Abstract
Cyanidation processes for the extraction of gold or silver frequently involve the processing of sulfur-containing solids that react with cyanide to form thiocyanate. The formation of thiocyanate is an undesired side reaction, and in many cases thiocyanate formation results in a prohibitively high cyanide consumption. With the increasing number of gold and silver mining projects that involve the processing of sulfide ores or concentrates or that utilize a biological sulfur oxidation process, more attention is being focused on minimizing thiocyanate formation and in treating solutions to eliminate toxicity associated with thiocyanate. Though not yet commercially applied, there are several processes available to recover cyanide from thiocyanate to reduce tailings toxicity and to allow the reuse of cyanide otherwise lost to thiocyanate formation. This paper presents an overview of processes available for recovering cyanide from thiocyanate along with estimated operating costs for the processes. Pilot testing data suggests that in some cases cyanide can be recovered from thiocyanate for approximately the same cost as newly purchased cyanide.
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Botz, M.M., Dimitriadis, D., Polglase, T. et al. Processes for the regeneration of cyanide from thiocyanate. Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration 18, 126–132 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03402884
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03402884