Zinc electrowinning from acidic sulfate

This study explores the effects of sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) in the presence and absence of antimony(III) on various performance metrics in zinc electrowinning from acidic sulfate solutions. The objective was to determine how SLS influences current efficiency, power consumption, and polarization behavior. A series of experiments was conducted to evaluate these factors alongside the surface morphologies and deposit crystallographic orientations of zinc deposits. The results demonstrated that incorporating sodium lauryl sulfate into the zinc sulfate solution led to enhancements in current efficiency while simultaneously reducing power consumption and improving the surface morphology of the deposits. Notably, the maximum current efficiency and the minimum power consumption were achieved when 0.02 mg dm–3 Sb was added along with 1 mg dm–3 sodium lauryl sulfate. These findings may contribute to the optimization of additives employed in zinc electrowinning processes and suggest that SLS can serve as a viable option for improving operational efficiency.