Path from Raw Materials to High Technological Products and Manufacture of Goods on The

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PATH FROM RAW MATERIALS TO HIGH TECHNOLOGICAL PRODUCTS AND MANUFACTURE OF GOODS ON THE BASE OF PLATINUM METALS

IGUMNOV M.S., NOVIKOV A.A., SHEVCHENKO V.I.

CJSC Dragtsvetmet, Moscow, Russia

Holding company «Dragtsvetmet», founded 12 years ago, takes leading positions in extracting and manufactures a diversity of products, containing platinum metals. Companies which are included in the holding have a wide range of interests.

The holding company includes: managing company; companies busy with extracting and concentrating primary and secondary raw materials, containing gold and platinum metals; company busy with manufacture of the most demand compounds of platinum metals and company busy with working up new technologies and producing test parties of salts, electrolytes and goods on the base of platinum metals.

Extracting of primary platinum metals is carried on by the open method with the use of gravitational enrichment. Some examples of platinum extracting process are shown on pictures 1-3.

Fig. 1. View of the mine during work

Fig. 2. Loading of the ore to washing grate with the help of bulldozer

Fig. 3. Separating gob with water stream

Enriched materials are brought on vibrator enriching tables.

Extracted concentrates – platinum, with platinum content 60 – 80 % Pt are send to Russian refining factories with whom our company has long-termed agreements.

Secondary products, containing platinum metals: decontaminationed catalysts, condensers, scrap of platinum metals and alloys, ill-conditioned salt and etc. our managers buy in Russia and in the former Soviet republics.

These products are analyzed and they are sent to refining factories, which return us refined metals in form of ingots and powder.

Refined platinum metals are sent to Nignii Novgorod to produce the most demand salts of platinum, palladium and rhodium.

In the company «Dragtsvetmet» original technologies of producing crystal chloride, acetate and sulfate, palladium nitrate, platinum and rhodium with the minimal content of chlorine, diamminchlorid palladium (special purity) are worked out.

Originality of getting chloride crystal consists in enlargement of crystal dimensions, increasing of product’s exit due to salting-out of chloride palladium from the solution at the presence of highly boiling dissolvent.

Palladium acetate is received with direct dilution of palladium in acetic acid over oxidant with the following filtration of hot solution with evaporation and crystallization of the received salt.

Rhodium and platinum nitrates are getting out through precipitation in slightly soluble compounds which have macro crystalline structure and well washed against chlore-ions.

Examples of production of some platinum metals compounds are shown in pictures 4-7.

Fig. 4. Production of chloride palladium solution

Fig. 5. Production of hexachloroplatinic acid solution

Fig. 6. Production of palladium nitrate and acetate

Fig.7. Production of palladium chloride crystal

Availability of manufacture allows improving existing technologies of platinum metals salts production and creating new. The technology of producing rhodium electrolytes was worked out. It allows getting rhodium coverings which meet the requirements of jeweler industry. Also platinum electrolytes are produced and processes of making platinum surfaces on titanium goods are developed. Palladium covering of the goods of jeweler and electro technical industry are coping with. Some samples of the goods with rhodium covering are shown in pictures 8-9.

Fig. 8. Rhodium covering on cooper product

Fig. 9. Rhodium covering on brass product

Production of small parties of platinum metals compounds by request of Russian and foreign firms has become a new field in the company «Dragtsvetmet». In particular production of substances for new Russian anti-cancroid medication «Cikloplatam»-S(-)-malatoamin (ciklopentilamin) platinum(II), chemical formula - C9 H18 N 2 O5 Pt is organized.

First parties have been produced already, have been tested and have been sent to oncological centre for medicinal form preparation.

In that way, company «Dragtsvetmet» realizes the whole cycle of processing from primary and secondary raw-materials to hi-tech products on the base of platinum metals.