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Topic: alkaline extraction of antimony ore  (Read 3369 times)

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Offline NickNick

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alkaline extraction of antimony ore
« on: February 09, 2008, 10:44:56 AM »
I'm doing an process that involves stibnite. Potassium nitrate is mixed with potassium carbonate in water. This I assume will convert the potassium nitrate to potassium hydroxide because of the pH of the potassium carbonate being 11. The water is added to a flask with ground stibnite and allowed to sit until an extraction occurs. Then the water is distilled out. Distillations are repeated until a blood red oil comes over.

Now my question is, how dangerous is this and what type of distillation set up should I have? Won't antimony ions be comming over with the water (hence the red color) and possibly into the air?

The distillation set up I have is a 2 liter flask in a heating mantle designed for that size, then an arm going to a graham condenser (the type with the coil being for the cold water) and then to another graham condenser (the other type with the coil being cooled by the water).

Offline Borek

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Re: alkaline extraction of antimony ore
« Reply #1 on: February 09, 2008, 11:40:58 AM »
Potassium nitrate is mixed with potassium carbonate in water. This I assume will convert the potassium nitrate to potassium hydroxide because of the pH of the potassium carbonate being 11.

No KOH here, just hydrolized carbonate.
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Offline NickNick

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Re: alkaline extraction of antimony ore
« Reply #2 on: February 12, 2008, 05:30:16 PM »
Thanks for responding. Can you explain a little more. What happpens to the potassium nitrate? It becomes a hydrolized carbonate? Or the the potassium carbonate does? What happens to the nitrogen?


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