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By P. Hanniala

In the day-to-day life the copper business of today is influenced directly by the ever-increasing general concern about the environment. In addition to that the inherent shortcomings of the copper smelting business, have since many years been the falling real price level of the metals and the relatively high initial capital investments required for the production units. These shortcomings have been compensated for by high productivity, low specific operating costs, low metal inventory and unbeatable technological superiority. Thus today more than 50 % of the world primary copper is today produced by utilizing Outokumpu Flash Smelting Technology. This figure is expected to grow at an increasing speed in the near future. Characteristic for the Outokumpu Flash Smelting technology is high flexibility for a wide grade of concentrates and the highest sulfur capture owing to at the same time competitive investment and operational costs. The Flash Converting technology offers new options for copper production and optimization of the mine- concentrator-smelter production chain. In the following years it is expected that the trend in copper making is that higher grade concentrates are produced at the mines. Thus increasing amount of high grade concentrate will be available for direct-to- blister Flash Smelting causing an overall cost reduction in copper smelting i.e. both in capital and operational costs. In the '90s new technologies based on Outokumpu Flash Smelting technology have been taken into operation, thus eliminating the non-continuous Peirce-Smith converting process step. New innovative solutions have been used in the latest projects, as in Kennecott Utah Copper, where the new Kennecott-Outokumpu Flash Converting process was started up in 1995. Also, in 1995 the new DON process was started at Outokumpu Harjavalta nickel smelter followed by the Fortaleza nickel smelter in Brazil in 1997. The aim of the continuous development work at Outokumpu has been the expansion of the direct-to-blister process towards lower grade concentrates. The most recent example of this is the start-up at the Olympic Dam smelter in Australia, where the existing direct-to-blister Flash Smelting furnace was replaced with a new one having a capacity of 200 000 t blister copper per annum in just one smelting step.

Jan 1, 1999

By N. El-Kaddah, V. L. Acoff, M. Arenas

"Control of the weld penetration, weld pool shape and temperature field in arc welding is critical to achieve the desired microstructure and mechanical properties in the resultant welds. This is particularly important in welding gamma titanium aluminides (y-TiAl) where the weld pool is relatively shallow and the temperature gradient in the heat-affected zone is quite steep. This paper investigates theoretically and experimentally the evolution of the shape of the weld pool for stationary gas tungsten arc welds in y-TiAl alloys. A mathematical model has been developed for predicting the electric current flow, the resultant electromagnetic forces in the metal, and the transient development of the temperature and velocity fields in the molten pool generated by a spatially variable heat flux at the arc-striking zone. The governing equations were solved numerically using the control volume technique. Welding experiments were carried out to determine the shape of the weld pool and the extent of the heat affected zone at different welding times for model validation. The numerical predictions were found to be in reasonable agreement with measurements. It is suggested that the model presented in this paper is likely to provide the information needed for predicting the microstructure and mechanical properties of y-TiAl welds. IntroductionIn recent years, there has been considerable interest in the welding of gamma titanium aluminides as a means of manufacturing high-temperature, high-performance components for turbine and automobile engines. These alloys are highly reactive, and must be welded in vacuum or inert gas atmosphere, rendering electron beam, and inert gas tungsten arc welding (GTA) to be the only suitable welding techniques for joining these materials [1-3]. The GTA welding is especially attractive because of its flexibility and relative cost-effectiveness. However, previous studies on the weldability and weld properties of these alloys using this process revealed a decrease in the mechanical properties in the fusion zone [4]. This is generally attributed to the change of the original duplex structure to a dendritic structure amplified by the shallowness of weld spot. Quantifying the effect of arc operating parameters on the geometry and temperature profile of the welding pool prior cooling is the first step for controlling the fusion zone microstructure and mechanical properties."

Jan 1, 1999

By D. Morin

A general study of gold refractory arsenopyrite-pyrite concentrate bioleaching has been carried out including two continuous bioleach testworks at different sizes, namely one at a laboratory scale with a 100 I unit at a 2 kg/d dry solid flowrate and the other at a pilot scale at a 100 kg/d dry solid flowrate. Both tests show a 80% bioleaching of arsenopyrite in about four days of treatment and with the same kinetic. Pyrrhotite is attacked at the earlier stage of the bioleaching but pyrite remains unaffected. The weak potential of oxidation associated with the decomposition of arsenopyrite and the abundance of arsenite leads to a high grade of elemental sulfur in the bioresidue which consumes the major part of the cyanide during the gold recovery. Furthermore. the arsenite and ferrous produced in solution have to be oxidized to obtain a stable precipitate in the waste products and as outlined in previous works of other authors on this subject the addition of iron to obtain a Fe/As molar ratio at least above 3 is necessary. The agitation equipment used in the pilot unit allowed an optimization study calculation for scaling-up the design and power requirements of an industrial installation. For the pretreatment of a gold refractory As high-graded concentrate the reagent cost has the greatest part in the operating cost of the biooxidation step due to the necessary retreatment of the biosolution. In that conditions the power cost is quite marginal. actually it is significant for the treatment of pure pyrite.

Jan 1, 1991

By E. Fregeau-Wu

The major obstacle in recycling steelmaking slags to the blast furnace is their phosphorus content. Removal of the phosphorus, which is primarily associated with the silicate and phosphate phases, would allow for greater recycle of these slags for their iron, manganese, and lime contents. Calculations show that separation of the silicates from the oxide phases would remove nearly 90% of the phosphorus from the slag. The variable grain size of the as-received slag made liberation by fine grinding difficult. Therefore, slow-cooling experiments were undertaken to improve the grain size distribution. The grain size distributions were determined using in-situ image analysis. The samples were ground to their apparent liberation size and high gradient magnetic separation was used to separate the magnetic oxides from the nonmagnetic silicates and phosphates. Liberation analysis and modeling was performed on selected separation products for discussion of benefication characteristics.

Jan 1, 1995

By Payal Bakshi, Sangeeta Tiwari, Mohini Saxena, Anusha Sharma

"Recycling and reuse is perhaps the most favorable and beneficial way to solve the problem of industrial waste disposal. However, the use of industrial wastes like fly ash, tailings etc is in practice for brick manufacturing, land filling, embankments filling etc. These existing practices do not add enough value to the wastes. Moreover, some wastes may have very good potential to be incorporated in valuable products like paints. This study reveals about the value addition of industrial wastes like fly ash, copper tailing and blue dust as an extender in paints. Comparative properties and characteristics of these three wastes for application in paints are discussed. Fly ash, copper tailing and blue dust were characterized for physical, chemical and mineralogical properties and used in different paint formulation based on their potential to the particular application. Fly ash has been found very useful in enamel, primers and flat paints while copper tailing was found suitable in oil based paint formulations. The performance of fly ash and copper tailing paints were evaluated by comparing with those of conventional whiting extender. Blue dust was compared with conventional iron oxide for use in priming coats. The extender properties of these new material and paints prepared out of blue dust, fly ash, copper tailing, were found better than the existing related materials.IntroductionIndustrial development and environmental reforms should run parallel to benefit each other. This is the best policy, which must be adopted by industries for the sustainability of the current modern life. The high degree of industrialization and urbanization adds scads of waste resulting problem of pollution and challenges of their safe disposal. The nature of waste depends on the process that produces waste as its by-product. Therefore, policies/plans are prepared by keeping the view of possible potential hazards. Among the different wastes some are generated in the industries, which have great importance in the country’s economy, like fly ash waste from thermal power industry and mining waste. In India the total contribution of thermal power in the total electricity generation is more than 70% and it produces about 123 million ton of the fly ash annually [1]. On the other hand mining plus extraction of ferrous and nonferrous metals also produce waste in million tonnes of categories [2]. Since the generation of this waste is very high they cover large land area for their disposal and dumping [3]. The storage of this waste in the dumping sites for long time duration may cause problem of land, surface water, ground water and fertile soil contamination [4]. As far as Indian fly ash is concerned it does not contain toxic element over the limits of hazardous waste [5]. However, in general most of the metals deposits are found in the form of pyrite based ores. Mining wastes contain toxic elements e.g. heavy metals in varying amount, which get mobilized when pyrite get oxidized to sulphate producing sulphuric acid [6,7]. These ores contain very less amount of targeted metals in themselves thus they require extensive preprocesses for concentration of the metals [8]."

Jan 1, 2008

By John Frederick Colloghon, O&apos

Bulong remains the only hydrometallurgical process plant in the world that recovers nickel and cobalt directly from high pressure acid leach (HPAL) laterite leach liquors without need for precipitation of an intermediate product (e.g. sulphide, hydroxide or carbonate). Direct solvent extraction (DSX) of both nickel and cobalt in combination with electrowinning of nickel has been operation at Bulong since early 1999. Focus in the first years has been on ramp-up and resolution of commissioning problems. More recently the focus has been on de-bottlenecking and process optimisation. A number of significant process problems have been resolved, the most difficult being the formation of gypsum in the nickel solvent extraction circuit. Sound control of process chemistry is essential to ensure the production of high quality nickel and cobalt products at the lowest possible cost. This paper describes the numerous changes and enhancements to the process chemistry and plant equipment at Bulong and discusses the importance of ore leach chemistry on downstream impurity metal removal. Potential additional enhancements to further reduce unit costs are also presented.

Jan 1, 2004

By K. Soldenhoff

The Bulong deposit, situated near Kalgoorlie in Western Australia and owned by Resolute Limited, is a lateritic deposit containing on average 1.1% nickel and 0.09% cobalt. A process has been developed and tested at the mini-plant scale for direct solvent extraction and separation of Co and Ni from solutions derived by acid pressure leaching of Bulong ore. In this paper, two solvent extraction processes are described. The first process uses Cyanex 272 to extract cobalt and reject nickel to the raffinate. The second process uses Versatic 10 to extract and purify nickel. The loaded strip nickel solution is suitable for electrowinning. Results of both batch laboratory tests and continuous mini-plant trials are presented. The selectivity of the solvents with respect to the major impurities such as Mn, Mg, Ca, and Zn is also discussed.

Jan 1, 1998

By J. T. I. Poijärvi

The smelter off-gas cleaning and the weak acid treatment at Outokumpu Harjavalta Metals Oy are presented and described in this paper. The smelter consists of the copper and nickel smelters and the acid plant of three separate acid plants two of which are double contact and one single plant and of one liquid sulphur dioxide plant. The preliminary cooling and flue dust separation of the smelter off....,gases from the copper ?and nickel flash smelting furnaces and converters? in the waste heat boilers and in the hot electrostatic precipitators are described. The final cooling and cleaning of the gases in the scrubbers at the sulphuric acid plant and the treatment of the weak acid in the vacuum and in the submerged combustion evaporators for the removal of impurities are presented as well as the treatment of the condensates from the evaporators. The attention is paid to the generation of sulphur trioxide in the smelter off-gas.and to the treatment of that in the weak acid bleed-off and to the utilization of the treated acid.

Jan 1, 1992

By Tao Xuea

Gold frequently occurs in nature in the form of a gold-silver alloy. Thus, investigation of the electrochemical behavior of gold-silver alloys in cyanide solution has practical significance. In this paper, the potentiodynamic method is used to determine the anodic polarization curves of gold-silver alloys (Au-10% Ag and Au-50% Ag) in cyanide solutions. To facilitate the interpretation of the results, complementary experiments conducted in NaOH solution in the absence of cyanide are also reported. The results for the Au-Ag alloys are compared with the polarization behavior of pure gold and pure silver. With the aid of potential-pH diagrams for the Au- and Ag-CN-H20 systems and electrochemical kinetics concepts, the dissolution mechanism of gold-silver alloys, the effect of the presence of silver on the cyanidation of gold, as well as the factors which control the anodic reaction rate are clarified.

Jan 1, 1998

By Shulan Wang, Xuan Liu, Li Li

"Electrochemistry of Fe(III) in 69CaCl2-12CaF2-19KF and 81CaCl2-19KF (mole percentage, %) was investigated at 827 oC on molybdenum electrode by cyclic voltammetry, chronoamperometry and galvanostatic electrolysis using Fe2O3 as the Fe(III) source. The reduction of Fe(III) to Fe was conducted in one step and controlled by diffusion process. Fe(III) shown greater reduction rate and diffusion coefficient in molten 81CaCl2-19KF than in 69CaCl2- 12CaF2-19KF. Galvanostic electrolysis of Fe was performed in both molten salts with a cylindrical cathode rotating at 200 r/min and dendritic iron deposit was obtained.Keywords: iron; electrolysis; electrochemistry; molten saltIntroductionThe production of iron and steel causes huge emissions of CO2. Iron electrowinning in molten salts with dissolved Fe2O3 using an inert oxygen evolving anode is an alternative process to reduce or eliminate the formation of CO2. Research on novel process of producing metal has been reported recently [1-2] by using CaCl2 as the main electrolyte and dissolving CaO in CaCl2 due to the high solubility of CaO in the melt. This process has been used in preparing many active metals and alloys [3-14]. In the present work, the electrochemical behavior of iron in CaCl2-KF was studied and transport property of iron ion in the melt was discussed.ExperimentalCaCl2,CaF2 and KF (in analytical purity) were dried in air for 48 h. Mixed salts used in experiments were placed in a graphite crucible (??58 mm inner diameter). The graphite crucible together with the salts was heated at 473 K for 12 h in a furnace with flowing Ar (99.99%) before further heating. Temperature inside the furnace was measured by an S type thermocouple. Electrochemical measurements, such as cyclic voltammetry and chronocoulometry, were performed in a three electrode cell by EG&G PAR273A potentiostat/galvanostatand. Galvanostatic electrodepositon of iron was conducted in a two electrode cell. Molybdenum (??2 mm) and iron (??5 mm) were used as the working electrode (WE) and the reference electrode, respectively. A graphite crucible and a magnetite rod (??25 mm ) consisted of 100% magnetite and sintered at 950 oC in argon atmosphere for 2 h with electrical conductivity of 366 O-1m-1 at room temperature were used as the counter electrodes in the galvanostatic electrolysis experiment. Carbon (??10 mm) was used as the counter electrode in electrochemical measurement. The deposits were washed in distilled water bubbled with argon and dried in air before being characterized by X-ray diffraction (PW3040/60 diffractometer) and scanning electron microscope (SEM, SSX-550)."

Jan 1, 2014

By Jean-Louis Dirion, Guy Depelsenaire, Patrick Sharrock, Souhila Kribi, Ange Nzihou, Jocelyn Ramaroson

"This study assesses the Novosol® process, an emerging technology developed by Solvay to treat heavy metals from dredged sediments using phosphoric acid. The main goal is to convert toxic metal ions, such as Pb2+, Cd2+, Zn2+ and Cu2+ to insoluble metallic phosphates. The effectiveness of the treatment was evaluated by performing the chemical reaction in a tubular reactor, followed by convective drying and maturation of the treated sediment at ambient temperature and finally thermal destruction of the organic matter by calcinations (500°C-700°C). Selected variables (acid concentration, volume fraction of solids, flow rate, drying and calcination temperature and time) were investigated. Laboratory scale experiments were carried out with various combinations of these parameters. The influence of the quantity of acid and the temperature of calcinations on physical properties of the sediment and stabilization of the heavy metals are discussed. Introduction The French territory counts 525 000 km of rivers which transport each year on average 6 million m3 of sediments. Their deposit causes the silting of channels, rivers and lakes. This completely natural phenomenon is exacerbated by the introduction of industrial and urban wastes into the erosion and sedimentation process. This silting leads to clogging of rivers, with a reduction in their flow rates. Consecutively, other problems appear, such as flooding risks, decrease of biological purification capacity and associated loss of the biodiversity. The presence of toxic compounds (from industrial, household or agricultural origins) in the sediments worsens the situation, and requires curing to restore the natural environment and its function. The dredged sediments are either spread on agricultural land, land tipped, confined or sent for chemical or physical treatment [12]. The first research programmes on toxic sediments appeared at the end of the Eighties in the United States, in Canada, in the Netherlands and in Germany. Several techniques of treatment were developed for the sediments; these techniques can be used alone or in combination. These techniques include extraction and concentration of the pollutants: the pollutants are isolated from the sedimentary matrix and the sediment is decontaminated. In some cases of organic contaminations, the pollutants are destroyed by chemical oxidation or biodegradation and in other cases, the contaminated material is either stabilized (mixed with hydraulic binders), or destroyed (incineration) [14,15]. Phytoremediation by afforestation has also been reported [19]."

Jan 1, 2008

By Gerson de Araújo Filho

This paper shows the use of tires as fuel to be employed into blast furnaces. The tires can substitute coal or even charcoal in the blast furnaces tuyeres. The injection into tuyeres, besides the contribution for energy generation, can also produce gas for iron oxide reduction. The tires, as powder to be injected into blast furnaces, contributes for an environmental use of this waste, which helps to obtain a high value product as well. So, the advantage of using such material is that it is waste and has lower cost for preparation. The obtained results showed that the tires have good combustibility. This one was obtained in a model that simulates the same conditions occurring in the blast furnaces tuyeres; these used raw materiais include tires and mixtures of tires with coal or even with charcoal.

Jan 1, 2006

By I. J. Moon

The reduction behavior of hematite by H2 and H2-CO gas mixtures was investigated to elucidate the reduction mechanism at 800-950 °C. The hematite compacts were made by Cold Isostatic Pressing to produce compacts of uniform shape and size. The compacts were sintered at 1000° C for 30min, and showed a contraction of 29%. Mercury pressure porosimeter was used for measuring the total porosity, pore size distribution and pore surface area of the compacts. Reduction was measured by means of weight-loss technique using Cahn Balance (Model : TG-171, capacity log, accuracy f 10pg). Microscopic examination and X-ray analysis were used to correlate the structure of reduced compacts with the mechanisms of reduction. Neither chemical reaction control nor diffusion control is adequate in describing the complete course of reduction of the hematite compact. The reduction of hematite compacts was initially controlled by the chemical reaction at oxidelmetal interface. The reaction goes through a transition phase .where it is undergoing a mixed control, followed by the diffusion control towards the end of the reduction. The values of apparent activation energies for chemical reaction control were 3.48-8.43 kcal/mol depending on the gas compositions.

Jan 1, 1997

By Mariola Saternus

The quality of the liquid metal has the biggest influence on the quality of the final products. In the metallurgical industry, and especially in aluminium production the refining process is the important technological stage. Today the most popular are refining reactors with impellers like URO ? 200, which can generate small gas bubbles. A rotary impeller also makes the metal bath to be stirred well. There are two basic hydrodynamic parameters: the flow rate of refining gas and the mixing of refining gas (impeller rotation) that influence metal stirring and generating small gas bubbles. The paper presents the influence of the flow rate of refining gas on the hydrogen removal process from aluminium (final hydrogen concentration), taking into consideration the refining process of AlSi7Mg alloy and using URO - 200. The mathematical model of this process is also presented. The equation needed for calculation of the final hydrogen concentration as a function of the equivalent bubble diameter is shown. Basing on this equation the calculations of bubble diameter and optimal refining time are done. This paper presents the physical model (the water one) of aluminium refining process and the gas dispersion taking into account the fact that the gas flow rate is changing from 2,5 to 17,5 l/min and the impeller speed is changing from 0 to 400 rpm. Schemes of gas dispersion in liquid metal in comparison with the model data are shown and the optimal values of the gas flow rate and the impeller speed are chosen.

Jan 1, 2006

By Katsutoshi Inoue

The sulfuric acid leaching of spent hydrodesulfurization catalysts yields an acidic solution rich in rare metals such as molybdenum, vanadium, cobalt, and nickel in addition to aluminum. For the purpose of separating and recovering the rare metals from the solution, basic solvent extraction characteristics of the metals involved with commercially available acidic organophosphorus reagents like TR-83, PC-88A, PIA-8 and CYANEX 272 as well as aliphatic alpha-hydroxyoxime LIX 63 from sulfuric acid media were investigated in the present work. It was demonstrated that CYANEX 272, PIA-8 and LIX 63 possessed excellent selectivity for molybdenum and vanadium over the other metals at comparatively low pH. Further, recovery of molybdenum and vanadium from the total leach liquor by the selected extractants was discussed. Additionally, in order to achieve preferential separation and recovery of cobalt and nickel over an appreciable amount of aluminum from the raffinate obtained after recovering molybdenum and vanadium, a systematic investigation was conducted on synergistic extraction behaviors of the mixed solvents of LIX 63 in combination with a series of acidic extractants such as CYANEX 272, PIA-8, PC-88A, D2EHPA, TR-83 and OPEHPA for cobalt, nickel and aluminum. It was elucidated that all of these mixtures could exhibit a good synergistic effect for extraction of cobalt and nickel, and that the lower the pKa of the acidic extractants, the greater the synergism. Contrarily, the extraction of aluminum, was considerably suppressed by LIX 63. Effective extraction of cobalt and nickel away from aluminum was accomplished from the sulfate solution at low pH (1.0 - 2.5) with the mixtures. In particular, the mixtures consisting of LIX 63 and CYANEX 272 or PIA-8 appeared to be the most feasible and economic from an industrial point of view, yielding acceptable separation efficiency for cobalt and nickel over aluminum and .a low acidity requirement for stripping cobalt and nickel as well as negligible degradation of LIX 63. Aluminum can be readily recovered as sulfate salt from the raffinate obtained after recovering molybdenum, vanadium, cobalt and nickel as outlined above by conventional crystallization method.

Jan 1, 1995

By O. Nakai

In the copper electrorefining process, the quality of the starting sheet is one of the basic factors for producing high quality copper cathodes. A highly automated and advanced facility for the production of copper starting sheets was constructed at the Toyo Copper Refinery in 1992, bringing various improvements into an automatic stripping system using stainless steel mother blanks. In 1998, the refinery expanded the tankhouse by another 128 commercial cells, and introduced 64 polymer concrete cells in a first stage conversion. As a result, the Toyo Copper Refinery now has the capacity to produce 103,200 t/y of cathode copper. Construction has led to great improvements in the materials handling facilities and computer associated short-circuit detection technology. This report summarizes the improvements made in the quality of the cathodes and in plant productivity.

Jan 1, 1999

By Qiu Dingfan

The Slurry Electrowinning Process (SEP) is a new hydrometallurgical method and clean technology, Sulfide ores can be treated by the SEP without S02 emission and the sulfur from the sulfides can be recovered in element form which is easy to stockpile and can be transported at low cost. In a special slurry electrowinning cell one can achieve at the same time the leaching of elements from the feed and the electrowinning of metals from the electrolyte, Because the anode reactions are utilized for leaching of some elements the consumption of the energy is decreased, SEP also has the advantage of separation some elements, It is especially suitable for treatment of complex concentrates containing Pb, Cu, Au, Ag and S, which could hardly be accepted by any smelter. In this work, the behavior of different metals in this process has been studied and it was found that the separation of metals in some minerals is possible through the SEP, Beijing General Research Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (BGRIMM) has studied the possibility of the SEP to treat bismuth concentrates containing S, Be and F in laboratory and pilot-test scale as well as in commercial plants, The commercial plant was set up in 1997, It has been in operation since that time, According to the results of laboratory experiments and pilot- plant test, a new plant to treat complex gold minerals was set up in 1998 and is in operation in 1999

Jan 1, 2003

By Jefferson Caponero

The tire is an expressive component of Municipal Solid Waste, manly when its occupied volume is considered. Its treatment by pyrolysis stands for a list of advantages, such as: landfill releasing and a production of a high quality fuel. The exploitation of new natural resources is becoming more difficult each day, basically due to the environmental damages caused by this type of activity. This work presents a study on the thermal behaviour of Brazilian tires using thermogravimetric analysis and differential thermal analysis, in order to optimise the pyrolysis process of tires. Samples of I to 2 mm were investigated at atmospheres of nitrogen, argon, oxygen and mixtures of these gases at temperatures up to 1273K, under heating rates between 1 to 50 Klmin . The results showed that the behaviour of each sample is related to both the atmosphere composition and the heating rate.

Jan 1, 2001

By Riyad N. Ahmad-Bitar, Shadia J. Lkhmayies

"CdSi-xTex thin films were prepared by first producing CdS:In thin films by the spray pyrolysis (SP) technique and then annealing the films in the presence of Te vapor in nitrogen atmosphere. X-Ray diffraction (XRD) measurements showed that the films are polycrystalline with the wurtzite structure. Transmittance measurements were recorded at room temperature in the wavelength range 400-900 nm and used to deduce the absorbance. The first derivative of the absorbance was calculated and used to find the values of the bandgap energy, where more than one bandgap was obtained for each film. These results show that the films are inhomogeneous or the composition differs with location. The photoluminescence (PL) was recorded at T = 60 K and a deconvolution peak fit was performed for each spectrum. The results of the PL spectra are consistent with those obtained from the first derivative and confirm the inhomogeneity of the films.IntroductionPolycrystalline thin film CdS/CdTe solar cells are promising candidates for low cost and high efficiency photovoltaic applications. The CdS/CdTe interface plays an active role and a detailed knowledge of its properties is crucial for thorough understanding of the device. High efficiency devices have been obtained in spite of the large lattice mismatch (9. 7%) between hexagonal CdS and cubic CdTe. Interdiffusion at the CdS/CdTe interface is considered to affect the performance of the devices [1]. The formation of a mixed crystal or a graded layer at the interface causes a reduction in the lattice mismatch at the CdS/CdTe junction [2] and then a reduction in the number of interfacial states and recombination centers, thus enhancing the solar cell performance [3, 4].The objective of this work is to investigate the transmittance, photoluminescence (PL) and structure of CdSi-xTex thin films prepared by annealing the spray-deposited CdS:In thin films in the presence of tellurium vapor. X-ray diffraction (XRD) was used for exploring the structure. Transmittance is used to deduce the absorbance where its first derivative was used to find the bandgap energy which varies with composition. The evolution of the PL spectra as functions of tellurium concentration was evident and it confirmed the inhomogeneities of the films."

Jan 1, 2011

By Natasa Mitevska

In the world, as well as in Republic of Serbia, conventional ore reserves are almost exhausted, so the problem of their shortage is more and more expressed. On the other side, there are many locations with significant reserves of polymetallic ores which present huge potential but cannot be classically processed. Each of these classes of materials has particular mineralogical characteristics which affect their processing. Because of that it is necessary to develop particular technology for each unconventional ore in order to extract valuable elements. The aim of investigation was to define technology for complex processing of the Blagojev Kamen sulfide concentrate by pyrometallurgical procedure in order to valorize valuable non-ferrous and precious metals present, and profit with absolute respect of environmental protection laws. The complex composition of the Blagojev Kamen sulfide concentrate with high content of non-ferrous (15.59% Pb, 9.05% Zn, 2.37% Cu) and precious (697 g/t Au and 744 g/t Ag) metals was the main factor for technological procedure and collector selection. Laboratory investigations are done in four series according to technological scheme: oxidizing roasting, charge preparation (flux addition and agglomeration), smelting under reducing conditions, lead bullion refining, Dore metal refining to final products. It is concluded that precious metals are concentrated in lead bullion (up to 97.95% of gold and 93.37% of silver), which has similar composition to lead bullion produced in lead metallurgy. In this case, simplified technology is used for lead bullion processing because of low content of arsenic, bismuth, etc.

Jan 1, 2006