Work

Extraction of Tungsten from Tungsten Fine Mud by Caustic Soda Autoclaving

Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Tungsten fine mud is a type of tailings containing minerals such as quartz and potassium feldspar as well as a small amount of tungsten. In this article, tungsten fine mud was decomposed by caustic soda autoclaving. The results showed that at a temperature of 160 °C, caustic soda concentration of 100 g/L, treatment time of 2 h, liquid/solid ratio of 2.5:1 mL/g, and rotation rate of 400 rpm, the residue contained 0.28% WO3, and the leaching efficiency of WO3 was 94.97%. The optimal caustic leaching residue was subjected to SEM–EDS analysis, and the tungsten is mainly present as CaWO4 and FeWO4, is distributed in silicate particles, and is difficult to leach. Then, the effect of the number of cycles of autoclaving on tungsten leaching from tungsten fine mud was studied. The caustic concentration of the caustic leaching solution was always maintained at 100 g/L. After 12 cycles, the WO3 concentration in the caustic leaching solution increased from 15.88 to 120.15 g/L. The leaching efficiency of WO3 remained at 91% during the cycling process, and the caustic mass consumption in a single cycle was approximately 22%.
Source: ACS Omega
Authors: Tian Xie, Ting Pu, Yinliang Liu, Minghui Zhang, Xin Lei, Haodong Hu, Zanhong Chen
Language: English
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,935
OpenAlex ID: W4407610529
FWCI: 1.788
Cites: 3
Cited by: 6
Related to: 10