Hydrometallurgy 101 (2010) 9398

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Hydrometallurgy
j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w. e l s ev i e r. c o m / l o c a t e / h yd r o m e t

Studies into the preparation of alum from slime waste from the Awaso Bauxite Washing Plant
F.W.Y. Momade a,, K. Sraku-Lartey b
a b

College of Engineering, KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana Presbyterian University College, Abeti, Ghana

a r t i c l e

i n f o

a b s t r a c t
Bauxite mining has been going on at Awaso in the Western Region of Ghana, West Africa, since 1941. Materials from the pit are usually passed through the washing plant to remove impurities such as plant material, and clay, and nes in the bauxite material. The washing process has generated several thousands of tonnes of slime waste that has been impounded in tailings dams. Studies were carried out to determine the suitability of the slime material for the preparation of alum. Samples of slimes were taken from the slime dams and characterised chemically and mineralogically. Samples of selected slime material of various compositions from the slime dams were leached at boiling temperature with varying acid concentrations and pulp density to determine the optimum condition of treatment. Methods of reducing Fe and Cr levels as the main impurities in the solution were investigated and jar tests were carried out to determine the potency of the product solution and crystalline alums. The results showed that the slime material could be used directly without any pre-treatment and the main impurities in the solution, Fe and Cr, could be reduced by varying the initial acid concentration, pH management and the use of calcined waste clay from the bauxite mine. Both solution and crystalline alum of acceptable commercial quality and potency could be produced. At a dosage of 80 ppm in the case of crystalline alum, the pH of water treated with the locally produced and imported alum were 6.8 and 6.6 respectively, whilst the colour (Haizen), turbidity (NTU) and TDS (mg/l) were 75 and 75; 0.83 and 0.64; and 161 and 154 respectively. In the case of liquid alum the required dosage was relatively higher. 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Article history: Received 5 July 2008 Received in revised form 6 September 2009 Accepted 18 November 2009 Available online 1 December 2009 Keywords: Alum preparation Bauxite washing plant Slime waste

1. Introduction The word alum is used to represent aluminium sulphate octadecahydrate {Al2(SO4)3.18H2O} or a group of isomorphous hydrated double salts containing monovalent and trivalent metals, and the common sulphate anion. As a double salt, alum is represented by the formula X2SO4.Y2(SO4)3.24H2O where X may be potassium, sodium or ammonium. Y, on the other hand, may be aluminium, chromium or iron. When prepared from solutions, a product of varying composition, Al2(SO4)3. nH2O is obtained (Kirk-Othmer, 2006). The literature contains various patents for the production of alum or aluminium sulphate using aluminium-based materials. A few of them include Choi et al. (1982); Krause (1996); Clarke and Newton (1998); Maclaughlin (2000); Barnett and Mezner (2002); Amer (2002); and Jahudka et al. (2005); and Harel and Shapira (2006) and Jahudka et al. (2005). Commercially, alum is available in two grades. The technical grade is prepared by the reaction of sulphuric acid with bauxite, clay or alunite {KAl3(SO4)2(OH)6}. This product is shipped either in the dry

form containing an average of 17.25% aluminium as Al2O3 or as liquid alum containing about 7% Al2O3. The iron-free grade, which is of high purity, is prepared by the action of sulphuric acid on pure alumina trihydrate produced from rening bauxite in the Bayer process. This grade contains only 0.01% Fe2O3 as compared to about 0.5% Fe2O3 in technical grade alum (Kirk-Othmer, 2006). When a basic medium is used to treat low-grade aluminium containing material for alumina trihydrate as a precursor material, the raw material is preferably treated with NaOH as in the Bayer process or with KOH, to convert the aluminium content into a soluble aluminate (Eremin, 1981). Materials NaOHaq NaAlOH4 aq Residues Materials KOHaq KAlOH4 aq Residues : 1 2

The resultant solution is treated to remove the insoluble residues. The clean solution is then decomposed to produce aluminium trihydrate, which becomes a clean source for alum production. 2NaAlOH4 aq Al2 O3 :3H2 Os 2NaOHaq 3

Corresponding author. E-mail address: fmomade.soe@knust.edu.gh (F.W.Y. Momade). 0304-386X/$ see front matter 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.hydromet.2009.11.013

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Al2 O3 :3H2 Os 3H2 SO4aq Al2 SO4 3aq 6H2 Oliq Al2 SO4 3aq 16H2 Oliq Al2 SO4 3 :16H2 O:

4 5

The clean aluminate solution could also be treated with sulphuric acid to produce alum as a double salt: 2NaAlOH4 aq 4H2 SO4aq Al2 SO4 3aq Na2 SO4aq 8H2 Oliq Al2 SO4 3aq Na2 SO4aq 24H2 Oliq Na2 SO4 Al2 SO4 3 :24H2 O:

6 7

sidered as waste and is impounded in slime ponds. Over sixty years of activity has led to the stockpiling of several thousand tonnes of slimes from the washing plant into the slime ponds. Production is planned to be increased as a result of which the washing plant will generate more slimes estimated to be over 100,000 t a year. The main mineral phases in the slime materials are similar to the parent bauxite material. These include gibbsite and kaolinite, as well as impurities such as iron oxide (haematite and goethite), quartz and rutile. This paper evaluates the characteristics of the slime waste and investigates its potential for the production of commercial aluminium sulphate (alum). A preliminary study has also been conducted into how the major impurities (iron and chromium) in the leach solution could be reduced. 2. Materials and method 2.1. Characterisation of the bauxite waste slimes Initial assessment of the slime material in the tailings dams was conducted by Sraku-Lartey and Momade (2000). Various sampling procedures were used to collect samples from the slime ponds for testing. These included the preparation of collective samples from grab samples collected over 300 m at 10-m intervals in a 25-m grid system; vertical channel sampling over 1-m intervals at ve sites; and pit sampling at various points. In all, 33 composite samples were prepared. The samples were assessed to be either silty-sand, silty or slimy in texture. Particle size and chemical analysis were conducted on selected samples. An X-ray diffraction analysis with Siemens D5000 diffractometer with Cu K radiation was carried out on a number of randomly selected samples. 2.2. Preparation of alum from the waste slimes 2.2.1. Digestion Optimum conditions for aluminium extraction were determined by investigating the effect of acid concentration and pulp density, and whether the slime material could be used without any further size reduction. Four samples of varying alumina content out of the 33 samples were selected for digestion tests; S3 (52.9%), S13 (49.1%), S16 (58.6%) and S32 (34.0%). The total iron contents as Fe2O3 for the four selected samples were 13.3, 12.3, 12.3 and 13.6% respectively. Sample S32 was selected for the initial tests because of the relatively low alumina content and to determine how such a sample would behave in terms of extraction efciency. Two acid concentrations and two pulp densities were used. The amount of acid used was based on the amount of sample measured to give the required pulp density, its Al2O3 content and the stoichiometric amount of acid (s) required according to reaction (4). Extra acid was added to support the amount to be consumed according to reaction (8). Chemical analyses by Gawu (1997) on the Ichiniso bauxite deposit indicated that the main components were Al2O3, Fe2O3 and SiO2, and that apart from TiO2, most other components were present in trace amounts. Consequently, the H2SO4 content in the leaching solution was set to 1.1 s and 1.2 s according to the reaction (4). Amounts of bauxite waste slimes were weighed and added to give pulp densities of 20 and 25%. The best of the conditions from these initial tests were then used for the other three samples. The digestion was carried out on a magnetic mixer/hot plate and in a well-covered 2-litre beaker to reduce evaporation. The temperature of the pulp was kept at about 110 C and the leaching was carried out for up to 3 h. When necessary, distilled water was added from time to time to make up for evaporation. One milliliter of samples was taken with micropipette at various times into a 50-mL volumetric asks containing distilled water and made to the mark. The aluminium, iron and chromium content of the samples were determined using the M1100-B Perkin Elmer atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Then

When bauxite is treated directly with sulphuric acid, the leaching process is not selective and various impurities in the bauxite become soluble. The purity of the solution then depends on the source and impurity content of the bauxite. The solution must be treated to remove the impurities if a pure product is to be obtained. The major impurity in bauxite is iron oxide/hydroxide, which occurs in the form of haematite (Fe2O3) and goethite {FeO(OH)}. The haematite content is generally resistant to sulphuric acid attack. Iron in the form of goethite could react with sulphuric acid according to the reaction: 2FeOOH 3H2 SO4 Fe2 SO4 3 4H2 O: 8

Other impurities in the bauxite may include quartz (SiO2), rutile (TiO2) and small admixtures of calcium, magnesium, chromium, phosphorus and manganese among others (Kesse, 1985). The knowledge of these impurities is very important in determining the purication processes needed to produce purer alum. The kaolinite content of clays is known to show resistance to acid attack but becomes more soluble in acid when the clay is pre-calcined to between 500 and 600 C to convert it to metakaolinite: Al2 O3 :2SiO2 :2H2 O Al2 O3 :2SiO2 2H2 O Al2 O3 :2SiO2 3H2 SO4 Al2 SO4 3 2SiO2 3H2 O: 9 10

The reduction in iron content of the alum product has occupied the mind of investigators over decades. These include the separation of iron in the form of low solubility compounds or complexes such as iron (III) oxide hydrates, hexacyanoferrates (Chadwick et al. 1880; Briosman, 1964). Removal of iron in the form of low solubility compounds results in the incomplete precipitation of products that are difcult to lter. Among other methods that have been suggested to reduce impurities include, the contacting of streams of ore slurries simultaneously with oxidising and reducing agents to dissolve the aluminium content (Choi et al. 1982), the use of uorosilicic acid (Harel and Shapira, 2006; Russ and Smith, 1985), and the application of pH control after digestion with various acids or acid mixtures to selectively precipitate iron and aluminium trihydrate in separate steps (Barnett and Mezner, 2002). However, most of these methods have not yet been utilized industrially, presumably due to engineering difculties or high cost. There are four major bauxite deposits in Ghana. These include the Aya-Nyinahin (about 350 million tonnes), Kibi (about 152180 million tonnes), Awaso (about 19 million tonnes) and Mt. Ejuanena (about 5 million tonnes) deposits (Kesse, 1985). With the exception of the Awaso deposit which has been exploited since 1941, all the other deposits have remained untouched. Acquah et al. (1999) have reported their investigation on the use of the Awaso bauxite for alum production. During mining operations at the Awaso, material from the pits is usually passed through a washing plant to remove nes and impurities such as plant material and adhering clay. The slime material from the washing plant is con-

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the percentage of aluminium extracted was calculated. At the end of digestion, the pulps were diluted and adjusted to about 30% more by volume to reduce supersaturation and prevent spontaneous precipitation after which they were ltered immediately (hot). The tests were repeated for samples S3, S13 and S16, which had higher Al2O3 contents. The solutions obtained during digestion were combined, assayed and the concentrations adjusted to 7% Al2O3 content (KirkOthmer, 2006) and kept for raw water purication by the so-called jar tests and later for the preparation of alum crystals. Samples were sent to SGS and Transworld analytical laboratories in Ghana for assaying for the Al, Fe, Cr, Mn, Hg, Pb, Sn and Se contents to ascertain the level of critical impurities in the solution. 2.2.2. Reduction in impurities in the leach solutions For tests on the reduction of impurities, three slime samples were selected; one with a relatively high alumina and low iron oxide content (S16: 58.6% Al2O3 and 12.3% Fe2O3), one with both alumina and iron oxide content relatively high (S18: 56.6% Al2O3 and 15.9% Fe2O3) and one with relatively low alumina and high iron oxide content (S26: 37.1% Al2O3 and 17.0% Fe2O3). In the rst series of tests, the effect of initial acid concentration on impurity concentration was investigated by weighing amounts of bauxite slime and adding acid solutions to give a 20% pulp density. The concentrations of acid used were 1.0 s, 1.1 s and 1.2 s acid, representing 1, 1.1 and 1.2 times the stoichiometric amounts of acid required whilst the temperature was set at 110 C as before. Samples were taken as before and analysed. In the second series of tests, the pulps were diluted after digestion and adjusted to about 30% more by volume to reduce supersaturation and prevent spontaneous precipitation. The temperature of the pulps was kept at 70 C and stirred. Then 0.1 M sodium hydroxide was added drop wise to modify the pH of the leach solution to values of 2, 4, 6, and 8. When the set pH was attained the pulps were maintained at the pH and stirred for half an hour before samples were taken, diluted and the impurity content determined. In the third series of tests, samples of bauxite slimes used for digestion and samples of lithomargic clays were pre-calcined at 700 C for 1 h. Lithomargic clays are clays that underlie the bauxite, but are positioned above the bedrock. The Awaso lithomargic clays are composed of mainly gibbsite crystals and kaolinite materials, and varying amounts of iron oxide/hydroxide (Momade et al., 2004). The clay sample selected and used for the experiments contains only gibbsite and kaolinite. In a rst step, digestions were carried out on the three selected bauxite slimes samples under conditions outlined above using an acid concentration of 1.1 s. The pulps were diluted as above and ltered. The solutions were then heated to 70 C in a second step and amounts of the calcined bauxite slime and lithomargic clays were pulped with the leach solution to about 25% pulp density, stirred for ve hours and samples taken at various intervals and analysed. 2.2.3. Preparation of crystals About 1500 cm3 of the diluted solution kept from the digestion experiments of sample S32, and those of S3, S13 and S16 combined were measured into 2-L beakers placed on the magnetic stirrer/hot plates. The solution was heated for evaporation to about one-third of the original volume and then seeded with ground commercially available alum crystals. The solutions were kept simmering at about 65 C for further evaporation whilst it was agitated slowly for the crystals to be formed. When enough crystals were formed, the pulps were immediately ltered (hot). The lter cakes were re-dissolved in distilled water, evaporated to supersaturation and seeded to obtain new crystals. The crystals were again ltered. An amount of ethyl alcohol was poured on the lter cakes under suction to remove any entrapped solution. The crystals were dried in the oven for 24 h at 60 C and samples taken for assay.

Table 1 Partial chemical composition of 15 selected samples from the tailings dams. Sample Al2O3, % S3 S5 S7 S9 S11 52.9 52.9 47.2 49.1 54.8 Fe2O3, % 13.3 12.2 11.3 12.8 13.6 Sample Al2O3, % S13 S15 S16 S18 S20 49.1 52.9 58.6 56.6 54.7 Fe2O3, % 12.3 11.9 12.3 15.9 13.3 Sample Al2O3, % S22 S26 S28 S30 S32 49.1 37.8 37.8 15.1 34.0 Fe2O3, % 10.9 17.0 17.2 13.2 13.6

2.2.4. Jar tests For the jar tests, the procedure outlined by Phipps and Birsds (Anon, 2006), was used; only in this case lime was used instead of soda ash. Raw waters used for the jar tests were obtained from the treatment plants at Owabi and Barakese in Kumasi, and Weija in Accra. However, only the results obtained for the Owabi reservoir are presented in this paper. Both the solution and crystalline alums were used for the tests. The jar tests were conducted at the Ghana Water Company Quality Control Laboratory in Kumasi and repeated at the Environmental Quality Control Laboratory of the Civil Engineering Department of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST). In the case of the liquid alum, various amounts of the solution were taken from the stock solutions containing about 7% aluminium as Al2O3 to represent the dosages used in the test. In the case of crystalline alum, solutions containing 10% aluminium as Al2O3 were prepared from both the imported and local crystalline alums, from which different dosages were added to the raw water.

3. Results and discussions 3.1. Characteristics of the bauxite waste slimes Particle size analysis data showed that the materials were generally ne with a D80 value between 380 and 1280 m. Results of chemical analysis indicated the Al2O3 content of the 33 selected samples to be between 34.0 and 58.6%, whilst the Fe2O3 content varied between 10.9 and 17.2%. Table 1 presents results for 15 selected samples from the tailings dam. Gawu (1997) reported that his investigations indicated that the main components in the bauxites of Awaso, according to chemical analysis, were Al2O3 and Fe2O3 and that, apart from silica and titania as minor components, the other components were in trace quantities. X-ray diffraction analysis indicated the mineral phases present to be gibbsite, kaolinite, goethite, haematite and rutile. The diffraction pattern of a sample from the old slime dams is presented in Fig. 1.

Fig. 1. An X-ray diffraction pattern of a sample of the slime material from the tailings dam.

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Fig. 2. Aluminium extraction from sample S32 at various conditions.

Fig. 4. Concentrations of Fe and Cr in solution after 3-h contact time vs. initial stoichiometric amount(s) of acid at 20% pulp density (S18).

3.2. Digestion Data from the results of the digestion tests were used in preparing Figs. 2 and 3. The results showed that an aluminium extraction level of over 80% could be achieved with the low alumina content sample (S32) within 3 h of digestion. A relatively high aluminium extraction levels could be obtained with a lower acid concentration (1.1 s acid). Test data (Fig. 2) also showed that an increase in the amount of acid used from 1.1 s to 1.2 s resulted in a decrease in aluminium extraction by about 2030% after 3 h of digestion, whilst any decrease as a result of increase in pulp density from 20 to 25% (Figs. 2 and 3) was generally not signicant. Accordingly an acid concentration of 1.1 s and a pulp density of 2025% seemed to represent the optimum conditions for aluminium extraction from the bauxite slimes. It was also noted that there would be a need to blend the high alumina content samples (such as sample S16), to reduce the overall alumina content to about 50%. The digested pulp from this sample gave lower extraction levels and the digested pulp tended to cake spontaneously after digestion because of higher degree of supersaturation. The aluminium content from chemical analysis represented the total aluminium content of the sample without reference to its distribution among gibbsite and kaolinite mineral phases. The resistance of kaolinite to dissolution in acid medium has already been mentioned. It is also known that aluminium in bauxite could be incorporated in the goethite or haematite lattice (Solymr and Ferenczi, 1979), which may not totally be available for leaching unless the goethite or haematite lattice has been completely broken down. In addition, not all the gibbsite or kaolinite contents of the

material are expected to dissolve. The achievement of about 80% extraction efciency in 3 h can therefore be considered a good result. Data not presented in this paper indicated that higher than 80% recovery were achieved when the residence times were increased in certain cases. 3.3. Reduction of impurity in leach solution Data from tests conducted on the effect of the initial acid concentration using sample S18 and S26 were used in plotting the graphs presented in Figs. 4 and 5 respectively, whilst those on impurity reduction with pH management are shown in Figs. 6 and 7 respectively, showing the changes in Fe and Cr concentrations with time in the leach solution. Fig. 8 presents the case when pre-calcined bauxite and waste clay from the mine were used in a second leaching step to control the impurity concentrations. The results as presented in Fig. 4 indicated that an increase in the initial acid concentration resulted in an increase in Fe and Cr concentration, passing through a maximum at 1.1 s and decreasing as acid concentration was further increased. Considerable reduction in both Fe and Cr concentrations were achieved with pH management. In the case of Fe the concentration was decreased from a value of 70.2 to about 1.0 mg/L for sample S18, and from 120.8 to 0.4 mg/L for sample S26. Cr level in the leach solution decreased 36.0 to 0.4 mg/L for sample S18, and from 46 mg/L to 0.1 mg/L for sample S26. Similar results could be obtained for tests with pre-calcined bauxite at 25% pulp density (Fig. 8). However, the degree of impurity removal obtained with the use of NaOH solution or pre-calcined bauxite could not be attained with the pre-calcined lithomargic clay (Fig. 8). It seems the reactivity of metakaolinite in the pre-calcined

Fig. 3. Aluminium recovery from different slime samples at different extraction conditions.

Fig. 5. Concentrations of Fe and Cr in solution after 3-h contact time vs. initial stoichiometric(s) amount of acid at 20% pulp density (S26).

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Table 2 The composition of liquid alum prepared from the digestion of selected bauxite waste slimes. Al, mg/L LA LB 22700 44100 Fe, mg/L 4488 5963 Cr, mg/L 4.8 16.0 Mn, mg/L 0.59 0.39 Hg, mg/L 0.009 0.006 Pb, mg/L 0.06 b 0.01 Sb, mg/L b 0.1 2.6 Se, mg/L 0.011 0.009

Table 3 The composition of two crystalline alums prepared from the bauxite waste slimes. Parameter Product crystal CRA, % Fig. 6. Fe and Cr concentration vs. solution pH at 3-h contact time at 70 C for sample S18. Al (total as Al2O3) Fe (total) Mn (total) Cr (total) Sb (total) Se (total) 4.7 0.26 b 0.002 b 0.02 b 0.02 b 0.0002 CRB, % 15.5 0.15 b 0.02 b 0.02 b 0.02 b 0.0002

Cr. Iron in the form of ferric ion in solution is not undesirable as it aids the coagulation process in the same way as the aluminium ion (Bratby, 2006). The other impurities are of relatively low concentration and may not constitute a hazard at the dosages used in the processing of water. On the other hand, if purer alum is desired as the product then the impurity concentration will have to be reduced. 3.5. Crystalline alum Crystalline products prepared from leach solutions of sample S2, and S3, S13 and S16 combined, were analysed and the results are presented in Table 3. An X-ray diffraction pattern of one of the products and that of a commercially available sample are presented in Fig. 9. The diffraction patterns show the crystals as alunogen {Al2 (SO4)3.16-17H2O}. The diffraction patterns of both product crystals and the imported crystals completely overlap, indicating that the product crystal compares very well with the imported alum. However, the aluminium content of the locally produced was slightly lower than that of the imported alum. It is believed that the quality of the product will improve with the choice of appropriate crystallisation and ltration technology. 3.6. Jar tests 3.6.1. Tests with solution alum Results of jar tests conducted with various dosages of the liquid alum have been compared with those of imported alum and presented in Tables 4. The laboratory tests indicated that relatively good occulating

Fig. 7. Fe and Cr concentrations vs. solution pH after 3-h contact time at 70 C for sample S26.

lithomargic clay was lower than that of dehydrated gibbsite in the pre-calcined bauxite. Fe concentration in this case could only be reduced to from 14.5 mg/L or 6.5 mg/L at 25% or 30% pulp density respectively. 3.4. Liquid alum The compositions of the composited solutions after the digestion of samples S32; and S3, S13 and S16 together after dilution are presented as LA and LB respectively in Table 2. The results indicate the presence of various impurities in various concentrations in the liquid alum. The major impurities were Fe and

Fig. 8. Fe concentration in leach solution vs. reaction time, on treatment with calcined bauxite and clay.

Fig. 9. X-ray diffraction patterns of the locally prepared (light lines) and imported (dark lines) alums.

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Table 4 A comparison of the results of jar tests with locally produced liquid and imported alums on water samples from the Owabi reservoir. Dosage pH Colour (Haizen) Settled turbidity (NTU) (ppm) Local liquid Imported Local liquid Imported Local liquid Imported alum alum alum alum alum alum 0.0 70 80 100 110 120 7.5 7.5 6.7 6.6 6.5 147 147 21 16 14 10.5 5.21 1.28 1.04 1.02

both solution and crystalline alum could be prepared from the waste. The crystalline material contained alunogen (Al2O3.16-17H2O). The impurity level in the solution alum could be reduced by a combination of control of the initial acid concentration, pH or by the use of calcined bauxite or lithomargic clay (which are also waste materials of the mining operations). Jar tests with both products conrmed their suitability for water treatment. References
Acquah, F., Mensah, B., Obeng, Y. (1999). Production of alum from Awaso bauxite. The Ghana Engineer, GhIE. Amer, A.M., 2002. Extracting aluminium from dross tailings. JOM 54 (11), 72. Anon, 2006. A Simplied Jar Test Procedure. http://www.phippsbird.com/procdure. html. Barnett, R. J., Mezner, M. B. (2002). Process for treating alumina-bearing ores to recover metal values therefrom. United States Patent No. 6468483. Bratby, J., 2006. Coagulation and Flocculation in Water and Wastewater Treatment. IWA Publishing, London, pp. 3233. Briosman, R. (1964). Removal of iron from aqueous aluminum sulfate solution. United States Patent No. 314 1733. Chadwick, T., Chardwick, W., Chardwick, J., Kynaston, J., (1880). Process for manufacturing and purifying sulphate of alumina and alum. German Patent DRP 11137. Choi, J.I., Kurtz, B. E., Omelian, A., (1982). Recovery of soluble alumina values from alumina bearing ores. United States Patent No. 4339415. Clarke, N., Newton, J.H. (1998). Processes for the treatment of acidic liquors and for the production of commercial products thereby. United States Patent No. 5800716. Eremin, N.I., 1981. Beneciation of low-grade bauxites by hydrometallurgical methods. Proceedings of ICSOBA Symposium held in Tihany, Hungary, October 69, pp. 135142. Gawu, S.K.Y., 1997. Geochemical trends of the Inchiniso bauxite deposit, Awaso, Ghana. Ghana Mining Journal 3 (1 & 2), 1017. Harel, S., Shapira, L., (2006). Production of aluminum compounds and silica from ores. United States Patent No 7090809. Jahudka, M., Hlavackova, M., Ludlum, R., Podrabsky, G., 2005. Recovering Clean Water and Ammonium Alum from Uranium Mine Acid Waste in the Czech Republic. www.ionics.com. Kesse, G.O., 1985. The Mineral and Rock Resources of Ghana. A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam, Netherlands, pp. 95156. Kirk-Othmer, R.E., 2006. 4th ed. Encyclopaedia of Chemical Technology, vol. 2. John Willey & Sons, pp. 174178. Krause, E., (1996). Method for acidic leaching of lateritic ores. U. S. Patent No. 557 5981. Momade, F.W.Y., Gawu, S.K.Y., Sraku-Lartey, K., Adoo, B., 2004. Awaso bauxite mine wastea waste or a resource. Paper Presented at the 6th Biennal West African Mining and Power Conference, WAMPOC 2004, July 78th, Accra: Africa Mining Intelligence, vol. 78. Maclaughlin, R. J., (2000). Value improvement of clays. U. S. Patent No. 615 3157. Russ, J.J., Smith, J.W., (1985). Method for separating and recovering silica, aluminum and iron from y ash, mineral ores and mine tailings. United State Patent No. 4539187. Solymr, K., Ferenczi, T., 1979. Increased Efciency of Alumina Manufacture in Goethitic Bauxite ProcessingCharacterisation and Processing of Bauxites, ALUTERV-FKI, Budapest, pp. 235247. Sraku-Lartey, K., Momade, F.W.Y., 2000. Awaso Alum Project: Report on the Technical and Financial Feasibility, Awaso Alum Company Limited. 42 pp.

6.8 6.7 6.4

43 30 28

5.61 2.12 1.25

Table 5 Results of jar tests conducted with crystalline alum with water from the Owabi reservoir. Dosage pH Colour (Haizen) Turbidity (NTU) TDS (mg) (ppm) Local Imported Local Imported Local Imported Local Imported 0.0 60.0 70.0 80.0 7.32 7.04 6.88 6.77 7.32 6.88 6.88 6.60 275.0 275.0 200.0 150.0 150.0 125.0 75.0 75.0 29.1 29.1 15.1 17.3 13.1 13.7 0.83 0.64 136 142 144 161 136 141 143 154

properties could be obtained with the locally prepared liquid alum. Poorer occulating characteristics could only be achieved at those dosages. However, higher dosages of the locally prepared liquid alum were required than for that for the imported crystalline alum to achieve comparable results. This, it is believed will be enough to offset the cost of the imported alum. 3.6.2. Tests with crystalline alum In the case of the crystalline product (Table 5), the results presented showed that the dosages required for the locally prepared crystalline product compares favourably with the imported alum in the treatment of water samples from the Owabi reservoir. The best results were obtained with the 80 ppm dosage. 4. Conclusion The waste bauxite slime generated from the washing plant of the Awaso bauxite mine was investigated as possible raw material for alum production. The results showed that a reasonable good quality of