Metallurgy, Vol. 65 No. 1, 2026.
Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.64486/m.65.1.6
Sulfuric Acid Leaching оf Zinc Ferrite Residue
Biserka Lucheva
; Department of Polytechnics, Dr. Franjo Tuđman Defense and Security University, Ilica 256b, Zagreb, Croatia
Nadezhda Kazakova
; Department of Non-Ferrous Metals and Alloys, Faculty of Metallurgy and Materials Science, University of Chemical Technology and Metallurgy, 1756 Sofia, Bulgaria
Vladislava Stefanova
; Department of Non-Ferrous Metals and Alloys, Faculty of Metallurgy and Materials Science, University of Chemical Technology and Metallurgy, 1756 Sofia, Bulgaria
Hristo Ivanov
; Department of Non-Ferrous Metals and Alloys, Faculty of Metallurgy and Materials Science, University of Chemical Technology and Metallurgy, 1756 Sofia, Bulgaria
Peter Iliev
; Department of Non-Ferrous Metals and Alloys, Faculty of Metallurgy and Materials Science, University of Chemical Technology and Metallurgy, 1756 Sofia, Bulgaria
Abstract
Zinc ferrite residue, a by-product from the hydrometallurgical processing of zinc calcine, contains significant amounts of zinc, iron, lead, copper, and silver, often locked in complex oxide and spinel phases. This study aims to characterize zinc ferrite residue using ICP-OES analysis, XRD, and SEM/EDS, and to evaluate its behavior during sulfuric acid leaching under controlled laboratory conditions. Thermodynamic modeling with HSC Chemistry software was used to construct Eh–pH diagrams and predict phase stability across different temperatures and redox conditions. The experimental results confirmed efficient leaching of zinc, copper and iron, while lead and silver were largely retained in the insoluble resi-due. These findings highlight the potential for selective zinc extraction and con-centration of lead and silver in the solid phase, offering a promising route for sus-tainable ZFR processing.
Keywords
zinc ferrite residue, sulfuric acid leaching, thermodynamic modeling
Hrčak ID:
336513
URI
Publication date:
1.1.2026.
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