| 摘要 |
<p>A process for leaching precious metals such as gold from an ore such as a sulphide ore, the process including the steps of milling an ore containing a precious metal to produce a milled ore, contacting the milled ore with water, an alkaline reagent, a suitable source of oxygen and a suitable source of sulfur (which may be the ore itself) in amounts sufficient to generate at least 0.02 mol/L thiosulfate in situ, and leaching the milled ore into a thiosulfate containing aqueous phase. The thiosulfate generated in situ may constitute at least 30% of the thiosulfate required to effect precious metal extraction into the aqueous phase. The process enables a significant proportion or all of the thiosulfate required to effect leaching of the precious metal to be generated in situ, thus reducing or avoiding the cost and potential difficulties associated with the separate addition of thiosulfate solution.</p> |
