Abstract:The metabolism of copper and arsenic in a copper pyrometallurgy process was studied through substance flow analysis method. The mass balance accounts and substance flow charts of copper and arsenic were established, indicators including direct recovery, waste recycle ratio, and resource efficiency were used to evaluate the metabolism efficiency of the system. The results showed that, the resource efficiency of copper was 97.58%, the direct recovery of copper in smelting, converting, and refining processes was 91.96%, 97.13% and 99.47%, respectively. Meanwhile, for producing 1 t of copper, 10 kg of arsenic was carried into the system, with the generation of 1.07 kg of arsenic in flotation tailing, 8.50 kg of arsenic in arsenic waste residue, and 0.05 kg of arsenic in waste water. The distribution and transformation behaviors of arsenic in the smelting, converting, and refining processes were also analyzed, and some recommendations for improving copper resource efficiency and pollution control were proposed based on substance flow analysis.

Key words: copper smelting; substance flow analysis; copper; arsenic; distribution behavior