Abstract

A combined application of μm-FTIR mapping and Raman microspectroscopy for the bioleaching behaviour of copper sulfide minerals such as chalcopyrite, bornite, chalcocite and covellite provides valuable information on the whole bio-hydrometallurgy Cu/Fe/S system. Both techniques provide label-free, nondestructive visualizations of the bio-hydrometallurgy dynamics for processing and storage of large spectral data sets which are valuable for evaluation of copper, iron and sulfur containing minerals. The results provide solid evidence that the techniques can be also applied to other Bio-hydrometallurgical extracted metals from Polymetallic Mineral Resources.

Keywords: Micro spectroscopy; Minerals; Metal ions; Copper