Climax Uranium Company?s Approach To Vanadium Recovery By Solvent Extraction

At the present time Climax Uranium Company recovers vanadium oxide from carnotite type uranium ores in the mill at Grand Junction, Colorado, The flowsheet of this mill is shown in Figure I. Vanadium is solubilized by a salt roast of the slime fraction of the ore and dissolution is accomplished by a water leach. The metal is precipitated from the pregnant liquor as sodium polyvanadate by heating to boiling and adjusting the pH to 3 with sulfuric acid. The sodium polyvanadate, commonly called, "red caken, is filtered, melted, and cast into thin flakes. This fused flaked vanadium oxide is the material which is packaged for sale. Fused vanadium oxide, marketed by Climax, contains approximately 87% V205, 7% alkali oxide, 0.08% sulfur, 0.03% phosphorus, and less than 0.5% Insoluble. This material is of a lower grade and has a higher alkali oxide content than other vanadium products offered for sale at this time. A typical analysis of a high grade vanadium oxide currently offered for sale by another company is 98% V205, 1 - 2% alkali oxide, less than 0.05% sulfur and less than 0.2% Insoluble. The only reagent consumed in the precipitation of the sodium polyvanadate is sulphuric acid. The total reagent cost is 0.58 cents per pound of vanadium oxide produced.