ECI Digital Archives

Title

Recovery of Rare Earth Elements from Phosphate Rock by Hydrometallurgical Processes - A Critical Review

Authors

Shengxi Wu, National Engineering Research Center for Rare Earth Materials, General Research Institute for Nonferrous Metals, Beijing, ChinaFollow
Liangshi Wang, National Engineering Research Center for Rare Earth Materials, General Research Institute for Nonferrous Metals, Beijing, China
Longsheng Zhao, National Engineering Research Center for Rare Earth Materials, General Research Institute for Nonferrous Metals, Beijing, China
Patrick Zhang, Florida Industrial and Phosphate Research Institute, Bartow, FL, USA
Hassan El-Shall, Particle Engineering Research Center, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
Brij Moudgil, Particle Engineering Research Center, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
Xiaowei Huang, National Engineering Research Center for Rare Earth Materials, General Research Institute for Nonferrous Metals, Beijing, P.R. China
Lifeng Zhang, School of Metallurgical and Ecological Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing (USTB), Beijing, P.R. China

Conference Dates

April 29-May 4, 2018

Abstract

Generally, phosphate rock contains about 0.05wt% rare earth elements (REEs) on average. And the world commercial phosphate rock production is estimated to be 250 million tons per year, which makes phosphate rock a potential new REEs resource. However, low content of REEs in phosphate rock leads to the technical challenges and cost overages that hindered the commercial recovery of REEs. In this paper, an overview of achievements aiming at solving the challenges is given. Based on the decomposition processes of phosphate rock by H₂SO₄, HNO₃, HCl, H₃PO₄, various REEs recovery processes via crystallization, precipitation, solvent extraction and ion exchange methods are systematically reviewed. In H₂SO₄ processes, REEs are recovered based on the removal of impurities from phosphoric acid and phosphogypsum since the main challenge is the diluted content of REEs in these products. In the case of HCl, HNO₃ and H₃PO₄ processes, REEs entirely transfers into leaching solution and the recovery research are mainly focused on REEs extraction from leaching solutions. For REE extraction from high phosphorus content leaching solutions, crystallization, precipitation, and ion exchange methods are currently inconsiderable due to the high energy consumption, impurity involvement and low efficiency, respectively. Solvent extraction seems to be the potential promising method in terms of its good overall performance. Finally, recommendations to promote the development of REEs recovery technologies from phosphate rock are provided.

.

Recommended Citation

Shengxi Wu, Liangshi Wang, Longsheng Zhao, Patrick Zhang, Hassan El-Shall, Brij Moudgil, Xiaowei Huang, and Lifeng Zhang, "Recovery of Rare Earth Elements from Phosphate Rock by Hydrometallurgical Processes - A Critical Review" in "Beneficiation of Phosphates VIII", Dr. Patrick Zhang, Florida Industrial and Phosphate Research Institute, USA Professor Jan Miller, University of Utah, USA Professor Laurindo Leal Filho, Vale Institute of Technology (ITV), Brazil Marius Porteus, Foskor-Mining Division, South Africa Professor Neil Snyders, Stellenbosch University, South Africa Mr. Ewan Wingate, WorleyParsons Services Pty Ltd., Australia Prof. Guven Akdogan, Stellenbosch University, South Africa Eds, ECI Symposium Series, (2018). https://dc.engconfintl.org/phosphates_viii/13