By: Group 1

Introduction of leaching
Leaching Equipment
Principles of Continuous
Countercurrent Leaching
How to calculate Single stage
leaching and Countercurrent
leaching

Leaching
(Solid- Liquid Extraction)
Is a method of removing one constituent
from a solid by means of a liquid solvent.
In leaching, to separate the desired solute
constituent or remove the undesirable
solute component from the solid phase, the
solid is contacted with a liquid phase.

The two phases are in intimate

contact and the solute or solutes
can diffuse from the solid to the
liquid phase, which causes a
separation of the components
originally in the solid

The major differences between

Leaching and Liquid-Liquid
Extraction centers about the
difficulty to transport the solid or
the solid slurry from stage to
stage

 Batch Percolators
Fixed Bed Multistage System
Continuous Percolators
a. Bollman extractor
b.Hildebrandt extractor
c. Bonotto extractor
d. Rotocel extractor
Other types of extractor
a. Vertical immersion Column extractor
b. Soxhlet Extractor

I. Batch Percolators
This type of extractor
consists mainly of an
open deposit or
container with a false
bottom. The solid
particles are placed in
the container on the
false bottom, which is
usually a type of filter
or grid.

False bottom

II. Fixed Bed Multistage System

There are cases in which the
extraction rate is high and it is
possible to perform the desired
extraction in one stage.
However, this does not happen
frequently, so it is required to
circulate the solvent under
countercurrent through a series
of tanks containing the solid.

Continuous Percolators
This type of percolators has a
moving bed, and most of
them operate under
countercurrent.

a. Bollman extractor

b. Hildebrandt extractor
This is an immersion extractor,
since the solid is always
immersed in the solvent.
It consists mainly of three
elements placed in such a way
that they form a U.

Hildebrandt extractor

c. Bonotto Extractor
This extractor consists of a
vertical column divided into
compartments by horizontal
plates.
Each plate has an opening
placed alternately on two
consecutive plaes.

d. Rotocel extractor

Other types of extractor

Other types of extractor

Vertical Immersion Column
Extractor
This extractor consists of a
vertical column in which the solid
is fed into the top.
Conical screw axle that impels the
solid material in an ascending and
descending movement.

Soxhlet Extractor
This apparatus is usually
employed in laboratory
experiments although it is
used in low capacity
facilities.

Other types of Extractor

The most important method of

leaching is the continuous
countercurrent method suing
stages.
The solid is not moved physically
from stage to stage. The liquids is
being moved from stage to stage

EQUILIBRIUM
Equilibrium is attained when the
solute is completely dissolved and the
concentration of the solution so formed
is uniform.
The equilibrium relationship is
simply xe = y.

OPERATING LINE
Total Solution

Solute

OPERATING LINE
Operating line

Constant and Variable

Underflow

Two cases are to be considered.

If the density and viscosity of the

solution change considerably with
solute concentration, the solids
from the lower-numbered stages
may retain more liquid than those
from the higher-numbered stages.
.

Constant and Variable

Underflow

As shown in Eq. 23.3, the slope

of the operating line varies from
unit to unit.
If the mass of solution retained
by the solid is independent of
concentration, then Ln is
constant and the operating line
is straight. called as constant
solution underflow.

Constant and Variable

Underflow
If the underflow is constant, so
is the overflow.
Constant underflow and
variable underflow are given
separate consideration

NUMBER OF IDEAL STAGES

FOR CONSTANT UNDERFLOW
Use McCabe Thiele Method if
the operating line is straight
In leaching, the operating line
is always straight

NUMBER OF IDEAL STAGES

FOR VARIABLE UNDERFLOW
When the underflow and overflow
vary from stage to stage, a
modification of the McCabe
Thiele graphical method may be
used for calculation.
The terminal point on the
operating line are determined
using material balances

Sample Calculations
Example L4: Use the McCabe- Thiele method to calculate the number of ideal
stages for the leaching system in Example L3

Sample Calculations