Technologies for the Beryllium Concentrate and Beryllium Hydroxide Production from Phenakite–Bertrandite Mineral Raw Material

Abstract

The results of the research and tests in production of beryllium concentrate of the superior and commercial grades as well as the marketable fluorite concentrate from ore and waste of the Ermakovsky deposit are presented. The ore and waste contain a mineral complex which is hard to separate using fat acids and features an increased content of fluorite. Production of the marketable flotation concentrate is based on fixation of calcium in pulp using sodium carbonate, caustic soda and sodium tripolyphosphate. The autoclave-membrane electrolysis technology is developed for the production of marketable beryllium hydroxide from beryllium concentrates. The technology consists of a set of successive operations: dissociation in autoclave, separation of the suspension after the autoclave dissociation, removal of admixtures from the solutions, membrane electrodyalysis of alkaline solutions, hydrolysis of sodium beryllate and separation of beryllium hydroxide. The processing data of the test beryllium concentrates obtained using the autoclave-membrane electrolysis technology are given.