The electric furnace at Ventanas Division is fed with slag from the Teniente Converter containing white metal in order to reduce the oxidized Fe and fluidize the slag, allowing the trapped white metal to settle. However, part of this white metal does not settle and comes out in the final slag that goes to the landfill. Currently there is a slag stockpile of 600 kton, with an average grade of 0.9% Cu, mainly as sulfide. The slag generation rate is approximately 760 tons/day.
Objective and scope
Identify suppliers that have a technology or metallurgical process that allows processing electric furnace slag and recovering its valuable elements.
Solution requirements
The proposed technological solution should consider the following requirements:
Excluded solutions
The following will not be considered in the background evaluation process:
Challenge
Reduce the slag stock through a metallurgical process by recovering the copper content and/or other elements of value.
Consequences
Problem occurrence
Permanently.
Current solution
Slag accumulates in the available stock without being processed.
Attempted technologies
No technological tests have been performed to date.