Information Circular 8969: Gold and Silver Leaching Practices in the United States

Details

• Personal Author:
  Chamberlain, Peter G. ; Pojar, Michael G.
• Description:
  The surge in gold and silver prices during the 1970's attracted many new mining operators and has rekindled interest among experienced ones. With its low capital investment requirements and fast payout, leaching has attracted many operators--particularly those with small or low-grade deposits. Although in certain situations leaching offers many advantages over conventional mining methods, many operators are uncertain how these relatively new techniques should be implemented. Consequently the Bureau of Mines has prepared this circular to disseminate information on gold and silver leaching practices, techniques, and problems. Engineering data gathered from 26 operations indicate that most ores are leached in heaps following crushing and distribution on pads. Metal values are recovered from cyanide leach solutions using either zinc precipitation or charcoal adsorption. Potential problems that may hamper on block development of a leaching operation are poor percolation characteristics of the ore, calcium salt buildup, low temperatures, and solution losses. An extensive bibliography on gold and silver leaching is appended. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Metals Minerals Mining Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  In-situ-mining Metallurgical-processes Mineral-processing Mining-industry
• Series:
  Mining Publications
• Subseries:
  Information Circular
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Report
• Place as Subject:
  Minnesota ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  TCRC - Twin Cities Research Center
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  52 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:10003414
• Citation:
  Reno, NV: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Mines, IC 8969, 1984 Jan; :1-47
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1984
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  Reno, NV: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Mines, IC 8969
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:a73994c22faef2243b7fbf92b4e5a753f6a8b597d761345df41dce50b4659ebb9b1c1286a0961570cc47ee86a992742308b5e67a0a0c3175b0fcd74dcc36aff3
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/206031/cdc_206031_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 3.05 MB ]