Otto von Guericke University Library, Magdeburg, Germany
Doi
Abstract
Vanadium is a strategic element which is on the list
of raw materials in a critical state, mainly due to
the depletion of the mineral deposits that contain
it, so it is important to recover it from industrial
wastes that contain it. Among these wastes are the
spent catalysts from the manufacture of sulfuric
acid, which contain between 4-9 % of V2O 5, and are
therefore classified as contaminants. The objective
of the work is to develop a strategy for processing
catalytic residues from sulfuric acid manufacture,
to recover the vanadium contained in them,
without generating new pollutant residues. The
work proposes a hydrometallurgical processing
strategy for the waste from the Patricio Lumumba
Plant, which consists of leaching with sulfuric acid
and subsequent precipitation with sodium
carbonate. The result is a recovered product with
∼38 % V2O 5. On the other hand, the process
generates a solid residue, consisting of 98 % silica,
and a liquid residue consisting mainly of sodium
sulfate and water. The proposed process allows
the recovery of vanadium in the form of
concentrate and the generation of two new
residues, without vanadium, which can be used in
other applications. The developed process
constitutes a viable alternative for the processing
of spent catalysts from the manufacture of sulfuric
acid, which allows the recovery of a metal
considered strategic and contributes to the
protection of the environment
