Overview
We are a professional manufacturer specializing in copper electrorefining complete plants, custom electrolytic cells, electrolyte purification systems, and integrated anode slime precious metal recovery solutions. Our capacity ranges from lab-scale pilot lines up to large-scale 200,000 TPA copper cathode refinery turnkey projects.
Copper electrorefining is the key metallurgical process to upgrade fire-refined blister copper into high-purity copper cathodes. When DC current passes through copper anodes and pure copper starter sheets immersed in sulfuric acid-copper sulfate electrolyte, copper dissolves anodically and deposits onto cathodes, producing LME Grade A copper cathode with purity up to 99.9941%. Noble metals including gold, silver, platinum group metals, selenium and tellurium do not dissolve during electrolysis and settle at the cell bottom as anode slime, which is a high-value byproduct. Our matched anode slime processing equipment efficiently recovers Au, Ag, Pt, Pd, Se and Te, significantly improving overall project revenue.
Process Principle
The electrolyte is an aqueous solution of copper sulfate and sulfuric acid. Blister copper serves as the anode while pure copper starter sheets act as cathodes. Under direct current:
- Copper at the anode oxidizes and dissolves into electrolyte as Cu²⁺.
- Precious metals with more positive potential remain undissolved, drop off and form anode slime.
- Cupric ions reduce and deposit on cathodes to form high-purity copper.
- Impurities such as nickel, iron, arsenic, antimony and bismuth accumulate in electrolyte and are removed by purification units to keep stable bath conditions.
Typical Operating Parameters (Reference for 200,000 TPA Refinery)
- Current density: 320 A/m²
- Cell voltage: 0.3 V
- Electrolyte temperature: 60 ℃
- Electrolyte circulation rate: 30 L/min per cell
- Center-to-center distance of same poles: 110 mm
- Current efficiency: ≥96%
- Cathode copper purity: 99.9941% (LME Grade A standard)
Main Equipment Scope
✅ Reinforced concrete electrolytic cells lined with MFE-2 vinyl ester FRP, acid-resistant and fully insulated
✅ Full copper busbar system: tank-side busbars, inter-cell connectors and cathode hanger bars
✅ Starter sheet preparation system with mother plate cells
✅ Electrolyte circulation, heating and filtration skids
✅ Electrolyte purification & decopperization / denickelization cells for As, Sb, Bi, Ni removal
✅ Anode slime collection, filter press and conveying equipment
✅ Matching precious metal recovery line: leaching, separation and refining for Au, Ag, PGM, Se, Te extraction
✅ Acid mist scrubber system, acidic wastewater treatment plant and full workshop anti-corrosion engineering
Key Advantages
- Customizable Capacity: Full engineering service for refineries from several thousand tons up to 200,000 tons per year, single-span or double-span workshop layout available.
- High Current Density Operation: Stable operation under 320 A/m². Periodic reverse current technology optional to mitigate anode passivation and boost output.
- Precious Metal Co-recovery for Higher Profit: Beyond copper cathode production, our anode slime recovery system converts waste slime into high-value precious metals and maximizes resource utilization.
- Energy Saving Design: Optimized copper busbar layout reduces contact voltage drop. Thermal balance design and cell insulation cut steam and power consumption per ton copper.
- Strict Impurity Control: Electrolyte purification system maintains low concentration of Ni, As, Sb, Bi and Fe to guarantee consistent cathode quality.
- Eco-friendly & Durable: FRP scrubbers capture acid mist; lime neutralization and heavy metal recovery for wastewater. Complete anti-corrosion construction ensures long service life and minimal leakage risk.
- Full Technical Package: Metallurgical mass balance, heat balance calculation, workshop layout, equipment drawings, site supervision, installation commissioning and operator training.
Applications
- New copper electrorefinery construction
- Blister copper refining projects
- Secondary scrap copper electrolytic purification
- Anode slime precious metal recovery retrofit & capacity expansion
- Custom lab / pilot electrolytic cell lines
Contact Us
Send your target annual capacity for a customized technical proposal, equipment quotation and plant layout design.
