Schippers Axel, Hedrich Sabrina, Vasters Jürgen, Drobe Malte, Sand Wolfgang, Willscher Sabine
Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR), Hannover, Germany,
Adv Biochem Eng Biotechnol. 2014;141:1-47. doi: 10.1007/10_2013_216.
Biomining is an increasingly applied biotechnological procedure for processing of ores in the mining industry (biohydrometallurgy). Nowadays the production of copper from low-grade ores is the most important industrial application and a significant part of world copper production already originates from heap or dump/stockpile bioleaching. Conceptual differences exist between the industrial processes of bioleaching and biooxidation. Bioleaching is a conversion of an insoluble valuable metal into a soluble form by means of microorganisms. In biooxidation, on the other hand, gold is predominantly unlocked from refractory ores in large-scale stirred-tank biooxidation arrangements for further processing steps. In addition to copper and gold production, biomining is also used to produce cobalt, nickel, zinc, and uranium. Up to now, biomining has merely been used as a procedure in the processing of sulfide ores and uranium ore, but laboratory and pilot procedures already exist for the processing of silicate and oxide ores (e.g., laterites), for leaching of processing residues or mine waste dumps (mine tailings), as well as for the extraction of metals from industrial residues and waste (recycling). This chapter estimates the world production of copper, gold, and other metals by means of biomining and chemical leaching (bio-/hydrometallurgy) compared with metal production by pyrometallurgical procedures, and describes new developments in biomining. In addition, an overview is given about metal sulfide oxidizing microorganisms, fundamentals of biomining including bioleaching mechanisms and interface processes, as well as anaerobic bioleaching and bioleaching with heterotrophic microorganisms.
生物采矿是采矿业中一种应用日益广泛的生物技术工艺（生物湿法冶金）。如今，从低品位矿石中生产铜是其最重要的工业应用，世界铜产量的很大一部分已源自堆浸或废石堆/矿堆生物浸出。生物浸出和生物氧化的工业过程存在概念上的差异。生物浸出是通过微生物将不溶性的有价金属转化为可溶形式。另一方面，在生物氧化中，金主要是在大规模搅拌槽生物氧化装置中从难处理矿石中释放出来，以便进行进一步的加工步骤。除了生产铜和金之外，生物采矿还用于生产钴、镍、锌和铀。到目前为止，生物采矿仅被用作硫化矿和铀矿加工的一种工艺，但已经有针对硅酸盐和氧化物矿石（如红土矿）加工、处理残渣或矿山废石堆（尾矿）浸出以及从工业残渣和废物中提取金属（回收利用）的实验室和中试工艺。本章通过生物采矿和化学浸出（生物/湿法冶金）与火法冶金工艺生产金属的情况对比，估算了世界铜、金和其他金属的产量，并描述了生物采矿的新发展。此外，还概述了金属硫化物氧化微生物、生物采矿的基本原理，包括生物浸出机制和界面过程，以及厌氧生物浸出和异养微生物生物浸出。
