# Technological Aspects of Sintering Low-Quality Wolframite Concentrate with Potassium Carbonate
## 4 Conclusions  
1. The loss of quality of wolframite concentrates determines the need to improve their processing method that ensures maximum conversion of tungsten into water-soluble wolframate and a reduction in water-soluble impurities. When processing low-quality raw materials, the expediency of using potassium carbonate is shown.  
2. The TDM method was employed to evaluate the reagent impact on the indicators of primary stripping of low-quality wolframite concentrate. In comparison with the basic reagent (Na\({}_{2}\)CO\({}_{3}\)), the use of K\({}_{2}\)CO\({}_{3}\) has been observed to result in the reduction in a proportion of the formed silicates (to 0.1%), which has the effect of significantly enhancing the hydrometallurgical processing of bakes by eliminating the necessity for the operation of clearing from silicon. Furthermore, the formation of refractory compounds (K\({}_{2}\)WO\({}_{4}\), K\({}_{2}\)MoO\({}_{4}\)) is indicated, which prevents melting and skull formation in the industrial unit and eliminates the necessity to incorporate recyclable materials into the initial charge.  
3. The optimal parameters for the sintering process were determined through the application of the probabilistic-deterministic planning methodology in laboratory experiments. The use of K\({}_{2}\)CO\({}_{3}\) was observed to offer a distinct advantage. The highest tungsten extraction rates (exceeding 95%) were achieved when the K\({}_{2}\)CO\({}_{3}\) consumption was within the range of 105-110% of the stoichiometrically necessary amount for the formation of K\({}_{2}\)WO\({}_{4}\), K\({}_{2}\)MoO\({}_{4}\), and K\({}_{2}\)SiO\({}_{3}\) at temperatures between 1073-1173K and sintering durations of 100-120 min. To achieve comparable recovery rates when utilizing Na\({}_{2}\)CO\({}_{3}\), an excess of the reagent in the quantity of 130-140% of the stoichiometrically necessary for the formation of Na\({}_{2}\)WO\({}_{4}\) and Na\({}_{2}\)MoO\({}_{4}\), and Na\({}_{2}\)SO\({}_{4}\) is not a prerequisite.  
4. The feasibility of sintering tungsten concentrate cinders with K\({}_{2}\)CO\({}_{3}\) without the incorporation of recycled materials has been demonstrated at an industrial scale through experimental trials. The sintering of oxidized concentrate with K\({}_{2}\)CO\({}_{3}\) at 1073 K, with a quantity of 110% of the stoichiometrically necessary for the formation of K\({}_{2}\)WO\({}_{4}\), K\({}_{2}\)SO\({}_{4}\), and K\({}_{2}\)MoO\({}_{4}\), results in a degree of transition of tungsten into water-soluble tungstate of 97.5%. Furthermore, this process excludes the transfer of silicon in solution.  
Conceptualization, K.V.P.; methodology, K.V.P. and A.I.K.; data curation, L.I.G.; investigation, L.I.G.; supervision, G.Y.V.; writing--original draft preparation, G.Y.V.; writing--review and editing, G.Y.V. and A.I.K.; resources, G.Y.V. and A.I.K.; visualization, L.I.G.; validation, K.V.P. and L.I.G.; project administration, K.V.P. and A.I.K.; funding acquisition, G.Y.V. and A.I.K. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.  
This project was supported by the State Assignment of the Institute of Metallurgy of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences within the Program of Fundamental Research of State Academies (No. 122020100404-2) using the equipment of the Ural-M Collective User Center. Data Availability Statement: Data is contained within the article.  
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.