Relative importance of diffusion and reaction control during the bacterial and ferric sulphate leaching of zinc sulphide

A study has been undertaken on the bacterial and ferric sulphate leaching of sphalerite, with the aim of observing the relative importance of both diffusion and reaction control, across a range of operating conditions. To facilitate this kinetic analysis a mixed-control rate equation was developed based upon the shrinking particle and shrinking core models, featuring both an intrinsic rate of zinc extraction and a product layer diffusion coefficient. The ferric sulphate oxidation of a pure sphalerite sample was first studied, and the process was found to be mainly controlled by surface diffusion, thought to be due to formation of the elemental sulphur product layer. The mesophilic bacterial oxidation of a high-grade zinc ore was studied at 35 °C, and the process was observed to be controlled by both chemical reaction and diffusion. However, during the mesophilic bacterial oxidation of a low-grade zinc ore at 25 °C, diffusion was found to be rate limiting. It was proposed that this diffusion resistance arises from an unreacted layer of gangue material.