Show process for fo at arresting g sulfurous sulfurous gases the smelter fume nuisance being quite well known to all mining men it is useless to delve into ancient history it suffices to say that many hundred tons of sulphur principally in the form of sulphur dioxide gas ar are e evolved every day from all smelters shelters sm elters that said fumes are a nuisance in the form of lawsuit dividends to the smelters shelters sm elters and loss of stock fences and damage to crops to the farmers some idea of the importance of the smelter fume nuisance can be given oy ny stating the facts that even in new jersey suits have recently been filed against the new jersey smelters shelters sm elters to compel them to cease the nuisance briefly sulphur dioxide gas when dry has no particular acid qualities but in the presence of moisture or water it becomes a good solvent of ores when properly applied the idea in the past has been to annihilate smelter fumes and it has been found to be both expensive and practically inoperative there is nothing lost inoa in nature ture as she is a past master in the science of economy in other words the energies in smelter fumes that are such devilish good workers in a harmful way can certainly be made to put in their time working good it if those energies are but properly directed or properly harnessed up as it were wherefore the process described further on has been evolved and embodied in the form of a united states patent whereby smelter fumes are utilized for the extraction of zinc etc elci from ores thus in one operation eliminating the smelter fume nuisance and metallic values from various ores where smelter fumes are not available raw sulphur or pyrites can be utilized and the sulphur dioxide gas thus gen aerated can be recovered for the treatment of more ore the process described it is well known that in various smelt ing operations in roasting ores and in various other operations that produce sulfurous gases that a large amount of obnoxious fumes are emitted into the air and that these fumes and gases are a source of annoyance and injury to animal and vegetable life while the mechanical impurities contained in these fumes can be fairly well arrested by the system and by the use of long flues and baffles the sulfurous sulfur oua fumes and gases are but partially arrested or rendered innocuous by them the object of my invention then is to research metallurgical chemist sau salt lake city and the contained fumes utilize these sulfurous heat and to render them harmless to all forms of life is to pro invention another object of my vide an effective and inexpensive method of recovering zinc from ores containing it to accomplish these objects I 1 make usi us i of the heat and sulfurous gases contained carbonates and in fumes subjecting sufficiently roasted ores containing copper jw T 47 s zun Z un orrs ores escaped fumes A A oum r C 0 to tl mia ag attai jetti S G afi 5 bLow vout coppey J 1 l vaz zy ly passing i solution over J boudion SoU dion i desired of bu Z ELectro tyus E cluer 10 copper pei 67 7 F iru elc 50 0 acs cr 6 act 50 0 I 1 owa carabe usell acts cw wax i G jool purified C cucos tate cz a ec t w anat boz 2 as 21 1 k JS 2 J otso s ay y q ader aue vila basic LS Z 6 ke wac az uv O tm flow sheet iron zinc lead arsenic antimony cadmium lime and bismuth in the presence of a sufficient quantity of water to the action of these sulfurous gases by this means these metals are extracted and recovered from the ores and the fumes arestad ana rendered harmless it will be understood that if desirable in cases where smelter fumes are not available sulfur can be burnt in order to provide the necessary sulfurous gases for the re of ore 0 carbonates or sufficiently roasted t ores are ground to the proper size and showered or sprayed in water down dowil through the first of a series of purification oll towers these towers are of suitable size and height according to the quantity of ore to be treated and the length of time tha ore requires to be exposed the sulfurous fumes are led hato these purification towers and ming ed with the sprayed ore pulp by of 0 means of this spraying every particle ore is subjected to the action of the sui 1111 of 0 aurous gases which in the presence water effects the solution of the copper and zinc some of the iron and arsenic and other metals contained as aforesaid in the ore or the bottom bo this solution falls to the sump at of the tower while the unused gaso gase pass gg on to the next tower these towers are interposed between the points in the flues where the sulfurous gases are all united and the point from which they are finally voided the sulfurous fumes are drawn either by natural or artificial draft from the main flue in the base of the first purification tower and by a suitable flue led down into the base of a second tower thence up through the tower and down again to the base of the third tower and so on throughout the series of towers and finally out of the stack in each tower the f fumes come in contact with the sprayed ore I 1 pu p so that the sulfurous gases may have a t chance to unite with the metals and fall to S the sump at the bo bottom atom As many towers can call be interposed in the path of the sul aurous fumes as may be found necessary in r order to expose sufficient ore requisitely long to take from the fumes all the sulfur ous gases and render them harmless enough to be voided into the air where the smelter stack is built on an elevation with the flues leading thereto and with towers interposed in succession in the path of the flues the sprayed ore pulp can be fed again to the successive towers by gravity otherwise it can be drawn up by pumps As a precaution against voiding fumes containing appreciable amounts of sulfurous gases an absorption tower containing boulders of lime rock over which trickles a so solution ution of milk of lime is interposed between the last purification tower and the stack through which the fumes are finally voided into the atmosphere the solution of milk of lime is returned to the top of the absorption tower by any ally suitable means as long as ii ft is found efficient in neutralizing the traces of sulfurous acid that may escape from the last purification tower the resultant calcium sulfite on exposure to the air is quickly oxidized to calcia su fate which can be dried or dried and and used in the arts the purification towers are built over sumps bumps into which the solution of ore and dissolved sulfurous vapors and ore falls if the settled and solved portion of the ore is found to contain sufficient values it is removed from the sump and sent to the smelter where on account of the lead iron gold and silver it is very desirable if the solution is found to contain copper it is now passed in any suitable manner over metallic iron and the copper in the solution is precipitated ana settles to the bottom when it may be withdrawn and purified and so become a marketable product air under pressure is forced through the solution in this tank and the excess of sulfurous gas is thereby blown out of the solution when the ore coming from the solution has only a faint odor or none at all of sulfurous gas further air treatment is stopped if the solution is found to contain copper it is now passed in any suitable manner over metallic iron the iron displaces copper in the solution and the copper settles to the bottom whence it may be withdrawn and purified and so become a marketable product instead or of the use of the metallic iron the sealed cover may be removed and the copper recovered by any suitable electrolytic method after the copper is removed the solution is then oxidized with oxygen chlorin gas or any other suitable oxidizing agent until all of the iron contained in the solution is in the ferric condition the oxidized solution is now cooled and treated in the cold finely ground calcium carbonate is now added to the solution until further addition of the same causes no effervescence by this means the who e of the iron is precipitated as ferric hydrate which will react with any arsenic present to precipitate the same along with any copper cadmium and bismuth that may have escaped previous precipitation the solution is now allowed to settle and the sediment drawn off washed and filter pressed and if found to be of any use for its iron contents is sent to the smelter or worked up if desired for it its arsenic contents or if valueless thrown away the clear solution is now treated with live steam and finely ground calcium carbonate until the solution becomes neutral and the zinc in the course of two to four hours treatment is all precipitated in the form of carbonates together with some lime the solution is settled and decanted the precipitate is washed and decanted and drawn off on to a draining floor and dried when the zinc can be recovered by any suitable smelting smelling sm elting method by effecting a solution of said carbonate of zinc by exposing same to the action of sulfurous gases in any of the purification towers the precipitated carbonate of zinc may be dissolved and the solution drawn off in to any suitable treatment tank and the excess of sulfurous gases blown out by air the solution may be then electrolyzed by any suitable means and the zinc recovered as metallic zinc |