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Sulfur Removal of High-Sulfur Bauxite

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Abstract

The sulfur in high-sulfur bauxite not only pollutes the environment but also harms alumina production. This study investigated the removal of sulfur from high-sulfur bauxite by adding Zn or ZnO during the Bayer process. The results showed that the different valence sulfur (S2−, S2O32−, SO32−, and SO42−) in sodium aluminate solution can be effectively removed by adding Zn during the digestion process. Adding ZnO removes the S2− in liquor, but the other sulfur compounds (S2O32−, SO32−, and SO42−) are not affected. The mechanism of sulfur removal has been elucidated, where the S2O32−, SO32−, and SO42− are first reduced to S2−, and after adding Zn, the S2− enters into red mud in the form of ZnS. The ZnO then reacts with S2− to generate the ZnS that enters into red mud. Thus, this is a new and effective method of sulfur removal by adding Zn during the digestion process. The results shed light on the removal of sulfur from high-sulfur bauxite during alumina production.

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Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge the support received from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51764032 and No. 51404121) and the Project of State Key Laboratory of Complex Nonferrous Metal Resources Cleaning Utilization in Yunnan Province (KKPT201652009).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Complex Nonferrous Metal Resources Cleaning Utilization in Yunnan Province, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, Yunnan, 650093, People’s Republic of China

    Zhanwei Liu, Hengwei Yan, Wenhui Ma & Ping Xiong

  2. National Engineering Laboratory for Vacuum Metallurgy, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, Yunnan, 650093, People’s Republic of China

    Zhanwei Liu, Hengwei Yan, Wenhui Ma & Ping Xiong

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  1. Zhanwei Liu
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Correspondence to Hengwei Yan or Wenhui Ma.

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Liu, Z., Yan, H., Ma, W. et al. Sulfur Removal of High-Sulfur Bauxite. Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration 37, 1617–1626 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42461-020-00225-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42461-020-00225-6

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