Study of Zinc Sulfide Concentrates by DTA, TGA, and X-Ray Analyses and Their Roasting in Fluidized Bed Furnace

Bulgaria is a major producer of zinc in the Balkans (about 100,000 tons per year). The two zinc plants (KCM S.A., Plovdiv, and LZC S.A., Kardzhali) deliver the necessary raw materials from Bulgaria and abroad. But the zinc production at LZC Kardzhali for nearly a year has stopped. Turkey is a main producer of zinc sulfide concentrates from the Balkan countries. In this connection, an analysis of the delivered Turkish sulfide zinc concentrates is made through statistical processing of data about their chemical content. For the aim of processing them according to the classic hydrometallurgical scheme, studies are carried out using X-ray phase analysis as well as DTA and TGA. Providing optimal charge for roasting in fluid bed furnace (FBF) can be successfully done by using the WEB-based information system we have written, which calculates mixtures of different raw materials. The program system developed is illustrated by calculations of charges of 5 zinc concentrates from Turkey. The accomplishment of optimal mixing of concentrates and providing a stable mix composition for a long period of time is a task of primary importance in the technological process control in zinc hydrometallurgy.