Patent ID: 8003064

Claim:
A controlled copper leach and recovery process comprising: subjecting a metal-bearing material to a reactive process to liberate at least one metal value from said metal-bearing material; obtaining a product slurry from said reactive process, wherein at least two metal values are present in said product slurry; producing a high grade pregnant leach solution and a low grade pregnant leach solution by subjecting said product slurry to a solid-liquid separation process; providing said high grade pregnant leach solution to a solution extraction plant comprising at least two solution extractors and at least two stripping units; producing a high grade raffinate and a metal-loaded solution by contacting said high grade pregnant leach solution with a partially loaded organic solution in said solution extraction plant; providing said low grade pregnant leach solution to said solution extraction plant, wherein said low grade pregnant leach solution comprises a lower metal concentration than said high grade pregnant leach solution; and producing a low grade raffinate and said partially loaded organic solution by contacting said low grade pregnant leach solution with a barren organic flow for extracting said at least one metal value.