Leaching, Dissolving, Or Extracting Prior To Synthesis Patents (Class 205/599)
  • Patent number: 11028460
    Abstract: Lead is recovered from lead paste of a lead acid battery in a continuous process. The lead paste is contacted with a base to generate a supernatant and a precipitate. The precipitate is separated from the supernatant, and is contacted with an alkane sulfonic acid to generate a mixture of lead ion solution and insoluble lead dioxide. The lead dioxide is reduced with a reducing agent to form lead oxide, and the lead oxide is combined with the lead ion solution to form a combined lead ion solution to so allow a continuous process without lead dioxide accumulation. Lead is recovered from the combined lead ion solution using electrolysis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 8, 2021
    Assignee: AQUA METALS INC.
    Inventors: Robert Lewis Clarke, Brian Dougherty, Richard Clarke, Samaresh Mohanta
  • Patent number: 10184162
    Abstract: There is described a process completely performed in aqueous phase, which provides a heat etching of lead glass with aqueous solutions of strong alkali followed by an electrolytic treatment of the suspension so obtained, in order to recover metallic lead and obtain soluble silicates, separated from insoluble silicates, both lead-free. The process also provides for the production of pure silica, derived from the soluble silicates, and a possible use thereof to increase the ratio between silica and sodium oxide, which characterizes the specifications of the soluble silicates. The electrolysis for the recovery of metallic lead is implemented in a cell in which the polarity of the electrodes is periodically reversed, to obtain the detachment of the metallic lead deposited on the cathodes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 22, 2019
    Assignee: Hellatron S.P.A.
    Inventor: Giovanni Modica
  • Patent number: 9837689
    Abstract: Lead from lead acid battery scrap is recovered in two separate production streams as clean grid lead and as high-purity lead without smelting. In preferred aspects, lead recovery is performed in a continuous process that uses an aqueous electroprocessing solvent and electro-refining and spent electroprocessing solvent can be recycled to the recovery process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2017
    Assignee: Aqua Metals Inc.
    Inventors: Stephen R. Clarke, Robert Lewis Clarke, Michael David Hurwitz, Michael John King, Selwyn Mould
  • Patent number: 9660306
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates generally to systems and methods for recycling lead-acid batteries, and more specifically, relates to systems and methods for selectively separating and separately processing portions of lead-acid batteries to improve efficiency and reduce costs. A lead-acid battery processing system includes an imaging system configured to perform imaging of a lead-acid battery and perform image analysis to determine a break point that divides top lead from a remainder of the lead content of the lead-acid battery. The system also includes a battery breaking device configured to break the lead-acid battery at the determined break point and separate the lead-acid battery into a first portion, which includes the top lead, from a second portion, which includes the remainder of the lead content, for separate processing of the first and second portions of the lead-acid battery.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2017
    Assignee: Johnson Controls Autobatterie GmbH & Co. KGaA
    Inventors: Matthew A. Spence, Patrick M. Curran, Eberhard Meissner
  • Patent number: 9322105
    Abstract: In an example of a method for recovering lead from a lead material including lead sulfide, methane sulfonic acid is selected as a leaching acid for the lead material. The lead material is exposed to a solution including the methane sulfonic acid and i) ferric methane sulfonate or ii) oxygen, which leaches lead from the lead sulfide in the lead material, and generates a liquid leachate including a lead-methane sulfonate salt. The liquid leachate is purified, and lead is recovered from the purified liquid leachate using electrolysis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2016
    Assignee: The University of British Columbia
    Inventors: Stefan Fassbender, David Dreisinger, Zhenghui Wu
  • Patent number: 9322104
    Abstract: In an example of a method for recovering lead from a mixed oxidized lead material, methane sulfonic acid is selected as a leaching acid for the mixed oxidized lead material. The mixed oxidized lead material is exposed to a solution including the methane sulfonic acid, which leaches lead from any of a lead oxide or a lead carbonate in the mixed oxidized lead material, and generates a liquid leachate including a lead-methane sulfonate salt. The liquid leachate is purified, and lead is recovered from the purified liquid leachate using electrolysis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2016
    Assignees: The University of British Columbia, BASF SE
    Inventors: Stefan Fassbender, David Dreisinger, Zhenghui Wu
  • Publication number: 20140131219
    Abstract: In an example of a method for recovering lead from a mixed oxidized lead material, methane sulfonic acid is selected as a leaching acid for the mixed oxidized lead material. The mixed oxidized lead material is exposed to a solution including the methane sulfonic acid, which leaches lead from any of a lead oxide or a lead carbonate in the mixed oxidized lead material, and generates a liquid leachate including a lead-methane sulfonate salt. The liquid leachate is purified, and lead is recovered from the purified liquid leachate using electrolysis.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 11, 2013
    Publication date: May 15, 2014
    Applicants: The University of British Columbia, BASF SE
    Inventors: Stefan Fassbender, David Dreisinger, Zhenghui Wu
  • Publication number: 20140131220
    Abstract: In an example of a method for recovering lead from a lead material including lead sulfide, methane sulfonic acid is selected as a leaching acid for the lead material. The lead material is exposed to a solution including the methane sulfonic acid and i) ferric methane sulfonate or ii) oxygen, which leaches lead from the lead sulfide in the lead material, and generates a liquid leachate including a lead-methane sulfonate salt. The liquid leachate is purified, and lead is recovered from the purified liquid leachate using electrolysis.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 11, 2013
    Publication date: May 15, 2014
    Applicants: The University of British Columbia, BASF SE
    Inventors: Stefan Fassbender, David Dreisinger, Zhenghui Wu
  • Patent number: 8715483
    Abstract: A system for recovering lead from lead-bearing materials by circulating an aqueous solution of ferric fluoroborate in fluoroboric acid through a leaching vessel to leach lead from the lead-bearing material and an electrolytic cell for recovering the lead includes a cooler for cooling at least a portion of the circulating solution sufficiently to precipitate alkali salts and alkali-earth salts, and a filter for removing the precipitated salts from the solution. A process for recovering lead from lead-bearing materials by leaching the lead from the lead-bearing material with a solution of ferric fluoroborate in fluoroboric acid and recovering the lead from the solution includes cooling at least a portion of the circulating solution sufficiently to precipitate alkali salts and alkali-earth salts, and filtering the salts from the solution.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 6, 2014
    Assignee: Metals Technology Development Company, LLC
    Inventors: Massimo Giuseppe Maccagni, Jonathan Hylkjier Nielson, William Leonard Lane, David Michael Olkkonen
  • Patent number: 8409421
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an electrolytic process for producing metallic lead starting from desulfurized lead pastel comprising the following operative phases: a) leaching the desulfurized pastel by putting it in contact with a solution comprising ammonium chloride, with the formation of a leach liquor and evolution of gaseous CO2; b) separating a first solid residue and a first clarified leach liquor from the leach liquor coming from phase a); c) leaching the solid residue separated in phase b) by putting it in contact with a solution comprising ammonium chloride and hydrogen peroxide; d) separating a second solid residue and a second clarified leach liquor from the leach liquor coming from phase c); e) joining the first clarified leach liquor coming from phase b) with the second clarified leach liquor coming from phase d) and forming a single solution; f) subjecting the solution leaving phase e) to electrolysis in a flow cell, with a current density ranging from 50 to 10,000 A/m2, said electrolysis r
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 27, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2013
    Assignee: Engitec Technologies S.p.A.
    Inventors: Massimo Maccagni, Silvano Cossali, Carmelita Roncaldier, Carlo Olper, Luigi Olper, Alessandro Olper
  • Patent number: 6860983
    Abstract: A process and apparatus for recovering a metal from a feedstock containing a compound of the metal. The process includes an electrowinning step in which a leachate comprising a salt of the metal, dissolved in an aqueous acid solution, is subjected to electrowinning in an electrolytic cell, wherein elemental metal is deposited on the cathodes of the cell and oxygen is generated at the anodes. The oxygen generated at the anodes is collected and is then at least partially consumed in an oxygen-consuming step of the process. Preferably, the oxygen-consuming step comprises an atmospheric or pressure leaching step in which the metal compounds in the feedstock become dissolved in a leachate in the form of metal salts, preferably sulfates. The recovery and use of anode oxygen in a leaching process encourages the use of mist-reducing technology in existing and new electrowinning facilities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2002
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2005
    Assignee: Hatch Ltd.
    Inventors: Mark Bellino, Garfield Bryn Harris
  • Patent number: 6641712
    Abstract: A method for selective dissolution of tin and/or lead- or tin-containing alloys from printed circuit boards is provided comprising contacting a printed circuit board with a solution comprising Ti(IV) and an acid which forms stable and soluble salt of Ti(III), Ti(IV), Sn(II) and Pb(II), under conditions to effect dissolution of substantially all of the Sn and/or Pb- or Sn-containing alloy therefrom, as Sn(II) and/or Pb(II) and recovering from the solution by electrolytic reduction substantially all of the Sn(II) and/or PB(II) species as Sn and/or Pb. After the electrolytic reduction step, the oxidant metal species is regenerated by oxidation and recycled to the first stage of the process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 10, 2001
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2003
    Assignee: Alpha Fry Limited
    Inventors: Robert William Gibson, Paul David Goodman, Lyn Holt, Ian McCrady Dalrymple, Derek John Fray
  • Patent number: 6340423
    Abstract: Raw lead to be refined is leached in a leach apparatus with a leach solution containing fluoro compounds. During the leaching step, lead is dissolved, with ferric fluro compounds being reduced to ferrous fluro compounds. The leaching solution resulting from the leaching step is sent to the cathodic compartment of a diaphragm cell in which lead is deposited on a cathode, in compact, highly pure form. The solution that is depleted of lead is sent to the anodic compartment in which a suitable anode oxidizes the ferrous fluro compound to ferric fluro compounds that can be recycled to the leaching step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 10, 2000
    Date of Patent: January 22, 2002
    Assignee: BHP Minerals International, Inc.
    Inventor: Willem P. C. Duyvesteyn
  • Patent number: 5935409
    Abstract: A method is provided for the hydrometallurgical recovery of metal values from metal sources containing more than one metal such as antimony, lead, copper, zinc, bismuth, tin, cadmium and other metals by leaching the metal containing source with a ferric fluoborate/fluoboric acid solution to provide a metal containing leach solution. The leach solution is extracted with organic extractants, ion exchange resins and the like to provide a loaded extract and a raffinate which contains fluoboric acid produced in the extraction step. The fluoboric acid concentration is controlled (reduced) in the raffinate by adding to the raffinate a metal oxide of a metal in the raffinate to form an acid adjusted raffinate. The acid adjusted raffinate is then electrowon or otherwise treated to form the desired metal and to provide a ferric fluoborate solution which is recycled for leaching additional metal containing material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 1998
    Date of Patent: August 10, 1999
    Assignee: ASARCO Incorporated
    Inventors: Michael G. King, Shijie J. Wang, Venkoba Ramachandran
  • Patent number: 5762683
    Abstract: A method is provided for the hydrometallurgical recovery of metal values from sources containing more than one metal of antimony, lead, copper, zinc, bismuth, tin, cadmium and other metals by leaching the metal containing source with a ferric fluoborate/fluroboric acid solution to provide a leachant metal containing solution. The leachant solution is contacted with specific organic extractants such as an organophosphoric acid ester, an alkyl salicylaldoxime and an amidobis(thiophosphoryl) compound in a series of extraction steps to separate metals based on the extractant used. The organic extractant solution is stripped of the extracted metal(s) and the metal(s) recovered. The remaining leach solution after extraction being either further treated to extract other metals or processed to provide metal values contained therein.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 1996
    Date of Patent: June 9, 1998
    Assignee: ASARCO Incorporated
    Inventors: Jonathan S. Jackson, Michael G. King