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, California. Manuscript submitted February 5, 1975. METALLURGICALTRANSACTIONS B heat g e n e r a t i o n , fluid flow and other t r a n s p o r t p h e n o m e n a r e l a t i n g to the l e a c h i n g p r o c e s s m u s t also be c o n s i d e r e d . A l e a c h i n g s y s t e m cannot be c o n s i d e r e d in a s t e a d y state, b e c a u s e all f a c t o r s i n v o l v e d in the l e a c h i n g p r o c e s s change p r o g r e s s i v e l y as a function of t i m e . In this p ap er we have d e v e l o p e d a o n e - d i m e n s i o n a l m o d el of the n o n s t e a d y - s t a t e dump l e a c h i n g s y s t e m . We have applied this m o d e l to a s m a l l t e s t dump c o n s t r u c t e d and l each ed at the Utah Copper Division of Kennecott Copper C o r p o r a t i o n . To our knowledge only two o t h e r a t t e m p t s have been made to i n t e g r a t e the d i v e r s e a s p e c t s of dump l e a c h i n g into a c o h e r e n t a l l e m b r a c i n g model. %3 While we do not feel that the m o d el p r e s e n t e d in this p ap er is the final a n s w e r to a c l a r i f i c a t i o n of the dump l e a c h i n g p r o c e s s , we b e l i e v e that it f o r m s a b a s i s upon which s u b s e q u e n t r e s e a r c h in this a r e a m i g h t be c o o r d i n a t e d .

A MODEL OF THE DUMP LEACHING PROCESS Initial A s s u m p t i o n s Sulfides m u s t be o x i d i z e d b e f o r e t h e i r m e t a l v a l u e s m ay be put into solution. The conceptual b a s i s of the m o d e l of dump l e a c h i n g p r e s e n t e d h e r e is s i m p l y that the e x o t h e r m i c sulfide oxidation r e a c t i o n s g e n e r a t e heat and c o n s u m e oxygen f r o m the a i r , and by so d o ing d r i v e a i r convection through the dump. This air convection is the only s i g n i f i c a n t s o u r c e of oxidant to the dump. A s y s t e m is e n v i s i o n e d in which a c o u n t e r c u r r e n t i n t e r l o c k i n g flow of a i r and w a t e r p a s s e s through an a g g r e g a t e of r o c k f r a g m e n t s , as shown in Fig. 1. The oxygen l e a v e s the gas phase within the dump by d i s s o l v i n g in the liquid phase w h e r e it o x i d i z e s f e r r o u s to f e r r i c i r o n through the a g e n c y of b a c t e r i a . The f e r r i c i r o n diffuses into the o r e f r a g m e n t s and VOLUME 6B, DECEMBER 1975-617

o x i d i z e s the sulfide m i n e r a l s : * Acid, Fe *+ and heat

*At 1/5 atmosphere PO: and the temperatures involved in dump leaching, oxygen is not very soluble in water (<8.6 10-3 g/1 ). Typical ferric iron concentrations in leach dumps run ~1 g]l. These relative concentrations ensure F e ~ will be the oxidizing agent in the diffusion controlled processes envisioned above.
Fe*~ F 0 2 GAS

a r e p r o d u c e d along with Cu ++. F o r the p u r p o s e s of our model, we h a v e a s s u m e d the f o r m a t i o n of a l e a c h e d r i m which is s e p a r a t e d f r o m the u n r e a c t e d c o r e by a sharp boundary, as shown in Fig. 2. As the l e a c h e d r i m g r o w s the r a t e of l e a c h i n g drops b e c a u s e of l o n g e r diffusion paths and a s h r i n k i n g r e a c t i o n zone. E v i d e n c e for a s h r i n k ing c o r e has been s u p p o r t e d o b s e r v a t i o n a l l y by Braun, Lewis and Wadsworth 4 and by Madsen, Wadsworth and G r o v e s . ~ T h e o r e t i c a l a r g u m e n t s a l s o s u p p o r t the e x i s t e n c e of a s h a r p b o u n d a r y for the conditions of our m o d e l (see Eq. [11]). F o r those r e a s o n s we will l a t e r e m p l o y the m a t h e m a t i c a l f o r m u l a t i o n of the so c a l l e d " s h r i n k i n g c o r e m o d e l " , as d e v e l o p e d by Braun, Lewis and Wadsworth. However, we r e c o g n i z e that t h e r e a r e many conditions in which a s h a r p b o u n d a r y between the l e a c h e d r i m and the u n r e a c t e d c o r e b o u n d a r y is not o b s e r v e d b e c a u s e of v a r i a b l e r e a c t i o n r a t e s of the s u l f i d e s , acid gangue i n t e r a c t i o n , sulfide c o n c e n t r a t i o n , g r a i n s i z e of s u l f i d e s and gangue m i n e r a l s , and p o r o s i t y of the r o c k . A g e n e r a l i z e d m o d e l , taking account of s e v e r a l of t h e s e f a c t o r s has b e e n d e v e l o p e d by B a r t l e t t . 6 Most l o w - g r a d e w a s t e , f r o m which c o p p e r is l e a c h e d , is d e r i v e d f r o m the outer p y r i t i c halo of p o r p h y r y c o p per d e p o s i t s , w h e r e the c o p p e r - b e a r i n g sulfide is c h a l c o p y r i t e . 7 We a s s u m e that c h a l c o p y r i t e and p y r i t e a r e the p r i n c i p a l sulfide m i n e r a l s and that they oxidize in a waste dump e n v i r o n m e n t in the following m a n n e r : 0/2 + ~ CuFeS 2 + ~ (2H + + SO~-) - - -~ (Cu *+ + SO~-) + ~ ( F e +~ + SO~-) + -~ H20 + ~ S
O~ + ~ F e S 2 + 7 H 2 0 -- 2 (Fe++ + SO~-)

SULFIDE BLEBS ~

LIQUID PHASE

Fig. 2--Idealization of the leaching of a single waste partic|e.

g r a m of c h a l c o p y r i t e copper l e a c h e d , the following n u m b e r of g r a m s of 02 will be c o n s u m e d : g Oz c o n s u m e d = (1.25 + 1.75 F P Y ) g c h a l c o p y r i t e Cu l e a c h e d [3]

Actually the amount of oxygen c o n s u m e d p e r g r a m of c h a l c o p y r i t e copper l e a c h e d is s o m e w h a t g r e a t e r than this, if account is taken of the oxidant r e q u i r e d to p r e cipitate, as j a r o s i t e (KFe3(SO4)2(OH)6), the i r o n e x changed for copper d u r i n g c e m e n t a t i o n (2.5 lb F e / l b Cu) and the iron p r o d u c e d in l e a c h i n g the c h a l c o p y r i t e and p y r i t e . The p r e c i p i t a t i o n of c e m e t a t i o n i r o n within the dump m u s t c l e a r l y be taken into account even though the s o u r c e of the i r o n is outside the dump. F u r t h e r , if the e x c e s s acid p r o d u c e d by the oxidation of p y r i t e is n e u t r a l i z e d by r e a c t i o n with gangue of b i o tite c o m p o s i t i o n * additional i r o n is g e n e r a t e d , oxidized, *Biotitehas been found to be more reactiveby a factorof~100 than other gangue mineralsin a porphyry copperintrusive.Calcite,the only other highly reactiveminerallikelyto occur, is usually present only in minoramounts. and p r e c i p i t a t e d . W i t h t h e s e additions Eq. [3] b e c o m e s :

[1]

+~- (2H + SO~-). 2

[2]

E v i d e n c e that these a r e the oxidation m e c h a n i s m s for the two sulfides c o m e s f r o m studies by Wadsworth. 8 O b s e r v a t i o n s by Stephens 9 show that s u l f u r is a p r o d uct of the oxidation of s u l f i d e s in waste dumps. It can be s e e n that for e v e r y m o l e (64 g) of c h a l c o p y r i t e leached, 5/2 m o l e (5/2 932 g) of oxygen will be consumed. If F P Y m o l e s of p y r i t e a r e l e a c h e d per m o l e of sulfide copper, an additional 7/2 F P Y m o l e s (7/2 932 9F P Y g) of Oz will be consumed. Thus for e v e r y

g O z c o n s u m e d = (1.75 + 1.91 F P Y ) g c h a l c o p y r i t e Cu l e a c h e d [4]

_l

CONVECTIVE FLOW OF AIR UP THROUGHTHE DUMP

Fig. l--Countercurrent interlocking flow of air and water through a leach dump. The flow of water is usually intermittant.

Waste m a t e r i a l t y p i c a l l y contains 10 to 100 m o l e s of p y r i t e for e v e r y m o l e of s u l f i d e c o p p e r . Thus p y r i t e is by far the m o s t i m p o r t a n t oxidant c o n s u m e r if it is oxidized in p r o p o r t i o n to its m o l a r r a t i o to sulfide copper. Because leach solutions cannot c a r r y s i g n i f i c a n t oxidant with them as they m o v e through the dump, air is the main s o u r c e of oxidant within a dump. A l i t e r of a i r contains 0.28 g 029 Fig. 3 shows that Eq. [4] r e q u i r e s far m o r e a i r than w a t e r to flow through a waste dump if the effluent solutions a r e to contain the copper c o n c e n t r a t i o n s t y p i c a l l y o b s e r v e d . F o r the p a r t i c u l a r dump we shall c o n s i d e r , at l e a s t 80 t i m e s m o r e air p a s s e d through the dump than w a t e r 9 That is, for each l i t e r of l e a c h i n g solution l e a v i n g the dump with a net gain of 0.25 g/1 (2 lb. Cu/1000 gal.) copper, 80 l i t e r s of a i r a r e r e q u i r e d to supply the oxidant n e c e s s a r y for the c h e m i c a l r e a c t i o n s involved. Eqs. [1] and [2] not only t e l l us the amount of oxidant c o n s u m e d p e r g r a m of c o p p e r l e a c h e d , but a l s o the heat g e n e r a t e d p e r g r a m of copper leached 9 (The e n t halpy of r e a c t i o n , A/-/R, of Eq. [11 is a p p r o x i m a t e l y METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS B

618-VOLUME 6B, DECEMBER 1975

4oo!
3801360340 320 300! -

too
~ 95 MIDAS T E S T D U M P q F ' /_ 90 - 85
80

75 - 70 - 65
-

8
< rr rr

280 260!
240i

Z ,,<,

60

22G
2oc
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66 ~
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of 02 t r a n s p o r t into a waste dump. In this r e s p e c t o u r model d i f f e r s from that of H a r r i s , 2 whose p s e u d o - p a r ticulate leaching case a s s u m e s that Oa t r a n s p o r t into a dump o c c u r s p r i m a r i l y by diffusion through the i n t e r s t i c e s of the p a r t i c l e s . In the next section we g e n e r a l i z e Eqs. [4] and [5] slightly to take into account copper s u l f i d e s other than chalcopyrite. We then develop the r a t e equations r e lating copper extraction with oxygen uptake and heat g e n e r a t i o n . We show that t h e s e r a t e equations a r e gove r n e d by the chemical and diffusional p r o c e s s e s occ u r r i n g d u r i n g the l e a c h i n g of waste p a r t i c l e s in the dump. F i n a l l y , we d e r i v e t h r e e equations d e s c r i b i n g oxygen b a l a n c e , heat b a l a n c e and convective a i r flow which a r e the b a s i s for our one d i m e n s i o n a l model. F o r m u l a t i o n of a One D i m e n s i o n a l Model

I--

160
0 .J IJrr

40

< ~

,40
120 100 80 60 40 20
6.22 ( , , , ,

as
30 25 20
,

~
~ w s ,~ O rr

<

15 10 5

10

15

20

25

30

36

40

46

60

MOLES py/MOLE SULFIDE Cu LEACHED (FPY) FPY F i g . 3 - - G r a p h r e l a t i n g t h e a i r f l o w t h r o u g h a d u m p to t h e r a t i o o f t h e m o l e s of p y r i t e l e a c h e d to s u l f a t e c o p p e r l e a c h e d (FPY), f o r a t y p i c a l e f f l u e n t c o p p e r c o n c e n t r a t i o n .

- 108.8 kcal;* AHR for Eq. [2] is - 94.9 kcal). If we

* 1 kcal = 4.1868 kJ.

again take into account the heat c o n s u m e d in the p r e cipitation of j a r o s i t e , r e q u i r e acid and i r o n balance, and a s s u m e 2.5 lb. Fe a r e exchanged per pound of Cu at the p r e c i p i t a t i o n plant: k i l o c a t o r i e s produced = (2.89 + 5 . 4 1 F P Y ) g c h a l c o p y r i t e Cu leached [5]

Again it can be s e e n p y r i t e oxidation will, in all p r o b a bility, be the most sig-nificant s o u r c e of heat. The r a t e at which a waste dump heats up is a d i r e c t m e a s u r e of F P Y. Eqs. [4] and [5] contain the f u n d a m e n t a l s of a model of the dump l e a c h i n g p r o c e s s . Sulfide oxidation r e a c tions c o n s u m e oxygen f r o m the a i r in a dump. Since O~ is a heavy component in air, the oxygen depleted air is lighter. Since w a t e r vapor is a light component of air, s a t u r a t i o n of the a i r inside a dump with w a t e r v a p o r wilt also produce buoyant f o r c e s . Buoyant f o r c e s tend to produce a i r convection. F u r t h e r m o r e , the oxidation r e a c t i o n s are e x o t h e r m i c , which also p r o m o t e s a i r convection. A AT of 20~ p r o d u c e s buoyant f o r c e s two or ten t i m e s l a r g e r than complete oxygen d e p l e tion or complete water v a p o r s a t u r a t i o n , r e s p e c t i v e l y . For normally observed permeabilities, air convection r a t h e r than diffusion is the p r i n c i p a l m e c h a n i s m
METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS B

Because sulfide l e a c h i n g is u s u a l l y d o m i n a t e d by the l e a c h i n g of pyrite, Eqs. [4] and [5] a r e quite e a s y to g e n e r a l i z e . Provided F P Y is taken as the m o l e s of pyrite oxidized per mole of sulfide copper oxidized, and provided F P Y is g r e a t e r than ~ 4 , Eqs. [4] and [5] will hold to good a p p r o x i m a t i o n even if sulfide m i n e r a l s other than c h a l c o p y r i t e a r e p r e s e n t . We a s s u m e sulfide oxidation takes place in a dump only w h e r e the a i r filled p o r e s of the dump contain oxygen and that the oxidation proceeds at a r a t e independent of the actual oxygen c o n c e n t r a t i o n . Unpublished s t u d i e s of the b a c t e r i a l oxidation of waste dump leaching solutions with a i r , conducted by the second author, have shown that the b a c t e r i a l oxidation r a t e of f e r r o u s i r o n is e s s e n t i a l l y independent of oxygen c o n c e n t r a t i o n in the a i r until the c o n c e n t r a t i o n falls below 1 pct. More r e c e n t studies by the second author involving the uptake of oxygen by wetted m i n e waste show that oxygen uptake is s u b s t a n t i a l l y independent of oxygen p a r t i a l p r e s s u r e for the s a m e r a n g e of oxygen c o n c e n t r a t i o n s . By c o n t r a s t nonsulfide copper is leached with acid alone. Acid g e n e r a t e d by p y r i t e oxidation anywhere in the dump is r e c i r c u l a t e d through the dump in n o r mal o p e r a t i o n . T h e r e f o r e , nonsulfide copper leaching should take place e v e r y w h e r e in the dump at a r a t e independent of the p r e s e n c e or a b s e n c e of n e a r b y oxygen. Suppose the f r a c t i o n of sulfide copper r e m a i n i n g in the dump after some l e a c h i n g is X s , and the fraction of n o n s u l f i d e copper in the dump is X N s . Let the o r i g inal sulfide copper grade be Gs and the o r i g i n a l nonsulfide copper grade be GNS. Then the r a t e at which copper is leached from the dump, fftCu, m a y be exp r e s s e d as:
/ dX S dX S \ ~ c u = pR(1 - ~ ) i t s - a - i - - + cNs -ag-)"

[6]

S i m i l a r l y the r a t e of oxygen consumption, 6tO2 , and the r a t e of heat g e n e r a t i o n fftA, may be e x p r e s s e d , from Eqs. [4] and [5]:

~o2 = p R ( 1 - , # ) G s - ~ -

dxs

(1.75 + 1 . 9 1 s

[7]
[8]

6{A = P R ( 1 - r

dXs

(2.89 + 5 . 4 1 F P Y )

V O L U M E 6B. D E C E M B E R 1 9 7 5 - 6 1 9

OR, the d e n s i t y of the r o c k waste, is c o m m o n l y about

2.7 g / c m ~ ; 4,, the i n t e r b l o c k p o r o s i t y of the dump is ~ 2 5 pct; P R ( 1 - ~p), the bulk d e n s i ty of the dump as a whole, is e q u i v a l e n t to 1.7 t o n s / y d '~, The r a t e of l each i n g , d X 8 / d r and d X N s / d t , m a y be d e s c r i b e d also in t e r m s of l e a c h i n g f r o m a waste p a r t i c l e . Let us suppose that the l e a c h i n g of a s u l f i d e - b e a r i n g p a r t i c l e is g o v e r n e d by an equation of the f o r m :
Table I. Parameters Used for the Determination o f ToS and rcs Parameter a R /2malf Description Value

DL
Gs

FPY K kox
[Ox]

- ko.

%ulf[ox]z

= 0

[9a]

and that [Ox] l just o u t s i d e the o r e p a r t i c l e is a known function of t i m e. The s y m b o l s given a r e defined in Table I. F o r a s i m p l e o n e - d i m e n s i o n a l c a s e , Eq. [9a] b e comes:

Radius of waste particle Surface area of sulfide mineralization per unit volume o f waste Diffusion constant of F e ~ in water Moles of pyrite reached per mole and sulfide copper leached Sulfide copper grade Oxidant required to leach a unit volume of waste particle First order rate constant for the oxidation of pyrite by F e ~ Concentration of F e ~ in leaching solution Tortuosity of diffusion channels Reation skin septh (see Eq. [1 I ] ) Porosity of waste through which diffusion can take place

1-5 cm ~ 8 0 cm -~ ~ 2 X 10 -s c m : / s 47 0.;8 wt pet 0.444 g/cm 3 ~--I0 -v cm/s 10 -3 g/cm 3 ~5 Calculated value = 0.142 cm 4 X 10 -2

D'ol ~ R l
T/

32[0X]

Rl

3x e

kox

u,f[o

]Rl : 0

[9b]
= [Ox] l

Satisfying the boundary conditions [Ox] ~

X=0

I"DS =

1590 mo.* In addition, Tc and ~'D m a y be given

and [Ox]~ x ~

O, the solution is [ Ox]

x=0

*1 m o = 3 I d .

R d[Ox]z

e [10]
- Dox~ ~R -~[11]

a t e m p e r a t u r e dependence: -r(T) = ~ ( T = 0~ EXP (1000 R

PE ~

T (273) (273 + T ) /

W he re 5 = r e a c t i o n skin depth =

[16]
This i n t r o d u c e s activation e n e r g i e s E*DS, E*CS, EDNS,* ECN S. F r o m the l i t e r a t u r e ~~ r e a s o n a b l e ~ e s s e s for

* koxT Rasulf
The r e a c t i o n skin depth is the d i s t a n c e into the p a r t i cle w h e r e the oxidant c o n c e n t r a t i o n has fallen to 1 / e its init i al value. Since by hypothesis the r a t e of o x i d a tion r e a c t i o n is p r o p o r t i o n a l to oxidant c o n c e n t r a t i o n . 5 is a m e a s u r e of the d i s t a n c e into the o r e p a r t i c l e that s i g n i f i c a n t c h e m i c a l r e a c t i o n t a k e s place. Using v a l u e s given in Table I. 5 = 0.142 cm. The r e a c t i o n skin depth is t h e r e f o r e thin, r e l a t i v e to the a v e r a g e s i z e p a r t i c l e d i a m e t e r . L e a c h i n g of a p a r t i cle can, t h e r e f o r e , be d e s c r i b e d in t e r m s of the s o c a l l e d s h r i n k i n g c o r e m o d e l which is of a s i m i l a r f o r m to that developed by Braun, Lewis and Wadsworth. 4

dXs

- 3x s"

[121

dXv s
dt

_ .,t x - z / 3

---Ns

61DNSXNs

1/3

( 1 -- " ' N S '

y1/3

[13]
+

TeNs

w h e r e ~-D is the t i m e r e q u i r e d to l e a c h a w a s t e p a r t i cle c o m p l e t e l y when the p r o c e s s is s o l e l y diffusion c o n t r o l l e d , and ~'C the t i m e to l e a c h a w a s t e p a r t i c l e c o m p l e t e l y when the p r o c e s s is c o n t r o l l e d by the d e c r e a s i n g s u r f a c e a r e a of the s h r i n k i n g unleached c o r e . ~'C and "i" can be computed t h e o r e t i c a l l y f r o m the f o l D lowing r e l a t i o n s :

r c s = ko.~ a n ,~ 5 [Ox]
SUl[

ga

[14]

EDS and EDN S would be 5.0 k c a l / m o l . E*CS and ECN s m i g h t r a n g e f r o m 14.0 k c a l / m o l to 20.0 k c a l / m o l , the activation e n e r g i e s r e p o r t e d for the l e a c h i n g of p y r i t e 1~,~z and for c h a l c o p y r i t e . ~3 Given v a l u e s for TDS , "rC5 , ~'DIVS, "teNS, Eqs. [12] and [13] d e t e r m i n e the r a t e of l e a c h i n g at any point in the dump at any st ag e of leaching. XNS and X S can be updated af t er each i n c r e m e n t of m o d el l e a c h ing. Model t i m e i n c r e m e n t s m a y be taken as s h o r t as desired. The m o s t s e r i o u s a p p r o x i m a t i o n in Eqs. [12] and [13] is p r o b a b l y the a s s u m p t i o n that the dump is c o m posed of w a s t e p a r t i c l e s only of one s i z e . This m a y not be as s e r i o u s an a p p r o x i m a t i o n as it m i g h t at f i r s t s e e m , given the tendency of s m a l l o r e p a r t i c l e s to clump t o g e t h e r and l each as if they w e r e a l a r g e r a g g r e g a t e , and the tendency for l a r g e o r e p a r t i c l e s to have l a r g e enough c r a c k s that they l e a c h like s o m e what s m a l l e r p a r t i c l e s . l ~ F u r t h e r m o r e , r e c e n t work has also shown that copp er r e c o v e r y r a t e s f r o m o p e r a t i n g dumps at K e n n e c o t t ' s Bingham mine can be c o r r e l a t e d quite w e l l with l a b o r a t o r y st u d i es of copper r e c o v e r y f r o m s i m i l a r m a t e r i a l when the m e a n p a r t i c l e s i z e of the waste, as found in the dump, is c o m p a r e d with l a b o r a t o r y leaching studies. The heat b al an ce in a w a s t e dump m a y be d e s c r i b e d by: PTCT
aT

at - -- (PlClVl + p g C g V g ) . V T + 6~A + KTVZT

[17a]

TDS =

6[Ox]D'o x * R

Using the v a l u e s given in Table I, "rCS = 903 mo, and

w h e r e p and C a r e the d e n s i t y and heat c a p a c i t y of the

620-VOLUME

6B, D E C E M B E R

1975

METALLURGICAL

TRANSACTIONS

total dump ( s u b s c r i p t T) and the liquid ( s u b s c r i p t l) and gas ( s u b s c r i p t A*) phase of the dump. V l is the Darcy liquid velocity (i.e. cm ~ water/cm" dump surface-s passed through the dump). V~ is the darcy air velocity through the dump (i.e. cm a air/cm-" dump area-s). KT, the thermal conductivity of the dump is taken to be 5 I0 -3 cal/cm.~ 9 s. For calculation, pTCT = 0.6, plCl = 1.0, and pg.Cg = 1.3 10 -3 (0.126 + 0.0283T), w h e r e T is the t e m p e r a t u r e of the dump. This l a s t e x p r e s s i o n t a k e s into account the t h e r m a l effects of e v a p o r a t i o n . It is a s s u m e d the air in the dump is always s a t u r a t e d with w a t e r ; account is taken of the i n c r e a s e in w a t e r s a t u r a t i o n v a l u e s with inc r e a s i n g a i r t e m p e r a t u r e , T, and the effect, through the l a t e n t h e a t of v a p o r i z a t i o n , this would have on the heat c a p a c i t y or heat c a r r y i n g ability of a i r . F o r a one d i m e n s i o n a l dump (i.e. air and w a t e r flow r e s t r i c t e d to be v e r t i c a l only), Eq. [17b] s i m p l i f i e s to:

application was used, an approximation that has been shown valid so long as the leach cycle is less than three months. As will be discussed later the ambient t e m p e r a t u r e was v a r i e d s e a s o n a l l y in a m a n n e r app r o p r i a t e to the location of the dump ( t e m p e r a t u r e m e a s u r e m e n t s w e r e a v a i l a b l e f r o m a m i n e station). The s u r f a c e t e m p e r a t u r e of the dump was a l s o v a r i e d s e a s o n a l l y but at a higher a v e r a g e t e m p e r a t u r e and o v e r a m o r e r e s t r i c t e d r a n g e . Air c o n v e c t i o n kept the dump s u r f a c e w a r m e r than the s u r r o u n d i n g s . Snow was o b s e r v e d to m e l t m o r e quickly on the dump than in the s u r r o u n d i n g a r e a s . Given a set of p a r a m e t e r s and o p e r a t i n g p r o c e d u r e s (rate of application of water), the finite d i f f e r e n c e model c o m p u t e s the l e a c h h i s t o r y of the m o d e l dump. The dump is c o n s i d e r e d to be b r o k e n into N l a y e r s . The p e r c e n t copper l e a c h e d per month (or the effluent copper heads) can be computed e a s i l y :

pTCT ~

OT

= (PlClVl

--

pgCgVg)-~-

aT

+ ~A

KT

~2T
0?. z

fracti~ l

O=dXToT (2"68x10~ o~-o) =2"68x dt e m ---d-t-- + GS N(Gs + GIGS) OR(1- 4,)H

d---Y-- + NV l
Cs
dt

[17b] One d i m e n s i o n a l c o n v e c t i v e air flow through a dump m a y be d e s c r i b e d : E dump [g/1 Cu]

[22]

Vg-

kAVE

I~g

AP

[181

HEADS

H is the height of the dump, t~g is the v i s c o s i t y of a i r = 1.9 10 -4 poise.* AP is the p r e s s u r e drop a c r o s s the *l poise= 0.1 Pa'S. dump. &P m a y be e x p r e s s e d as: [19] i H e r e Poo is the d e n s i t y of a i r at STP, go is the g r a v i t a tional constant, ffi = Hi/H, is the n o r m a l i z e d t h i c k n e s s of the ith i n c r e m e n t a l l e v e l of the dump. a(T i) is the t e m p e r a t u r e dependent c o e f f i c i e n t of t h e r m a l expansion which, like the h e a t c a p a c i t y , i n c l u d e s the e f f e c t s of changing w a t e r v a p o r s a t u r a t i o n . 13 is a c o e f f i c i e n t which d e s c r i b e s the d e c r e a s e in air density due to o x y gen depletion (~ = 2.83 x 10-2). [ 6 ~ ] g = [O,.]g/[o2]~Tp. kAVE, the a v e r a g e p e r m e a b i l i t y of the dump, may be expressed:

-~--/

looo

[23]

dump

The c u m u l a t i v e pet l e a c h e d , 1 f r a c t i o n Cu leached = 1 ~

XTO T is just:
[24]

AP = PoogoHEHi(a(T i) r i + ~ (1 -- ion]g))

(GNs XNs + Gs X S) GNS + GS

The next s e c t i o n c o m p a r e s the r a t e of l e a c h i n g and the c u m u l a t i v e l e a c h i n g of a t e s t dump to the r a t e of Ieaching and c u m u l a t i v e l e a c h i n g c o m p u t e d by the m o d e l through Eqs. [22] and [24]. CALIBRATION OF THE MODEL

kAV :

[201

Fig. 4 shows a cross section of the Midas test dump, built of mine waste with normal size distribution by the Utah Copper Division of Kennecott Copper C o r p o r ation at Bingham Canyon, Utah. The dump is about 400 ft long, 200 ft wide. The a v e r a g e depth is 20 ft with a

Any distance, zi, from the base of the dump, where fresh air is assumed to enter, the oxygen concentration in the dump will be:

r
t C9 e8 C;' c6 C5 C4 C3 C2

C'
c1 TEST HOLES

[ je

[2I]
r 7100J
TEMPERATURE OISTRIBUTION - Section C-C' -

Eqs. [17b], [18], and [21] r e p r e s e n t a m o d e l of the dump l e a c h i n g p r o c e s s that includes both physics (air convection) and c h e m i s t r y . The equations can be s o l v e d using an i m p l i c i t finite d i f f e r e n c e s c h e m e in which the dump is c o n s i d e r e d to be b r o k e n into N l a y e r s . The method used was to s t a r t the dump l e a c h i n g at s o m e s t a r t i n g t e m p e r a t u r e and loop between Eqs. [18] and [21] until a steady s t a t e O 2 p r o f i l e and air v e l o c i t y was attained. Then Eq. [17b] was used to d e t e r m i n e the t e m p e r a t u r e of the dump at t + At. At was g e n e r ally taken to be one month. The a v e r a g e r a t e of fluid METALLURGICALTRANSACTIONS g

> lr~
'

! C9
/-.~,~=

D~

9 - . - ~ ~ -~ ' - ~o

C7

C5

C5

C4

C3

C2

~'

.....

C1 TEST HOLES

7140

7100~

~ " OXYGEN DISTRIBUTION ~ Section C-C'

50

log

HORZ. ~, VERT. SCAL~

Fig. 4--August 1969 temperature and oxygen distribution in a section through the Midas test dump, VOLUME6B DECEMBER 1975-621

m a x i m u m depth of 40 ft. F i f t y - e i g h t l e a c h i n g ponds c o v e r the top of the dump. The w a s t e tonnage beneath the ponds is about 93,000 tons ( a s s u m i n g 1.7 t o n s / y @ ) The waste i t s e l f is 60 pet q u a r t z i t e and 40 pet biotite gTanite. The a v e r a g e g r a d e of the waste is 0.145 pct copper. 80 pet of the copper was sulfide, dominantly c h a l c o p y r i t e ; the r e s t was nonsulfide copper. L e a c h i n g of the dump began on A p r i l 9, 1969. P r i o r to this, t h e r e had been s o m e runnoff through the dump but v e r y low copper e x t r a c t i o n . Fig. 5 shows that l e a c h i n g a f t e r water application was slow at f i r s t , inc r e a s e d r a p i d l y to a m a x i m u m about five months after the s t a r t of leaching, and then fell steadily, with s o m e fluctuations that appear c o r r e l a t e d with the s e a s o n ( m a x i m u m in s u m m e r ) . Fig. 4 shows that by August 1969 the i n t e r n a l dump t e m p e r a t u r e had r i s e n to 130~ (54~ T h e r e was s u b s t a n t i a l oxygen depletion as the a i r c o n v e c t e d through the dump. It can a l s o be s e e n that the air conveeted in along the high p e r m e a b i l i t y b a s e of the dump and then up through the d u m p - - t h e one d i m e n s i o n a l m o d e l is a p p r o p r i a t e for this c a s e . As t i m e went on the location of m a x i m u m dump t e m p e r a t u r e shifted f r o m the far end of the dump (as shown in Fig. 4) to about the s a m e d i s t a n c e f r o m the n e a r end. The p a r a m e t e r s used in the m o d e l a r e l i s t e d in Table II. The following t h e r m a l boundary conditions w e r e chosen. The b a s e of the dump was fixed at 20~ The top s u r f a c e t e m p e r a t u r e was allowed to v a r y :

T (mo) = 1 0 ~

1O.cos ((mo - 1)~/6)

2.4
2.3 2.2

24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 o o. z 0

2.1
2,0 1.9 1.8

w h e r e mo runs f r o m 1 to 12 and is the n u m b e r of the c a l e n d a r month. Thus the top s u r f a c e of the clump was a s s u m e d to v a r y s e a s o n a l l y between 32~ and 68~ (0~ and 20~ a slightly m o r e r e s t r i c t e d and h o t t e r r a n g e than the a m b i e n t t e m p e r a t u r e v a r i a t i o n of 19~ to 63~ ( - 7 ~ to 17~ The temperature at the base of the test dump was observed to fluctuate somewhat. The assumption of a constant 20~ basal temperature is a matter of convenience and is probably subject to some error. Both boundary conditions are plausible. Subsequentwork has shown these assumptions to be quite reasonable. The starting temperature of the model dump was 10~ The Midas test dump was built in winter so the dump was initially at least this cold. Fig. 6 compares the calibrated model leaching history to the leaching history of the Midas test dump shown in Fig. 5. The match in general is quite good. In addition to the leaching history similarity, the model dump reached 51~ internal temperature by August 1969 and then decreased in temperature to about 14~ as did the far end of the Midas test dump. In August 1969 the effuent oxygen concentration was 9 pct, in good agreement with observation (see Fig. 4). The values of rCS and rDC are quite close to the values anticipated from Eqs. [14] and [15] (compare Tables I and II). The initial rise in extraction rate is due to the heating up of the dump. This feature is not peculiar to the Midas test dump, and can be observed in the leaching history of many dumps. The fall in leaching rate after the first seven months of leaching is clue to the fact the more accessible copper has been leached and Fe+ + + must diffuse through already leached areas to reach the remaining copper. The fall in dump temperature also contributes to the decline in leaching rate. VARIATIONS FROM THE BASE MODEL It is of i n t e r e s t to v a r y the m o d e l p a r a m e t e r s to s e e what effect they m a y have on the r a t e of c o p p e r e x t r a c -

1.7 1,6

z"
o ko < r,.. l-

1.5 1.4 1.3 1.2 1.1

MIDAS TEST DUMP UCD

ge

15 14 13 12

< x uJ
uJ

/~

of Data

,,x ,,=,
o u

O \\
1.0 .9 .8

Table II. Parameters Used for the Model Shown in Fig, 6

\ \ \\ \\N
#

10

k<

Parameter H FPY k' V/

Description Height of dump Moles pyrite leached/mole Cu leached Dump permeability k AVE Rate of water application

Value 670 cm (22 ft) 47 l0 "s cm 2 ( 1000 darcys) 2.26 X I0 "s cm3/ cm 2 d u m p ' s (0.02 gal/ft 2' h) 0.t 16 wt pct 0.029 w t pct 1700 m o 200 m o
500 mo 300 mo

g
8 7 6
5

< 0z

.7 .6

.5

f//
.3 .2 .'Y
2 4 6

3 2 ~1
I 8 I I I i i I I I I [ t

Gs GNS TDS 7"CS ?DNS 7"CN S E DS, E DNS ECS, E~NS

10 12 DATE

10 12

-- 69 --

-- 70 --

Fig. 5--The rate of extraction and cumulative extraction of copper from the Midas test dump, using a five-month running average.
622-VOLUME 6B, D E C E M B E R 1975

Dump sulfide copper grade Dump nonsulfide copper grade Diffusional sulfide leach time (20~ Leach time for sulfide copper under surface area rate control (20~ Diffusionai nonsuIfide Ieach time (20~ Leach time for nonsulfide copper under surface area rate control (20~ Activation energies for diffusion Activation energies for chemical leaching reactions

5.0 kcal/mol 18.0 kcal/mol

METALLURGICAL

TRANSACTIONS

MIDAS TEST DUMP 5 MONTH RUNNING AVERAGE 2.d 2.: 2., 2.1 2.( 15 1.[ d 1.1 1.f 24.0 23.0 22.0 21.0 20.0 19.0 18.0 17.0

10.0
15.0

z"
o (J

z"
o

Fee kx re

1.4 1.3 1.2 1.1 1.0 .9

14.0
13.0 12.0 11.0

a:

x m

been included, as yet. in the model. Secondly. not all the p a r a m e t e r s listed in Table III a r e m u t u a l l y independent. For example, i n c r e a s i n g F P Y at a c o n s t a n t sulfide copper grade will c a u s e "rDS to i n c r e a s e s u b stantially. LastIy, the combination of p a r a m e t e r s that s u c c e s s f u l l y models the Midas test dump is not n e c e s s a r i l y a unique set or the c o r r e c t set. Data f r o m m o r e than one t e s t dump is needed to r e s o l v e t h e s e u n c e r t a i n t i e s . The m o s t c r i t i c a l u n c e r t a i n t i e s a r e p r o b a b l y the c h e m i c a l activation e n e r g i e s and F P Y (see Table II). The lack of dependence of Ieach r a t e on p e r m e a b i l i t y s i m p l y indicates the dump was shaIlow and p e r m e a b l e enough not to be oxygen s t a r v e d anywhere. Had the dump been thicker (~ 100 ft.), a s i g n i f i c a n t dependence of leach r a t e on p e r m e a b i l i t y would be noted. CONCLUSIONS F r o m the d i s c u s s i o n p r e s e n t e d it can be concluded: 1) A i r convection is an i m p o r t a n t p a r t of the dump l e a c h i n g p r o c e s s and m u s t be accounted for in any s u c c e s s f u l model of this p r o c e s s (Fig. 3). 2) E x o t h e r m i c oxidation r e a c t i o n s heat up waste dumps with t i m e (Fig. 4). Any leaching m o d e l that is to be applicable to r e a l dumps m u s t account for the t e m p e r a t u r e dependence of the leaching p r o c e s s . 3) A s i m p l e model that r e q u i r e s e n e r g y , m a s s and m o m e n t u m balance, and that d e r i v e s r a t e c o n t r o l from a t e m p e r a t u r e dependent s h r i n k i n g core m o d e l and a s i n g l e " a v e r a g e " waste p a r t i c l e d i a m e t e r (Eqs. [12], [13], [16]) has proved r e m a r k a b l y s u c c e s s f u l in a c counting for the m o s t i m p o r t a n t o b s e r v e d f e a t u r e s of the leaching h i s t o r y of a well studied t e s t dump (Fig. 6). 4) Dump height, lixiviant application r a t e and dump p e r m e a b i l i t y a r e the m o s t i m p o r t a n t f a c t o r s affecting the r a t e of copper leaching that a r e a c c e s s i b l e to ope r a t i o n a l a l t e r a t i o n . (Table III and d i s c u s s i o n in text). ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The a u t h o r s would like to thank Kennecott Copper Corporation for p e r m i s s i o n to publish this paper. In p a r t i c u l a r , the authors would also like to thank the M e s s r s . W. D. Southard, A. D. P e r n i c h e l e and B. P. Ream of Utah Copper Division for p e r m i s s i o n to use the Midas t e s t dump data as a base case for this study. Enough r e c o g n i t i o n cannot be given to the extensive. c a r e f u l work of these individuals and o t h e r s that was r e q u i r e d to collect the high quality data so e a s i l y cited in this paper. P a r t s of this paper were p r e s e n t e d at the 78th National Meeting of the A m e r i c a n Institute of Chemical E n g i n e e r s in a Symposium Section on Modeling and Analysis of Dump and In-Situ Leaching Operations, August 19, 1974 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

10.0 9.0 8.0

>_.
~" <

.8
re .7 .6 .5

7.0
6.0 5.0 4.0

.4
.3 .2 .1

3.0 2.0 1.0

4 6 8
9 69 -

10

12

4
DATE

10

12

- 70 -

F i g . 6 - - C o m p a r i s o n of o b s e r v e d dump copper leaching behavior.

and calculated Midas test

Table III. The Effect of Parameter Variation on Copper Recovery After 24 Months of Leaching

Parameter

Variation

Increase in Copper Recovered in 24 Months, Pct 8.9 6.2 6.2 4.8

2.7 1.8

FPY J fDS Gs J E~S res

+10 +10 --10 +10

+ 10 - 10

V t
TDNs E~s GNS rCNs E3Ns

,/

-10
- -

1.3
1.3 0.9

10 + 10

+10
-- I 0

0.9
0.4

Starting Temp
E~NS

+ 10 +10
+ 10

0.4 0.4
0.0

k'

+10 -10

0.0 -0.4

tion. Table III l i s t s the p a r a m e t e r s of Table II and shows the p e r c e n t i n c r e a s e in copper e x t r a c t i o n after twenty four months of l e a c h i n g that r e s u l t s from a 10 pct a l t e r a t i o n in the l i s t e d p a r a m e t e r . The p a r a m e t e r s that are checked affect the r a t e of leaching p r i m a r i l y by allowing the dump to a t t a i n higher t e m p e r a t u r e s . The r e a d e r is cautioned that the v a r i a t i o n s in leach r a t e shown in Table III a r e based only on what is in the model. Much m a y go on in a waste dump that has not
METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS B

NOMENCLATURE
a a R

sulf

%
C

: radius of a waste particle, [cm] surface area of sulfide mineralization per unit volume of waste, [cm -I] : heat capacity of gas phase in dump including effects of variable water saturation, [g/cm 3] : heat capacity of mobile liquid phase in
:

dump, [cal/g ~
V O L U M E 6B, D E C E M B E R 1975 623

CT D OX ~ EDS, EDNS

: h e a t c a p a c i t y of d u m p as a whole,

[cal/g ~
: d i f f u s i o n c o n s t a n t of o x i d a n t in w a t e r ,
zi

ing in the d u m p o r a g i v e n l a y e r of the d u m p , [-]

: distance o[ center of ith layer of d u mp

f r o m b a s e of d u m p , [ c m ] GREEK LETTERS

[cm2/s]
: activation energies describing, through Eq. [16], the t e m p e r a t u r e d e p e n d e n c e of "1"0.9, t O N S , [ k c a l / m o l e ] : activation energies describing, through Eq. [16], the t e m p e r a t u r e d e p e n d e n c e of ,r C S , T C NS, [ k c a l / m o l e ] : m o l e s of p y r i t e l e a c h e d p e r m o l e of s u l fide c o p p e r l e a c h e d [ - ] : i n i t i a l c o p p e r s u l f i d e g r a d e of dump, [wt f r a c t i o n Cu] : i n i t i a l c o p p e r n o n s u l f i d e g r a d e of dump, [wt f r a c t i o n Cu] : g-cavitationaI a c c e l e r a t i o n , [ c m / s e] : h e i g h t of dump, [ c m ] : t h i c k n e s s of ith l a y e r of d u m p , [ c m ] : d i m e n s i o n l e s s t h i c k n e s s of ith l a y e r of d u m p hr i = H i / H , [ - ] : e n t h a l p y of r e a c t i o n , [kcaI] : o x i d a n t r e q u i r e d to I e a c h w a s t e p a r t i c I e , [ g / c m 3p a r t i c l e ] : t h e r m a l c o n d u c t i v i t y of d u m p as a w h o l e (total dump), [ c a l / c m ~ s] : i n t r i n s i c p e r m e a b i l i t y of the d u m p , [cm 2] : a v e r a g e p e r m e a b i l i t y of the d u m p (i Darcy ~ 10-8 cmZ), [cm 2] : chemical rate constant characterizing r e a c t i o n of o x i d a n t and sulfide m i n e r a l s , [cm/s] : n u m b e r of l a y e r s into w h i c h d u m p has b e e n a r b i t r a r i l y b r o k e n f o r s a k e of c o m p u t a t i o n (usually 30), [ - ] : c o n c e n t r a t i o n of o x i d a n t , [ g / c m 3] : c o n c e n t r a t i o n of o x y g e n in a i r u n d e r s t a n d a r d c o n d i t i o n s of t e m p e r a t u r e and p r e s s u r e , [ g / c m 3] : c o n c e n t r a t i o n of o x y g e n in g a s p h a s e of d u m p s , [ g / c m 3] : n o r m a l i z e d o x y g e n c o n c e n t r a t i o n in gas p h a s e of d u m p [ o 2 ] g = [ 0 2 ] g / [ o ~ ] g T p , [ - ] : p r e s s u r e d r o p a c r o s s (bottom to [6p-) the d u m p (106 d y n e s / c m 2 ~ 1 a t m o s p h e r e ) ,

/3

FPY GS GNS go H Hi Mt R KAVE KT k' k kox

6 /~g
PR PT Pl

: c o e f f i c i e n t of t h e r m a l e x p a n s i o n of a i r i n c l u d i n g e f f e c t s of c h a n g i n g w a t e r v a p o r saturation. [-] : c o e f f i c i e n t d e s c r i b i n g the c h a i n g e in a i r d e n s i t y due to o x y g e n d e p l e t i o n . (See Eq. [191), [ - ] : r e a c t i o n s k i n depth, [ c m ] : v i s c o s i t y of the gas p h a s e in the d u m p , : d e n s i t y of w a s t e p a r t i c l e s , [ g / c m 3] : d e n s i t y of the d u m p a s a w h o l e ( " T o t a l " d u m p ) (PT = PR [ 1 - ~p]), [ g / c m 3] : d e n s i t y of l i q u i d p h a s e of dump ( w a t e r ) , [ g / c m 3} : d e n s i t y of gas p h a s e in d u m p i n c l u d i n g e f f e c t of v a r i a b l e w a t e r v a p o r s a t u r a t i o n , [g/cm3l : d e n s i t y of a i r at s t a n d a r d t e m p e r a t u r e and p r e s s u r e , [ g / c m 3] : t i m e to l e a c h t y p i c a l w a s t e p a r t i c l e c o m p l e t e l y of s u l f i d e o r n o n s u l f i d e c o p p e r a s s u m i n g r a t e of l e a c h i n g is l i m i t e d by d i f f u s i o n of o x i d a n t o r a c i d into t h e p a r ticle, [mo] : t i m e to l e a c h t y p i c a l w a s t e p a r t i c l e c o m p l e t e l y of s u l f i d e o r n o n s u l f i d e c o p p e r a s s u m i n g the r a t e of l e a c h i n g is c o n t r o l l e d by the s h r i n k i n g s u r f a c e a r e a of the s u l f i d e o r n o n - s u l f i d e c o p p e r ( " c h e m i c a l " c o n t r o l ) , [mo] : i n t e r b l o c k p o r o s i t y of d u m p ( u s u a l l y ~ 2 5 pct), [ - ] : p o r o s i t y of w a s t e t h r o u g h which d i f f u s i o n can t a k e p l a c e , [ - ]

0g

Poo
TDS , r D N s

.rcs ' .rCN S

fOx]

[ o~t~r p
[% ] g
[02] g ~P

R 6~ A 6/02 fftCu T

%
Vl

XNS

XS

1. H. W. Sheffer and L. G. Evans:Bureau of Minesl.C., 1968, no. 8341, 57 pp. 2. J. A. Harris: Proc. Australian Inst. Mining Met., 1969, no. 230, pp. 81-92. 3. R..I. Roman, B. R. Benner,and G. W. Becket:SME-AIME Trans., 1974,rot. [dyn/cm 2] 256, pp. 247-52. : gas c o n s t a n t (~ 2), [ c a l / ~ 4. R. L. Braun, A. E. Lewis,and M. E. Wadsworth: Solution MiningSymposium, : r a t e of h e a t g e n e r a t i o n , [ k c a l / c m 3 d u m p 9 s] Chapt. 21, pp. 295-323, AmericanInstitute of Mining,Metallurgicaland : r a t e of o x y g e n c o n s u m p t i o n , Petroleum Engineers Inc., New York, 1974. 5. B. W. Madsen, M. E. Wadsworth, and R. D. Groves:SME-AIME Trans., 1975, [g O a / c m d u m p - s ] vol. 258, pp. 69-74. : r a t e of c o p p e r l e a c h i n g [g C u / e m a - d u m p 9s] 6. R. W. Barflett: Proceedings o/the b~ternational Symposium on Hydro: t e m p e r a t u r e of d u m p at any p a r t i e u I a r metallurgy, Chapt. 14, pp. 331-74, AmericanInstitute of Mining,Metallurgical l o c a t i o n . T e m p e r a t u r e of w a t e r , r o c k , and Petroleum EngineersInc., New York, 1973. and gas p h a s e s a s s u m e d i d e n t i c a l , [~ 7. J. D. Lowelland J. M. Guilberu Econ. GeoL, 1970, vol. 65, pp. 373-408. : t o r t u o s i t y of d i f f u s i o n c h a n n e l s , [ - ] 8. M. E. Wadsworth: Universityof Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, personal communication, 1974. : d a r c y gas v e l o c i t y t h r o u g h dump, 9. J. D. Stephens: KennecottCopper Corporation, Salt Lake City, Utah, personal [ c m 3 g a s / c m 2d u m p a r c a . s ] communication, 1974. : d a r c y v e l o c i t y of w a t e r p a s s i n g t h r o u g h 10. Y. T. Auckand M. E. Wadsworth: Proceedings of the International Symthe d u m p . A v e r a g e r a t e o v e r a p p l i c a t i o n posium on ftydrometallurgy, Chapt. 25, pp. 645-700, AmericanInstitute of p e r i o d s and r e s t c y c l e s is u s e d . Mining, Metallurgicaland Petroleum Engineers Inc., New York, 1973, 3 1t. C. T_Mathewsand R. G. Robins: Aust. Chem. Eng., 1972, pp. 21-25. [ c m w a t e r / e r a " d u m p s u r f a c e , s] 12. E. E. Smith and K. S. Shumate: WaterPollution Control Research Series : f r a c t i o n of i n i t i a l n o n s u l f i d e c o p p e r r e 14010 FPS 02/70, U.S. Department of the Interior, FederalWaterWuality m a i n i n g in dump o r g i v e n l a y e r of d u m p , Administration. 1970. [-] 13. A. E. Lewisand R. L. Braun: UCRL.73284preprint, Lawrence Livermore : f r a c t i o n of i n i t i a l s u l f i d e c o p p e r r e m a i n Laboratory, January 1972. METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS B

REFERENCES

624-VOLUME 6B, DECEMBER 1975