Separation of Cobalt and Zinc from Manga

The Boleo leach solution contains large amounts of manganese (45 g/L), magnesium (25 g/L) and small amounts of cobalt (0.2 g/L) and zinc (1 g/L) in sea water. Due to the high manganese concentration, it is very difficult to separate cobalt and zinc from manganese, magnesium, and calcium using conventional solvent-extraction processes, which has led to the development of a synergistic solvent extraction system comprising Versatic 10 and LIX 63. This study investigates the effectiveness of this hybrid system for the selective extraction of cobalt and zinc from the leach solution. Experiments were conducted to evaluate the extraction efficiency, selectivity, and the influence of various operational parameters. The results indicate that the synergistic effect of the two extractants significantly enhances the separation of cobalt and zinc, achieving extraction efficiencies above 90%. Additionally, the optimized process conditions recommended in this study can facilitate more efficient recovery of valuable metals from complex solutions. The proposed method presents a promising alternative for the efficient recovery of cobalt and zinc in hydrometallurgical applications.