Flores, and two co-authors, reported mid-2020 that with the gradual decrease in the grade of copper ores being processed, copper concentrates have become more complex with higher impurity and gangue content. This trend has had a detrimental effect on smelters as they have to increase throughput to maintain copper metal production, while increasing operating costs due to processing the increased amounts of secondary products (slag, acid) and stabilizing waste streams. The authors discussed the impacts from the increased complexity of resources from mine to smelters, highlighting the need for an integrated processing approach to achieve sustainable and competitive multi-metal recovery.
The authors concluded that sustainable production of metals is of paramount importance to meet community demand along with a sustainable future of our planet. As demand for copper and contained valuable metals increases and the grade of available ores decreases, processing of more complex materials will be necessary.
The most efficient technical solutions will involve a combination of mineral processing and hydrometallurgical and pyrometallurgical processing techniques, and will include processing complex materials from both primary and secondary sources at both mine sites and smelters. In this framework, a resource-to-cathode vision that incorporates synergies between mines, concentrators, smelters, and refineries will be required. This needs to start with open technical dialogue, followed by commercial understanding of the most efficient ways to remove impurities, and then be supported by the right market signals to achieve the more efficient outcomes.
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