Published on: August 05, 2010 at 23:45

JOHANNESBURG (Commodity Online): Platinum mining is set to witness a revolutionary change in the coming days with a new technology helping miners to extract better platinum from the ore.

According to reports in South Africa, Jubilee Platinum has conducted tests on refining a platinum-bearing iron alloy that will come from its planned ConRoast furnace at Middelburg in Mpumalanga, which can treat chrome-rich platinum concentrate.

High chrome levels in platinum concentrate are a problem for traditional platinum group metal (PGM) smelters, and ConRoast, patented by SA’s mineral research group Mintek, is able to treat such concentrate.

Jubilee’s subsidiary Braemore, which ran extensive tests on ConRoast, intends developing a technology to refine the alloy coming from the smelter to produce a high-grade PGM product. It has run pilot-scale tests in Canada using the Chemical Vapour Metal Refining Inc process, which uses carbon monoxide to extract nickel and iron ore from the alloy.

The interim results have demonstrated the applicability of a relatively simple but proven and potentially low energy route for refining of ConRoast alloy to produce separate high-value PGM and potentially premium priced nickel and iron products.

The first phase of tests showed a 99,5% extraction rate of nickel and 95,6% for iron. A second phase will focus on extracting cobalt and residual iron sulphides in the PGM material left behind.

Northam Platinum intends to use ConRoast to treat concentrate from the first phase of its new Booysendal project, which will initially mine the chrome-rich UG2 reef.

Jubilee has appointed Environmental and Process Solutions for an engineering and design study of its first commercial-scale ConRoast furnace in Middelburg. It should be commissioned next year.
(Source: AllAfrica.com)