Influence of Copper and Arsenic on Gold Recovery in the Yalea Deposit, Western Mali

Abstract

Gold recovery process is well known. The following paper presents the problematic related to the influence of Copper and Arsenic on the recovery of gold in the Yalea deposit. Multielement tests (Au, Cu, As) carried out on 37 blocks made it possible to understand that there is a correlation between these elements. This correlation has been observed since the analysis of block models (the block model for Copper, block model for Arsenic and the block model for gold. These models have shown that the Yalea deposit areas with a high gold content correspond to areas of high copper content and arsenic. Those who made it clear that copper and Arsenic are tracing elements of Gold in the Yalea deposit. In this paper, the mineralurgical tests carried out on 28 blocks revealed that the copper and the arsenic content in the ore penalize the recovery of Gold (146 ppm for copper and 4710 ppm for Arsenic). The Yalea deposit was emplaced by several hydrothermal phases that reactivated the structures. These phases are responsible for the establishment of large quantities of copper sulphides. Copper and Arsenic are elements that have a considerable influence on the gold recovery in the Yalea deposit.