Resumen de Solvent Extraction of Copper: An Extractive Metallurgy Exercise for Undergraduate Teaching Laboratories
Iain A. Smellie, Ross S. Forgan, Claire Brodie, Jack S. Gavine, Leanne Harris, Daniel Houston, Andrew D. Holland, Rory P. McCaughan, Andrew J. Miller, Liam Wilson, Fiona M. Woodhall
A multidisciplinary experiment for advanced undergraduate students has been developed in the context of extractive metallurgy. The experiment serves as a model of an important modern industrial process that combines aspects of organic/inorganic synthesis and analysis. Students are tasked to prepare a salicylaldoxime ligand and samples of the corresponding copper and nickel complexes, before performing test extractions and UV–vis spectroscopic analysis. The oxime ligand demonstrates a clear preference for extraction of Cu2+ in the presence of Ni2+ from aqueous solution under the conditions described. It is also possible to demonstrate that the ligand can be recovered and reused. The experiment has successfully been employed in a final year project-based laboratory course involving small groups of students.
