A Sustainable Hydrometallurgical Approach for the Selective Recovery of Zinc and Copper from Industrial Brass Foundry Waste in Jamnagar, Gujarat

Brass foundries generate oxide-rich solid residues that retain appreciable quantities of zinc and copper. This study evaluates a hydrometallurgical route for recovering these metals from brass ash collected from industrial sources in Jamnagar, Gujarat. The residue was dried, classified by particle size and characterized before sulfuric-acid leaching. Zinc was then separated from the resulting sulfate liquor by solvent extraction with di-(2-ethylhexyl) phosphoric acid (D2EHPA) diluted in kerosene. The effects of equilibrium pH, extractant concentration, aqueous-to-organic phase ratio and contact time were examined. Under the selected conditions, zinc transferred preferentially to the organic phase, whereas most copper remained in the aqueous raffinate. Counter-current mixer-settler trials were used to evaluate the continuity of extraction and stripping. Zinc was recovered from the loaded organic phase with sulfuric acid, and metal concentrations were determined by ICP-OES. The route achieved an overall zinc recovery of 81.9%, compared with 26.3% for copper, confirming that pH-controlled D2EHPA extraction can provide a practical separation step after acid leaching. The proposed flowsheet supports the recovery and reuse of metals from brass-processing residues and offers a basis for further validation at industrial scale

Brass Ash; Zinc Recovery; Copper Separation

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