Testwork reveals two viable processing options at Bushveld’s vanadium play
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Recent pyrometallurgical test work, which formed part of the scoping study at Aim-listed Bushveld Minerals’ vanadium project, in Limpopo, has confirmed the viability of using a salt roast process to produce vanadium pentoxide flakes or ferrovanadium from the project’s main magnetite layer (MML).
The test programme predicted overall vanadium recoveries of 74% in the plant, including downstream precipitation of the vanadate solution.
This followed a recent announcement by the company confirming “encouraging results” from a modelling exercise conducted on the MML using smelting to produce pig iron and high-grade vanadium slag.
“Having reported the results of the modelling exercise undertaken on the smelting processing route last week, we are pleased that results from the salt roast route, including lab-scale vanadium extraction, prove that we have two viable processing options to consider,” CEO Fortune Mojapelo said in a statement on Thursday.
The diversified mineral development company said the recent salt-roast testwork was performed on concentrates from the MML deposit and yielded up to 86% recoveries for vanadium extraction at 1 200 °C using a sodium carbonate salt roast, which was conducted on a matrix of temperatures and duration to determine optimal roast times.
It also confirmed up to 79% recoveries for vanadium extraction using a sodium sulphate salt roast.
These recoveries matched values predicted during prior independent modelling.
“Both of these processes are proven and in operation using ore similar to that within the MML, which is obviously encouraging. We look forward to building on these results in our scoping study which is under way and expected out in the coming months,” Mojapelo added.
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