Patent ID: 9573810
Date: 2017-02-21
CPC Classifications: B01D,B01J,C01B,C01F

Claim:
1. A method or process for the removal of one or more cationic metal minor element (ME) components, a mixture of minor element components, and/or a cationic metal impurity or contaminant, from a wet-process phosphoric acid comprising use of a continuous ion exchange system, comprising: (a) providing a wet-process phosphoric acid comprising a pretreated phosphoric acid solution, or a pretreated solution comprising a phosphoric acid, or a pretreated phos-acid feedstock, comprising high levels of one or more minor cationic element (ME) components, or a mixture of minor cationic element components, and the pretreatment comprises reducing the amount of suspended solids content in an untreated wet-process phosphoric acid solution; (b) providing a continuous ion exchange system comprising a strong cationic exchange resin or equivalent material, wherein the strong cationic resin or equivalent material is in the H+form (c) providing a strong acid regeneration solution comprising a strong acid; (d) applying the solution comprising a phosphoric acid or the phosphoric acid solution or the phos-acid feedstock of (a) to the strong cation exchange resin or equivalent material under conditions such that substantially most of the cationic metal impurities, contaminants, or minor element (ME) components, remain on the cationic exchange resin, and an effluent acid solution is produced that has substantially lowered amounts of cationic metal impurities, contaminants, or minor element (ME) components, and substantially most of the cationic metal impurities, contaminants, or minor element (ME) components remain bound to the strong cation exchange resin or equivalent material; and (e) removing the cationic metal impurities, contaminants, or minor element (ME) components, or eluting the cationic metal impurities, contaminants, or minor element (ME) components, from the strong cationic exchange resin or equivalent material using the strong acid regeneration solution to produce a cationic metal impurity-, contaminant-and/or minor element-containing effluent acid solution comprising substantially most of the cationic metal impurities, contaminants, or minor element (ME) components as an eluate, further comprising treating the cationic metal impurity-, contaminant-and/or minor element-containing effluent acid solution with a ground phosphate rock or equivalent, to generate: an acid solution comprising a water soluble phosphate, wherein the phosphate is derived from the ground phosphate rock or equivalent, and a slow release phosphate material from the excess ground phosphate rock in a slurry form comprising the metallic impurities with the phosphate material.