LEACHING EQUIPMENTS

WE CAN CLASSIFY LEACHING EQUIPMENTS

INTO TWO TYPES
1. COUNTER CURRENT MULTISTAGE
CONTACT SYSTEMS
2. STEADY STATE(CONTINUOUS)
OPERATION
Counter current multi contact
systems

• SHANK SYSTEM
• PERCOLATION IN CLOSED VESSEL
• FILTER – PRESS LEACHING
• AGITATED VESSELS
 Steady state(continuous)operation

 Leaching during grinding

 Agitated vessels
 Thickeners
 Continuous Countercurrent Decantation(CCD)
 Hydro cyclones
 Classifiers
 1. Shank System

 Leaching and washing of leached solids from the

percolation tanks by the crosscurrent methods will
inevitably result in weak solutions of the solute.
 The strongest solution will result if a countercurrent
scheme is used.
 Here the final withdrawn solution is taken from
contact with the freshest solid and the fresh solvent
is added to solid from which most of the solute has
already been leached .
 In this case the arrangement is given below
 Method of operation

 Initially tank 6 is empty. Tanks 1-5 are filled with solid.

Tank 5 most recently and tank 1 for the longest time.
Tank 1-5 are also filled with leach liquid, and the most
concentrated is tank 5 since it is in contact with the fresh
solid. Fresh solvent has just been added to tank 1
 Withdraw the concentrated solution from tank 5 ,transfer
the liquid from tank 4 to 5 ,from3-4 , from 2-3, and from
1-2
 Discard the spent from tank 1. transfer the liquid from
tank 5 -6, from 4-5, from 3-4, and from 2-3 . Add fresh
solvent to tank 2
 Continue the operation in the same manner as before
 After several cycles have been run through in this
same manner ,the concentrations of solution and in
the solid in each tank approach very closely the
values obtaining in a truly continuous counter
current multistage leaching.
 It can be operated with a no of 6 to 16 tanks
 They need not to be arranged in a circle but can be
placed in a row, called extraction battery.
 The tanks can be placed at progressively decreasing
levels, so that the liquid can flow from one to the
other by gravity with a minimum pumping.
 Industrial applications

 Metallurgical industries
 Recovery of tannins from tree barks and woods
 Leaching sodium nitrate from Chilean nitrate-
bearing rock (caliche)
 2. Percolation in closed vessels

 When the pressure drop for liquid flow of is too high

for gravity flow ,closed vessel must be used and the
liquid is pumped through the bed of the solid. Such
vessels are sometimes called diffusers.
 Closed tanks are needed to prevent the evaporation
of solvent.
 In leaching sugar from sugar beet slices a diffuser of
the above type is used.
 They are arranged in a battery containing upto 16
vessels, and the beets are leached with hot water in a
counter current stream as in the case of a shank’s
system.
 Heaters are placed between them to make the
temperature at the range of 70-78 0C.
 In this manner 95-98% of sugar in beets containing
about 18% beets can be leached to form a solution of
12% concentration .
 3. Filter –Press Leaching

 Finely divided solids ,too fine for treatment by

percolation tanks can be filtered and leached in the
filter press by pumping the solvent through the press
cake. This is a common practice in washing mother
liquor from precipitate which have been filtered
 4. Agitated Vessels

 Channeling of the solvent in percolation or filter

press leaching of fixed beds with its incomplete
leaching can be avoided by stirring the liquid and
solid in leaching vessels..
 In such case closed cylindrical vessels are arranged
vertically(fig a) and are filtered with power driven
paddles or stirrers on vertical shafts as well as false
bottoms for drainage of the leached solution at the
end of the operation.
 In others the vessels are horizontal with the stirrups
arranged on horizontal shafts.(fig b).
 Contd.

 In some cases a horizontal drum s the extraction

vessel and the solid and the liquid are tumbled about
inside by the rotation of the drum on rollers(fig c).
 These devices are operated in batch wise fashion and
provide a single leaching stage. They can be used
singly but are frequently used in batteries arranged
for counter current leaching.
 Finely divided solids can be suspended in leaching
solvents by agitation
 PACHUCA TANK is an example of agitated vessel
which is normally employed in metallurgical
industries.
 Construction material : wood ,metal or concrete and
often lined with lead
 The bubbles of air rising through the central tube
cause the upward flow of the liquid and suspended
solid in the tube and consequently vertical
circulation of the tank contents
 After the leaching has bees completed the suspended
solids are allowed to settle and the clear supernatant
liquid is decanted by siphoning over the top of the
tank or by withdrawal through discharge pipes.
 Agitation and settling is necessary if amount of
solution retained is considerable(counter current
operation prefered).
 Batch settling

 Particles settle down through liquid at a rate

dependent upon particle size , relative density and
viscosity.
 For concentrated slurries behaviour is
different(mutual interference happens).
 The demarcation between clear liquid and settled
solids is more prominent for concentrated solutions.
 Zone A –clear liquid at top
 Zone B –concentration of solids is uniform and
equals to initial value W0
 Zone D- compression zone
 Rate of settling is usually followed by plotting the
height of line of demarcation between A and B
against time.
 Batch settling is effected by
 Flocculation

 Stirring

 Concentration

 Initial height of settling.

 Flocculation

 If finely divided solids particles are similarly

electrically charged they repel each other and remain
dispersed.
 Electrolyte is added to neutralize the charge and
aggregates are formed.
 Electrolyte is the flocculating agent.
 Stirring

 Very slow stirring(eddy currents are not formed)-

floc structure is altered –solid concentration in zone
B is no longer uniform.
 Zone D may not be clearly defined.The ultimate
height of the settled slurry is only a fraction of that
obtained without stirring
 Concentration

 The rate of settling decrease with increased initial

concentration of the solids owing to the increase of
the effective density and viscosity of the medium.
 The effect of concentration on settling rate is
illustrated:
 Height

 Settling curves for same slurry begun at different

initial heights have been plotted.
 The initial settling rate is independent of height
provided some minimum value is exceeded.
 Time for settling is directly proportional to initial
height Z0.
 Settling curves for deep tanks can be effectively
predicted by this method.
 Percolation vs. Agitation

Solid in the
form of large
lumps:

Crush to coarse Grind it fine

lumps and and leach by
leach by agitation and
percolation settling
 Fine grinding is costly but provides more rapid and
possibly more thorough leaching.
 Coarsely ground particles have leach more slowly
and less thoroughly. But require less washing.
 For more fibrous solids, leaching in an agitated
vessel is more effective than by percolation because
large static liquid holdup.
THANK
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