Patent ID: 11858824
Assignee: ARAFURA RESOURCES LIMITED
Field: Materials, metallurgy (Chemistry)
Classification: CPC C  Y | IPC C

Claim 21:
22. A method of processing the rare earth sulphate precipitate produced by the method of claim 1, further including washing and drying the rare earth sulphate precipitate, leaching in water the washed and dried rare earth sulphate precipitate to dissolve soluble rare earth sulphate and form a leach solution rich in rare earth sulphate and a leach residue containing impurities in the form of insoluble phosphates, precipitation of impurities from the rare earth sulphate leach solution to form a purified rare earth sulphate solution and a purification residue, precipitation of the rare earths in the purified rare earth sulphate solution as rare earth hydroxide, and selectively leaching the rare earth hydroxide precipitate to form a rare earth chloride solution and a residue.