# Combined Process of Chlorination Roasting and Acid Leaching of Lead and Silver from Lead Cake

## TL;DR

A new two-step process effectively recovers lead and silver from industrial waste, making it environmentally safe.

## Contribution

A combined chlorination roasting and acid leaching method is proposed for efficient Pb and Ag recovery from lead cake.

## Key findings

- Roasting at 550 °C with a 1:3 lead cake-to-NaCl ratio achieved 98.67% Pb and 98.09% Ag recovery.
- The residue met EU inert waste criteria after the optimized process.
- PbSO4 was converted to soluble chlorides, while ZnFe2O4 and Fe2O3 remained in the residue.

## Abstract

This study evaluates an integrated approach for recovering lead and silver from lead cake through chlorination roasting followed by acid leaching. The lead cake originates from sulfuric acid leaching of zinc ferrite residues obtained during the hydrometallurgical processing of zinc calcine. The effects of roasting temperature, lead cake-to-NaCl mass ratio, and roasting duration on metal recovery were systematically examined to determine optimal process conditions. Based on the experimental results, roasting at 550 °C for 1.5 h with a lead cake-to-NaCl mass ratio of 1:3, followed by leaching in 1 M HCl, was selected as a representative and sufficiently effective condition for the combined process. Under these conditions, nearly complete dissolution of Pb and Ag was achieved, reducing their contents in the final solid residue to 0.90% and 0.0027%, respectively. Compared to direct chloride leaching, the combined process provided higher extraction efficiencies (Pb 98.67%, Ag 98.09%) and a lower final residue mass (34% vs. 45%). The roasting step enables the solid-state conversion of PbSO4 into highly soluble chloride phases (PbCl2 and Pb(OH)Cl), while ZnFe2O4, Fe2O3 and SiO2 remain stable and form the inert matrix of the residue. Acid leaching at a lower solid-to-liquid ratio (1:10) ensures near-complete dissolution of Pb and Ag, whereas aqueous leaching at a high ratio (1:100) results in incomplete Pb removal. The compliance leaching test (EN 12457-2) confirmed that the residue produced after the optimized two-step treatment meets the EU criteria for inert waste. Overall, the proposed combined process enhances Pb and Ag recovery, minimizes environmental risk, and offers a technically robust and sustainable route for treating lead-containing industrial residues.