The article draws attention to recently conducted research of bacterial leaching of metals from various polymetallic waste. These wastes are the carriers of valuable metals: base metals, precious and platinum group metals (e.g. electronic waste, spent catalysts) or rare earth elements

A. Fornalczyk

J. Kadukova

J. Willner

M. Saternus

English

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Biohydrometallurgical methods for metals recovery from waste materials

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255METALURGIJA 54 (2015) 1, 255-258J. WILLNER, J. KADUKOVA, A. FORNALCZYK, M. SATERNUSBIOHYDROMETALLURGICAL METHODS FOR METALS RECOVERY FROM WASTE MATERIALSReceived – Prispjelo: 2013-12-05Accepted – Prihvaćeno: 2014-06-10Review Paper – Pregledni radISSN 0543-5846METABK 54(1) 255-259 (2015)UDC – UDK 669.011.002.68.0023:582:231=111J. Willner, A. Fornalczyk, M. Saternus: Silesian University of Technol-ogy, Institute of Metals Technology, Katowice, Poland. J. Kadukova: Technical University in Kosice, Department of Materials Science, Kosice, Slovakia.The article draws attention to recently conducted research of bacterial leaching of metals from various polymetallic waste. These wastes are the carriers of valuable metals: base metals, precious and platinum group metals (e.g. elec-tronic waste, spent catalysts) or rare earth elements. Key words: biohydrometallurgy, waste, raw materials, bioleaching, INTRODUCTIONBiohydrometallurgy, field of hydrometallurgical technology incorporating the use of microorganisms in the process of metals recovering from metal-bearing materials attracts a lot of interest of research teams. In biological processes, successfully used for the recovery of metals from low-grade ores or concentrates (e.g. cop-per bioleaching from chalcopyrites ores), scientists per-ceive the potential and point out an important role of microorganisms, they can play in the future during waste treatment processes. Therefore, next to the pro-cesses conducted on industrial scale for primary materi-als bioleaching, intensive research on the possibilities and efficiency of metals bioleaching from many types of waste are carried out (Figure 1). This interest results from the advantages attributed to biological methods. Biohydrometallurgical processing of solid waste is de-rived from natural biogeochemical metal cycles and re-duces the demand of resources, such as ores, energy and landfill space. This technology is environmentally friendly(in comparison to chemical methods), is consid-ered as a green technology (generates less amount of waste) [1-13] and can be an attractive alternative to cur-rently used conventional recovery methods.Although previous works were not processed be-yond the stage of laboratory tests, these methods are considered to be promising ones, hoping they can lead to the development of more efficient and less costly processes. The activity of different groups of microor-ganisms, alkalophilic or acidophilic mainly mesophilic, moderate and extremely acidophilic bacteria are used in bioleaching. Among major groups of bacteria most commonly used are: acidophilic and chemolithotrophic microbial consortia of: Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans, Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans, Leptospirillum ferroox-idans and heterotrophs for example Sulfolobus sp.. In addition, microscopic fungi such as Penicillium sp. and Aspergillus niger are examples of some eukaryotic mi-croorganisms used in bioleaching during metal recov-ery from industrial waste. Apart from the possibility of metals bioleaching in acidic environment in the biohy-drometallurgical techniques, microorganisms able to form hydrocyanic acid (HCN) play an increasingly im-Figure 1  Primary sources of metals and secondary waste subjected to bioleaching in industrial and laboratory scale256  METALURGIJA 54 (2015) 1, 255-258J. WILLNER et al.: BIOHYDROMETALLURGICAL METHODS FOR METALS RECOVERY FROM WASTE MATERIALSportant role resulting in biological process of leaching in an alkaline environment e.g. bacteria Chromobacte-rium violaceum, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Pseu-domonas aeruginosa, or fungi - Marasmius oreades aci-dophilous [3].There are many works regarding bioleaching meth-ods of various types of waste containing valuable met-als. These waste are often complex mixture of different materials and contain basic, precious metals as well as hazardous substances. Metals which were analyzed for their possible recovery can be divided into the follow-ing categories: (i) base metals (e.g. Cr, Pb, Zn, Cu, Ni), (ii) precious metals (Au, Ag and Platinum Group Metals - PGMs), (iii) special metals (Li, Rare Earth Elements - REEs), (iv) radionuclides (e.g. Th, U). BIOLEACHING OF BASE METALS FROM WASTEStudies on extraction of base metals from waste were conducted with the participation of different mi-croorganisms (Table 1). These raw materials are characterized by material heterogeneity, containing various metals, their alloys asw well as plastics, glass and ceramics. An example of such complex matrix in terms of materials variety is electronic waste [3].Table 1  Examples of waste containing base metals subjected to bioleaching Type of wasteand extracted metalsUsed microorganisms Ref.Fly ashes: Zn, Cd, Cu, Ni, Cr, Pb, Mn, Fe, AlA. thiooxidans +A. ferrooxidans, A. niger[1][4]Slag from copper smelter:Fe, Cu, Zn, NiA. ferrooxidans, A. thiooxidans Acidithiobacillus caldus, L. fer-rooxidans, S. thermotolerans[5]Tannery sludge: Cr A. thiooxidans [6]Sevage sludge:Cu, Ni, Zn, CrIron oxidizing bacteria [7]Red mud: Pb, Zn, Cu, Ni, As, Ba, Cr, Fe, Zr A. niger [8]Spent processing catalysts (oil refi nery):Al, Co, Mo, NiA. ferrooxidans +A. thiooxidans [9]Spent refi nery catalysts: Ni, V, Mo, AlIron/sulfur oxidizing bacteriaA. niger[10][11]Spent hydrocrackingcatalyst: Mo, Ni, AlAcidianus brierleyi [12]Spent hydrocrackingcatalyst: Ni, Fe, W, Mo, Al Penicillium simplicissimum[13]Electronic scrap:Cu, Sn, Ni, Pb, Zn, AlA. ferrooxidans, A. thiooxidans, A. niger, P. simplicissimum[14]Electronic waste:Cu, Zn, Al, NiThermosulfi dooxidans sul-fobacilllus + Thermoplasma acidophilum[15]Electronic waste:Cu, Pb, ZnA. ferrooxidans, A. thiooxidans and mixture[16]Electronic waste: CuA. ferrooxidans, A. ferrooxidans +A. thiooxidans[17]Spent Ni - Cd batteries:Ni, CdA. ferrooxidans [18][19]One of the first studies on microbiological leaching of metals from electronic waste was carried out in pres-ence of mixed bacteria of A. ferrooxidans and A. thioox-idans [14]. Authors observed toxic influence of waste on microorganisms. Bioleaching process was hindered and its dynamics was slowed down. It was believed that high Al concentrations (and the alkaline character of the non-metallic components) in the environment inhibited the growth of bacteria. Gradual adaptation of bacteria to the environment and the addition of acidifying agent improved the efficiency of the process. In such condi-tions Ni, Al, Zn and Cu were dissolved in solution with effectiveness close to 90 %. Since the publication of Brandl’s work [14] much attention was given to the is-sue of metal bioleaching from electronic waste using A. ferrooxidans and A. thiooxidans or their mixture [2,15-21]. Results of these studies look promising. Metals (Cu, Zn, Sn, Ni, Pb and also Al) present in the waste were extracted (in many cases) at a high level of > 80 % and often even > 99 % efficiency.A large group of waste rich in transition metals are catalysts used in the refining industry for the purifica-tion and upgrading of various petroleum streams and residues. Spent hydro-processing catalysts contain W, Mo, Ni, V, Co also Al and some organic contaminants (carbon and oils) [22]. Fungi of A. niger was used for leaching Ni, Mo, Al from spent refinery catalysts [23] and P. simplicissimum was applied for leaching W, Fe, Mo, Ni, Al from spent hydrocracking catalyst [13,22]. Adaptation of P. simplicissimum with different heavy metals present in a spent hydrocracking catalyst gave the extraction in the range 100 % of W, 100 % of Fe, 92 % of Mo, 66 % of Ni, and 25 % of Al with 3 % of pulp density (w/v). The main lixiviant in the bioleaching turned out to be gluconic acid. The production of pri-mary metabolites such as citric, gluconic and oxalic ac-ids play the major role in leaching metals from such wastes [23]. Some reports described bioleaching proce-dures applied to the recovery of metals by means of A. ferrooxidans and A. thiooxidans [9], iron/sulfur oxidiz-ing bacteria [11] or thermophilic acidophilic archaea - Acidianus brierleyi [12]. The secondary batteries, including nickel–cadmium and nickel metal hydride batteries are used extensively in various areas as rechargeable energy supplier. Bioleach-ing tests to extract metals from spent Ni - Cd batteries were carrried out by using A. ferrooxidans [18,19] or us-ing indigenous acidophilic thiobacilli in sewage sludge in continuous flow two-step leaching system [24,25]. Ni bioleaching efficiency was 45 % and 5,4 % for cathodic and anodic material respectively and Cd was leached in 100 % and 98 % for the same materials [18,19]. Red mud (bauxite residue) is the main polymetalic waste product of the alkaline extraction of alumina from bauxite by the Bayer process with high amounts of met-als. Major elements in this waste are: Al, Fe, Si, Na, K, Ca Ti and also metals in lower concentration (e.g. As, Ba, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn) [26,27]. Bioleaching of heavy 257METALURGIJA 54 (2015) 1, 255-258J. WILLNER et al.: BIOHYDROMETALLURGICAL METHODS FOR METALS RECOVERY FROM WASTE MATERIALSmetals from red mud was conducted by using A. niger [26]. During the bioleaching process, lasting 40 days, over 80 % of Pb and Zn, 67 % of Cu, 50 % of Ni, 44 % of As, 31 % of Ba, 26 % of Cr and about 11 % of Fe and Zr was leached, with optimum pulp density of 1 %. The leaching toxicity of red mud significantly decreased. The results showed that the main lixiviant excreted by the fungi was the citric acid. It was also indicated that the fungi had a favorable growth condition and organic acids production in the presence of 5 % (w/v) pulp den-sity. Therefore, A. niger has a potential application for bioleaching of red mud.BIOLEACHING OF PRECIOUS AND PLATINUM GROUP METALSContent of precious metals and PGMs in the waste determine the value of waste and profitability of its pro-cessing (electronic scrap or catalysts). Seemingly small concentration of these metals in electronic device unit (< 0,5 %) and catalyst (< 0,3 %) in terms of global sales is an important part in the production of precious metals [27,28] and their valuable source.C. violaceum, P. fluorescens and P. plecoglossicida bacteria were used for extraction of gold, silver and platinum from electronic waste, jewellery waste and au-tomotive catalytic converters, respectively [29]. These bacteria have an ability to produce hydrocyanic acid (HCN), which can dissolve gold. Bacteria demonstrated the ability to mobilize silver, platinum and gold in the form of cyanide complexes. Gold was extracted from shredded electronic scrap by both C. violeacum and P. fluorescens as dicyanoaurate [Au(CN)2]−, after 3 days. However C. violaceum proved to be more efficient re-garding gold mobilization, reaching higher concentra-tions of dicyanoaurate. Only small amount approxi-mately 0,2 %, of the total Pt present in the converter was mobilized. It is assumed that Pt mobilization is pre-vented by a passivating oxide film. However there is neither wider analysis nor an overall description of this phenomenon in literature.Research on bioleaching of metals from electronic waste by using cyanogenic bacterial strains were also carried out by Kumar et al. [30]. Maximum metal mobi-lization exhibited single culture of C. violaceum and a mixture of C. violaceum and P. aeruginosa. C. violace-um was capable of leaching more than 79, 69, 46, 9 and 7 % of Cu, Au, Zn, Fe and Ag, respectively at an elec-tronic waste concentration of 1 % w/v. Moreover, the mixture of C. violaceum and P. aeruginosa exhibited metals leaching of more than 83, 73, 49, 13 and 8 % of total Cu, Au, Zn, Fe, and Ag, respectively. BIOLEACHING OF SPECIAL METALS (Li, REEs) AND RADIONUCLIDES Spent lithium-ion batteries are the main carrier and a source of lithium. The spent lithium ion batteries contain Li and also Co as an active cathodic material (LiCoO2). Bioleaching of this cathodic material was carried out using chemolithotrophic and acidophilic bacteria A. ferrooxidans [31] or mixed culture of aci-dophilic sulfur-oxidizing and iron-oxidizing bacteria [32]. In these works not only the efficiency of the pro-cess has been studied, but the bioleaching mechanism has been interpreted as well. Depending on pulp den-sity cobalt dissolution was about 56 – 65 % and lithi-um about 10 % [31]. Red mud (in addition to major elements and metals in lower concentrations) also contains rare elements (e.g. Sc, Y, La, Nd, Ga, Yt) and radionuclides (urani-um and thorium) [25,27]. It was reported that signifi-cant ecological problems and considerable negative environmental effects were caused by radioactive ele-ments and the alkaline content of red mud in various parts of the world [27]. Bioleaching of REEs and U, Th from red mud was conducted by using fungi iso-lated from red mud identified as Penicillium tricolor [26]. With increasing pulp density (2 %, 5 %, 10 %) there was a decrease in the leaching ratios of the REEs and radioactive elements. The maximum leaching ra-tios of the REEs and radioactive elements were achieved under one-step bioleaching process at 2 % of pulp density (incubating the fungi together with the red mud). Regardless of the leaching conditions and pulp densities, the leaching ratios generally increased with the atomic number of the REEs (except for yttri-um and scandium). REEs (16 elements) were leached in the range from about 26 % to 80 % (depending on atomic number). The residual ratio of Th in the bi-oleached red mud after one step process at 2 % pulp density was approximately 55 %. It was also indicated that approximately 9.9 % of the Th was lost (i.e. nei-ther in the red mud nor the leaching filtrate). Authors concluded that the bioaccumulation or biosorption of Th by used strain is responsible for the Th lost in the bioleaching process. These phenomena probably play an important role in removing the radioactivity. SUMMARYA reflection of the great interest in using biological methods for the recovery of metals from waste can be the number of appearing studies. Biological leaching has been conducted in the presence of variety microor-ganisms and in a wide range of waste-carrying base, special and precious metals. In many cases promising results of metals extraction were obtained. Problems associated with metal toxicity towards microorgan-isms have been solved by their adaptation to high con-centration of heavy metals. Although many problems associated with the selection of the optimum process parameters still remain to be resolved, increased effi-ciencies of bacterial leaching operations, make these processes more competitive in relation to conventional methods. 258  METALURGIJA 54 (2015) 1, 255-258J. WILLNER et al.: BIOHYDROMETALLURGICAL METHODS FOR METALS RECOVERY FROM WASTE MATERIALSAcknowledgementsThe work was taken within the statutory research of Silesian University of Technology, PolandREFERENCES[1] C. Brombacher, R. Bachofen, H. Brandl, Applied and En-virontal Microbioly, 64, (1998) 4, 1237-1241.[2] J. Willner, A. 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Biohydrometallurgical methods for metals recovery from waste materials

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