(EXECUTIVE BUSINESS SCH-EXEBS, 01-06-2023) Zamarreno-Bastias Ricardo, Espinoza-Barrera Javiera
An investigation was carried out, at the chemical -metallurgical laboratory level, evaluating two methods in the recovery of aluminum, present in an abandoned mining tailing. In order to find a new source of recovery for this element. Aluminum is found in the form of aluminosilicates in the tailings. Two methods were used, a biological process and a chemical one. In the biological one, bioleaching was carried out with cultivated Aspergillus niger fungi, which produces organic acids, which can extract aluminum from the tailings. The chemical method consisted of leaching with two organic acids, citric acid and oxalic acid with the addition of oxidizing agents such as hydrogen peroxide and a strong base. According to the results, the methods that had the highest extraction were chemical, specifically leaching with the mixture of oxalic acid and hydrogen peroxide. In the case of bioleaching, no significant results were obtained in the extraction of aluminum.
