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Uranium Extraction Technology TECHNICAL REPORTS SERIES No. 359 Uranium Extraction Technology %ffij INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, VIENNA, 1993 The cover picture shows the in situ uranium central processing facility, Hobson Uranium Project, Everest Mineral Corporation, Karnes County, Texas, United States of America. By courtesy of Lanmon Aerial Photography Inc., Corpus Christi, Texas. URANIUM EXTRACTION TECHNOLOGY The following States are Members of the International Atomic Energy Agency: AFGHANISTAN GUATEMALA PANAMA ALBANIA HAITI PARAGUAY ALGERIA HOLY SEE PERU ARGENTINA HUNGARY PHILIPPINES ARMENIA ICELAND POLAND AUSTRALIA INDIA PORTUGAL AUSTRIA INDONESIA QATAR BANGLADESH IRAN, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF ROMANIA BELARUS IRAQ RUSSIAN FEDERATION BELGIUM IRELAND SAUDI ARABIA BOLIVIA ISRAEL SENEGAL BRAZIL ITALY SIERRA LEONE BULGARIA JAMAICA SINGAPORE CAMBODIA JAPAN SLOVAK REPUBLIC CAMEROON JORDAN SLOVENIA CANADA KENYA SOUTH AFRICA CHILE KOREA, REPUBLIC OF SPAIN CHINA KUWAIT SRI LANKA COLOMBIA LEBANON SUDAN COSTA RICA LIBERIA SWEDEN COTE D'lVOIRE LIBYAN ARAB JAMAHIRIYA SWITZERLAND CROATIA LIECHTENSTEIN SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC CUBA LUXEMBOURG THAILAND CYPRUS MADAGASCAR TUNISIA CZECH REPUBLIC MALAYSIA TURKEY DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE'S MALI UGANDA REPUBLIC OF KOREA MAURITIUS UKRAINE DENMARK MEXICO UNITED ARAB EMIRATES DOMINICAN REPUBLIC MONACO UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT ECUADOR MONGOLIA BRITAIN AND NORTHERN EGYPT MOROCCO IRELAND EL SALVADOR MYANMAR UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA ESTONIA NAMIBIA UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ETHIOPIA NETHERLANDS URUGUAY FINLAND NEW ZEALAND VENEZUELA FRANCE NICARAGUA VIET NAM GABON NIGER YUGOSLAVIA GERMANY NIGERIA ZAIRE GHANA NORWAY ZAMBIA GREECE PAKISTAN ZIMBABWE The Agency's Statute was approved on 23 October 1956 by the Conference on the Statute of the IAEA held at United Nations Headquarters, New York; it entered into force on 29 July 1957. The Head­ quarters of the Agency are situated in Vienna. Its principal objective is "to accelerate and enlarge the contribution of atomic energy to peace, health and prosperity throughout the world". © IAEA, 1993 Permission to reproduce or translate the information contained in this publication may be obtained by writing to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Wagramerstrasse 5, P.O. Box 100, A-1400 Vienna, Austria. Printed by the IAEA in Austria December 1993 STI/DOC/10/359 TECHNICAL REPORTS SERIES No. 359 URANIUM EXTRACTION TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY VIENNA, 1993 VIC Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Uranium extraction technology. — Vienna : International Atomic Energy Agency, 1993. p. ; 24 cm. — (Technical reports series, ISSN 0074-1914 ; 359) STI/DOC/10/359 ISBN 92-0-103593-4 Includes bibliographical references. 1. In situ processing (Mining). 2. Leaching. 3. Solution mining. 4. Uranium mines and mining. I. International Atomic Energy Agency. II. Series: Technical reports series (International Atomic Energy Agency) ; 359. VICL 92-00074 FOREWORD In 1983 the Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organisation for Economic Co­ operation and Development (OECD/NEA) and the IAEA jointly published a book on Uranium Extraction Technology. A primary objective of this report was to docu­ ment the significant technological developments that took place during the 1970s. The purpose of this present publication is to update and expand the original book. It includes background information about the principles of the unit operations used in uranium ore processing and summarizes the current state of the art. The publication also seeks to preserve the technology and the operating 'know-how' developed over the past ten years. Relatively little of this experience has been documented in recent years because technical personnel have moved to other industries as mines and mills have closed down throughout the world. Extensive references provide sources for specific technological details. This publication is one of a series of Technical Reports on uranium ore processing that have been prepared by the Division of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Management at the IAEA. A complete list of these reports is included as an addendum. The IAEA wishes to thank the consultants and their associates who took part in the preparation of this publication. It is primarily the work of a consultants group consisting of the following members: G.M. Ritcey (Gordon M. Ritcey and Associ­ ates, Canada), R.J. Ring (Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, Australia), M. Roche (Compagnie gen6rale des matieres nucl6aires, France) and S. Ajuria (Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares, Mexico). Components of several chapters were provided by other contributors. The IAEA is also grateful to the Member States and individual organizations for their generous support in provid­ ing experts to assist in this work. The IAEA officer responsible for this work was D.C. Seidel of the Division of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Management. Mr. Seidel also participated as a technical expert and contributing author. EDITORIAL NOTE The use of particular designations of countries or territories does not imply any judge­ ment by the publisher, the IAEA, as to the legal status of such countries or territories, of their authorities and institutions or of the delimitation of their boundaries. The mention of names of specific companies or products (whether or not indicated as registered) does not imply any intention to infringe proprietary rights, nor should it be construed as an endorsement or recommendation on the part of the IAEA. CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 PART I. URANIUM RESOURCES AND MINING TECHNOLOGY .... 5 CHAPTER 1. URANIUM RESOURCES 7 1.1. Introduction 7 1.2. Geological types of uranium deposits 7 1.3. Uranium resource classification system 13 1.4. Uranium resources in WOCA 15 References 18 CHAPTER 2. MINING TECHNOLOGY 19 2.1. Types of mining and mining practice 19 2.1.1. Uranium ore bodies 19 2.1.2. Mining recovery 19 2.2. Radiological and environmental aspects 22 2.2.1. Identification of radiological risks 22 2.2.2. Regulatory aspects 23 2.2.3. Dosimetric survey of workers 24 2.2.4. Radiological impact of ore mining and ore treatment on the environment 24 2.3. Grade control 26 2.3.1. General theory 26 2.3.2. Grade control during exploration 27 2.3.3. Grade control during mining 28 2.3.4. Grade control during ore haulage delivery to die mill 28 2.4. Co-ordination with mill 29 2.4.1. Metallurgical balance 30 References 30 PART II. PROCESSING TECHNOLOGY 33 CHAPTER 3. PROCESSING CONCEPTS 35 References 37 CHAPTER 4. ORE PREPARATION 39 4.1. Introduction 39 4.2. Crushing and grinding 39 4.2.1. Introduction 39 4.2.2. Comminution theory 40 4.2.3. Grindability 41 4.2.4. Circuits and equipment 42 4.3. Beneficiation 44 4.3.1. Introduction 44 4.3.2. Preconcentration processes 44 4.3.3. Radiometric sorting 45 4.3.4. Photometric and conductimetric sorting 60 4.3.5. Separation on the basis of size and shape 60 4.3.6. Separation on the basis of gravity 61 4.3.7. Separation on the basis of magnetic susceptibility 64 4.3.8. Flotation 65 4.4. Roasting 66 4.4.1. Introduction 66 4.4.2. Roasting chemistry 67 4.4.3. Roasting processes 67 4.4.4. Roasting equipment 69 References 69 CHAPTER 5. LEACHING 75 5.1. Introduction 75 5.2. Leaching chemistry 78 5.3. Leaching conditions and mineralogy 80 5.3.1. Uranium 81 5.3.2. Gangue minerals 85 5.4. Sulphuric acid leaching systems 89 5.4.1. Atmospheric agitation 89 5.4.2. Pressure leaching 97 5.5. Carbonate leaching systems 100 5.5.1. Atmospheric leaching 100 5.5.2. Pressure leaching 101 5.6. Strong acid pugging and curing 104 5.6.1. Somair and Cominak mills 104 5.7. Alternative leaching systems 109 5.7.1. Removal of radium and thorium 109 5.8. In situ and in place leaching Ill 5.8.1. Introduction Ill 5.8.2. In situ leaching 113 5.8.3. In place leaching 119 5.9. Heap and vat leaching 121 5.9.1. Introduction 121 5.9.2. Heap leaching 121 5.9.3. Vat leaching 127 References 127 CHAPTER 6. SOLID-LIQUID SEPARATION 137 6.1. Introduction 137 6.2. Concepts 137 6.2.1. Thickening 138 6.2.2. Filtration 141 6.2.3. Flocculation , 143 6.3. Applications in uranium milling 145 6.3.1. General circuit descriptions 145 6.3.2. Solid-liquid separation equipment 149 References 154 CHAPTER 7. SOLUTION PURIFICATION 157 7.1. Introduction 157 7.2. Resin ion exchange 158 7.2.1. Introduction 158 7.2.2. Ion exchange chemistry and resin characteristics 158 7.2.3. Ion exchange systems 161 7.3. Purification by solvent extraction 183 7.3.1. Introduction 183 7.3.2. Extractants 186 7.3.3. Modifiers 191 7.3.4. Diluents 192 7.3.5. Stripping 195 7.3.6. Dispersion and coalescence 195 7.3.7. Contacting equipment 196 7.3.8. Solvent-in-pulp extraction 206 7.3.9. Solvent losses 210 7.3.10. Process development 210 7.3.11. Materials of construction 214 7.3.12. Economics 215 7.3.13. Environmental aspects 215 7.4. Recovery of uranium from phosphoric acid 216 7.4.1. Introduction 216 7.4.2. Processes for uranium recovery from phosphoric acid 216 References 226 CHAPTER 8. PRODUCT RECOVERY 235 8.1. Introduction 235 8.2. Product specifications 235 8.3. Solution characterization 236 8.4. Precipitation 237 8.4.1. Precipitation testing and evaluation 237 8.4.2. Direct precipitation from acidic solutions 238 8.4.3. Direct precipitation from alkaline solutions 239 8.4.4. Precipitation from acid stripping solutions 239 8.4.5. Precipitation from alkaline stripping solutions 242 8.4.6. Ammonium uranyl tricarbonate system 243 8.5. Solid-liquid separation 244 8.6. Drying or calcination 246 8.7. Operating practice for product recovery 246 8.7.1. Rabbit Lake 246 8.7.2. Rio Algom Panel 247 8.7.3.
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