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Primary and secondary phases in copper-cobalt smelting slags from the Copperbelt Province, Zambia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 July 2018

M. Vítková ,
V. Ettler ,
Z. Johan ,
B. Kříbek ,
O. Šebek  and
M. Mihaljevič
M. Vítková*
Affiliation:
Institute of Geochemistry, Mineralogy and Mineral Resources, Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Science, Albertov 6, 128 43 Prague 2, Czech Republic
V. Ettler
Affiliation:
Institute of Geochemistry, Mineralogy and Mineral Resources, Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Science, Albertov 6, 128 43 Prague 2, Czech Republic
Z. Johan
Affiliation:
Bureau des Recherches Géologiques et Minières (BRGM), av. Claude Guillemin, 45060 Orléans, cedex 2, France
B. Kříbek
Affiliation:
Czech Geological Survey, Geologická 6, 152 00 Prague 5, Czech Republic
O. Šebek
Affiliation:
Laboratories of the Geological Institutes, Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Science, Albertov 6, 128 43 Prague 2, Czech Republic
M. Mihaljevič
Affiliation:
Institute of Geochemistry, Mineralogy and Mineral Resources, Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Science, Albertov 6, 128 43 Prague 2, Czech Republic
*
*E-mail: vitkova3@natur.cuni.cz
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Abstract

Pyrometallurgical slags from three Cu-Co smelters (Nkana, Mufulira, Chambishi) in the Copperbelt Province, Zambia, were studied from mineralogical and chemical points of view. The slags were enriched in metals and metalloids, mainly Cu (up to 35 wt.%), Co (up to 2.4 wt.%) and As (up to 3650 ppm). The following primary phases were observed in slags: Ca-Fe silicates (clinopyroxene, olivine) and leucite, oxides (spinel-series phases), ubiquitous silicate glass and sulphide/metallic droplets of various sizes. The presence of glass and skeletal/dendritic crystal shapes indicated rapid cooling of the slag melt. Copper and cobalt were found in low concentrations in the majority of silicates (olivine, clinopyroxene) and oxides, substituting for Fe in their structures (up to 7.15 wt.% CoO in olivine, 4.11 wt.% CuO in spinel). Similarly, up to 0.91 wt.% CoO and 6.90 wt.% CuO were observed in the interstitial glass. Nevertheless, the main carriers of these metals in the slags studied were Cu sulphides (digenite, chalcocite, bornite, chalcopyrite), Co-Fe sulphides (cobaltpentlandite), Co-bearing intermetallic phases ((Fe,Co)2As) and alloys. Weathering features corresponding to the presence of secondary metal-bearing phases, such as malachite (Cu2(CO3)(OH)2), brochantite (Cu4SO4(OH)6) and sphaerocobaltite (CoCO3), were observed on the slag surfaces. They indicate that the slags studied are reactive on contact with water/atmosphere and that their environmental stability and release of potentially harmful metals and metalloids must be evaluated further.

Keywords

slagssmeltingCopperbeltZambiacoppercobaltclinopyroxeneleucite
Type
Research Article
Information
Mineralogical Magazine , Volume 74 , Issue 4 , August 2010 , pp. 581 - 600
Copyright
Copyright © The Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland 2010

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