The Study of Catalyzing Behavior of Silver Ions in Bacterial Leaching of Chalcopyrite

An investigation is made of the catalyzing behavior of silver ions in bacterial leaching of chalcopyrite. In the presence of Ag ions, the finer the size of chalcopyrite particles is,the higher the leaching rate is. At a leaching liquor pH of 1.5～2.0, the bioleaching results are better, and at Ag ion concentration of 10 mg/L, the leaching rate is the highest. In the range of experiment, Ag ions, which have been added to the leaching system, occur mostly as silver sulfide and a few as Ag ion, regardless of the initial concentration of Ag ions.