Cyanide removal from aqueous streams
First Claim
Patent Images
1. The method for treating aqueous effluent to reduce the total cyanide content of said aqueous effluent solution which comprises treating said effluent solution with an oxygen-containing gas and a reagent from the group consisting of sulfur dioxide, an alkali or alkaline earth metal sulfite or bisulfite, at a pH of about 5 to about 12 in the presence of a copper catalyst.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
The cyanide content of waste waters containing the same is removed by treatment with sulfur dioxide or an alkali or alkaline earth metal sulfite or bisulfite in the presence of excess oxygen and a metal catalyst which is perferably copper.
-
Citations
21 Claims
- 1. The method for treating aqueous effluent to reduce the total cyanide content of said aqueous effluent solution which comprises treating said effluent solution with an oxygen-containing gas and a reagent from the group consisting of sulfur dioxide, an alkali or alkaline earth metal sulfite or bisulfite, at a pH of about 5 to about 12 in the presence of a copper catalyst.
- 19. The method for treating effluent solution and tailings from gold mining operations, said operations involving the leaching of comminuted gold ore with aqueous cyanide and recovery of soluble gold from said aqueous cyanide solution comprising treating essentially gold-barren aqueous effluent and tailings to reduce the total cyanide content thereof with an oxygen-containing gas and a reagent from the group consisting of sulfur dioxide and an alkaline earth or alkali metal sulfite or bisulfite at a pH of about 5 to about 12 in the presence of a copper catalyst at ambient temperature for said effluent and tailings and discharging said effluent and tailings to a disposal site without interposing any gold recovery operation between said treatment and said disposal site.
Specification