MODE OF OCCURRENCE

Gold occurs in native form as minute globules, thin stringers, films and smears
along the fractures with in the quartz. It also occurs associated with sulphide
minerals, such as arsenopyrite, pyrrhotite, pyrite, chalcopyrite and sphalerite, in
the altered wall rocks that occurs as lenses with in the quartz vein and on either
side of it. The total sulphide content of the lodes varies from 2 to 5%.

GEOLOGY AND MINING

The Hutti gold deposit is located in the Hutti-Maski Pre-Cambrian greenstone
belt. The auriferous lodes occur within the meta basalts and are gold quartz-
sulphide lodes which are confirmed to laterally and depth persistent shear zones.
Gold occurs in native state and is generally associated with quartz veins and also
with the sulphide minerals viz., arsenopyrite, pyrrhotite and pyrite as inclusions,
fracture fillings and also as replacement in microscopic and sub-microscopic
particles.
The strike length covered by the present mining is 1.3 km. and the proved &
probable ore reserves up to the present mine depth of 781 m. are 6.78 million
tones @ 6.28 g/t grade.

MINING METHOD
Shrinkage method of open stoping was followed above the 15th level. Manual Cut
& Fill and mechanized Cut & Fill stoping methods have been adopted below 15th
level (475 m) with the objectives of controlling dilution from walls, ensuring better
standards of safety and better ore recovery.
Currently, Large Diameter Blast Hole Stoping and Sub-level method of mining
with post filling of the mined out stopes are being practiced.

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ORE MINERALS:
Available as a Native Gold,
85-100% Au (invariably alloyed with silver and copper, and other metals. Sp.
Gravity: 12-20.
Dissiminated in quartz grains, pyrite, chalcopyrite, arsenopyrite, galena &
stibnite. Also found in alluvially in stream or other sediments.

Sylvanite (AuAg)Te2 24.5% Au, Sp. Gravity: 7.9-8.3

Calaverite AuTe2 43.6% Au, Gravity: 9.0
Tellurides occurring in Kalgoorlie gold ores of Western Australia.

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES:
Gold = Au
Atomic Wt. = 197.2
Sp.gravity = 19.33
Melting point = 10630C
Boiling point = 26000C
Oxides = Au2O, Au2O3
Hardness = 2.5-3 (Mho`s scale)
USES:
Jewellery, monetary use, electronics, dentistry, decorative plating..etc.

METALLURGY OF GOLD

• Free gold recovery by panning

• Hg-Amalgamation method

• Cyanidation – Zinc precipitation method

• Cyanidation – CIP method

• Recent advances:
• Bio-leaching, Thio-urea leaching, Thio-sulphate leaching…

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Zinc Cementation (Merrill Crowe Process)

Au(CN)-2 + Zn = 2 Au + Zn(CN)2-4

i) Reduction of gold & oxidation of Zinc are,

Au(CN)- + e- = Au + 2 CN-
Zn + 4 CN- = Zn(CN)2- + 2e-

ii) Water and dissolved oxygen are also reduced by zinc

2 H2O + 2e- = 2 OH- + H2
O2 + 2 H2O + 4e- = 4 OH-

Grinding Cyanide Leaching

Acid Loaded
Crushing wash carbon CIP

Elution &
Refining Electro winning

Final
O/F, Residue
to tailing dump

Back to mine
As fill material

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CRUSHING:
The ore extracted from underground is crushed to -200 mm size in underground
crusher. The -200 mm ore is crushed in three stages on surface crushing and
screening house. Two primary Jaw crushers reduce the size from -200 mm to -65
mm. Two secondary crushers (standard cone) are used to reduce the ore to -25
mm. Finally -25 mm ore is crushed in tertiary crushers (short head cone) in close
circuit to get -8 mm of ore and which is stored in a surface bin of 1500 tons
capacity before grinding.

GRINDING:
The -10 mm ore is ground to 85% of -75 micron for the recovery of gold by
physical and chemical processes for which two streams containing two primary
and six secondary mills are employed with a total capacity of about 1000 tons per
day constituting the first circuit. The ore is coarse ground in two primary mills
and join to the common sump. The total pulp is pumped to cyclones for
classification. The cyclone overflow gravitates to cyanidation plant for chemical
treatment. The cyclone underflow flows to secondary mills for further grinding.
The discharge of these mills are passed on strake table spread with blankets
which recover coarse gold by gravity process, the system is in close circuit
operation.

The -8 mm ore is also ground in 4 ball mills constitute the second circuit. The mill
discharge is passed through Knelson concentrators to recover the coarse gold.
Knelson discharge is sent to cyclones for classification. The overflow goes to
cyanide plant and underflow goes to ball mills for regrinding.
The strake tables concentrate and Knelson concentrate is further upgraded on
James table to smeltable grade of gold.

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CYANIDATION:
The cyclone overflow from both the circuit is thickened to remove excess water.
The pulp of 50-55% solids is mixed with cyanide; gold is leached in air supplied
mechanical agitators at pH-10. The dissolved gold is then adsorbed on carbon by
carbon-in-pulp (CIP) process. The loaded carbon is removed from the CIP
periodically and the gold loaded carbon is removed from the CIP Plant
periodically, and subjected to acid and alkaline washed and then eluted in 4
Nos. of elution columns with 1.0% NaOH and 0.1% NaCN solution at 95oC for a
period of 50 hours. The solution is then passed through 4 nos. of Electro-winning
Cells in which gold is deposited on steel wool cathodes.

Leaching
Leaching is a hydrometallurgical means by which a separation of a soluble
substance from an insoluble one by means of a selective lixiviant.

The factors affecting the kinetics of leaching are:

a. Particle size e. Reagent dosage
b. Aeration f. Impurities.
c. Pre – aeration pulp g. PH
d. Pulp density h. Temperature

Reactions:
4 Au + 8 NaCN + O2 + 2H2O  2 Na Au(CN)2 + 2 NaOH + H2O2
2 Au + 4NaCN + H2O2  2 Na Au(CN)2 + 2 NaOH
4Au + 8NaCN + O2 + H2O  4 Na Au(CN)2 + 4 NaOH

1) oxidation step:
Au + 2CN-  Au(CN)-2+ 2 e
2) Reduction step
O2 + H2O + 4 e  4 OH-
O2 + 2H2O + 2 e  H2O2 + 2OH-
H2O2 + 2 e  2OH-

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Cyanicide reactions:
1. Alkaline sulphide in the presence of oxygen gives,
2 Na2S + O2 + H2O  Na2S2O3 + 2 NaOH
Na2S + 2 NaCN + 2H2O+ O2  2 NaCNS + 4 NaOH
For reducing the above decomposition “Lead Salts” to be used. It forms
Leadsulphide stable compound.

2. Ferro cyanides
FeS  FeSO4 (at low pH & oxidation)
FeSO4 + 2 NaCN  Fe(CN)2 + Na2SO4
Fe(CN)2 + 4 NaCN  Na4Fe(CN)6

3. Zinc
4 NaCN + ZnO + H2O  Na2Zn(CN)4 + 2 NaOH

Carbon In Pulp (CIP):

After leaching of ores metal values are recovered directly from the leached slurry
onto granulated activated carbon in agitated CIP tanks. The carbon is retained in
the tanks by screens through which the slurry discharges. The CIP circuits are
typically designed with atleast four tanks to prevent short circuiting of slurry and
allow sufficient retention time for recovery of all the metals.

The principal advantantage of Carbon- in- pulp is, eliminates the solid- liquid
seperation and has been proved to be economical and efficient over the other
classical methods.

In the CIP process, activated carbon is used to adsorb the gold directly from the
cyanided pulp in a series of large adsorption tanks. Pulp flows continually from
the first vessel to the last in the series, and the carbon is transferred intermittently
by pumping in the opposite (counter current) direction. Inter stage screens
between the tanks prevent the carbon from moving down stream. The gold value
of the pulp decreases down stream, and the gold loading on the carbon
increases upstream, with the highest value in the first tank.

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Elution : Gold absorption on activated carbon is reversible thermodynamic
reaction. Gold desorbs from activated carbon in to the solution in the elution
process, where process parameter maintained as compared with CIP.

CIP Elultion Tank

a. PH – Low 9 to 9. 8 a. PH – High – 10 to 11
b. Cyanide – Low b. Cyanide – High Cyanide Concentrate
Cyanide Concentrate
c. Temperature – Low c. Temperature – High about 950C Temp.

Electro winning:
Aurous Cyanide gold gets deposited on cathodes in the form of AU.
Cathodic reaction:
Au + NaCN + O2 + H2O  NaAu(CN2)- + NaOH
Au(CN2)- + e  Au + 2 CN –
H2O + ½ O + e-  OH-
Elution & Electro winning cycle completes in about 75 hrs. The Gold
deposited on steel wool is sent to smelting section for further process of
Gold extraction.

GOLD RECOVERY AND REFINING:

The table concentrate is roasted to remove the sulphur, and the iron oxide is
removed by magneting. The non magnetic fraction is smelted with fluxes to get
bullion. Similarly the steel wool cathodes are acid treated to remove iron and the
residue is washed and dried, which is smelted with fluxes and finally gold bullion
is obtained. The bullion buttons are cast in to bars of 5-12 Kgs.

Smelting :- Smelting is a heating process to form a mettle ore or matte.

Generally the process is one of reduction of the oxide of the metal with carbon,
sulfur or sulphides in a suitable furnace. During smelting it should be
remembered that since the gangue in the ore is generally less fusible than the
metal, a flux must be added to form a slag that is easily fusible (Temp 1200° c).
The smelting process for metal extraction can written as,
Miniral + Gangue + reducing agent or Flux = Metal or Matte + slag.