Below is quick description of the path. The beginning for all copper is to mine sulfide and oxide ores through digging or blasting and then crushing it to walnut-sized pieces. Grinding Crushed ore is ball or rod-milled in large, rotating, cylindrical machines until it becomes a powder usually containing less than 1 percent copper. Sulfide ores are moved to a concentrating stage, while oxide ores are routed to leaching tanks. Waste slag is removed.
Water is recycled.
Leaching Oxide ore and tailings are leached by a weak acid solution, producing a weak copper sulfate solution. The copper-laden solution is treated and transferred to an electrolytic process tank. When electrically charged, pure copper ions migrate directly from the solution to starter cathodes made form pure copper foil. Precious metals can be extracted from the solution. Recycled copper begins its journey to finding another use by being resmelted.