Intensified recovery of copper in solution: Cementation onto iron in fixed or fluidized bed under electromagnetic field

This work deals with the cementation of copper ions onto iron shots, within a fixed bed or fluidized bed, associated with an electromagnetic field. The influence of several parameters is studied: flowrate (5–45 L min−1 corresponding to a 1.4 × 10−2 to 1.3 × 10−1 m s−1 superficial velocity), temperature (20–40 °C), initial concentration of Cu(II) (50–10,000 ppm), pH (1.5–4.5), bed height (20–45 cm). Moreover, the influence of a movable and alternated electromagnetic field is also investigated. Cementation results and the hydrodynamic characterization of the reactor have been coupled through a process modeling in order to determine apparent mass transfer coefficients. These coefficients (ranging from 2.2 × 10−5 to 2.3 × 10−4 m s−1) are used as a comparison criterion to quantify the influence of each operating parameters. This work points out an enhancement of copper recovery when the electromagnetic field leads to a magnetically stabilized fluidized bed (MSFB).