A Text-book of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines Part 59

In the absence of ferric salts, phosphates and a.r.s.enates count as sulphur.

In two series of experiments for determining the effect of varying amounts of sulphur in the form of ferrous sulphate, we obtained the following results:--In the first series the a.s.say solution was prepared in the manner we have described for _Pyrites_; and in the second series, by fusion with nitre.

Sulphur added 0.050 gram 0.100 gram 0.200 gram "Baric chloride" required (1) 5.0 c.c. 10.0 c.c. 20.0 c.c.

" " (2) 4.7 " 10.0 " 20.0 "

Sulphur added 0.500 gram 1.000 gram "Baric chloride" required (1) 50.0 c.c. 100.0 c.c.

" " (2) 50.0 " 100.0 "

More than 5 grams of nitre must not be used in an a.s.say; and, since the requisite amount of nitre considerably exceeds that sufficient to oxidise the sulphur, not more than 0.5 gram of unoxidised sulphur should be present in the portion of the sample weighed up for determination.

When the amount of sulphur present is not known within reasonable limits, the test portions may be tried with a drop of baric chloride solution instead of sulphuric acid, so that the diminishing quant.i.ty of precipitate may give warning of an approach to the finishing point.

~Determination of Sulphur in Blende.~--Weigh up 1 gram of dried and powdered blende, and mix and fuse with 5 grams of nitre in the manner described. Place the dish and its contents in the t.i.trating-dish, extract with water, add 10 grams of sodium acetate and 10 c.c. of acetic acid, remove and wash the platinum-dish, and dilute to 500 c.c.; boil and t.i.trate. In the example, duplicate determinations required (a) 32.0 c.c., (b) 32.25 c.c., giving an average of 32.1 per cent. of sulphur.

~Determination of Sulphur in Chalcopyrite~ (Yellow Copper Ore).--Take 1 gram of the finely-powdered sample, and 5 grams of nitre. Sprinkle a little of the nitre in a small Wedgwood mortar, place the ore on it, and cover with 2 or 3 grams more of the nitre. Rub up together, and transfer to a small porcelain dish; clean out the mortar with the rest of the nitre, and add to the contents of the dish. Cover with a piece of platinum foil, and heat gently with a Bunsen burner till the nitre melts and the stuff shows signs of deflagrating; remove the heat, and allow the action to go on by itself for a minute or so, then heat over the Bunsen burner for 10 minutes. Cool; transfer the whole to the t.i.trating-dish; boil with 500 c.c. of water; remove the small dish and foil; add sodic acetate and acetic acid, and t.i.trate.

For example, 1 gram required 34.5 c.c. of "barium chloride" (standard = 1.005 gram S), which is equivalent to 34.7 per cent. sulphur. The theoretical percentage is 34.8.

~Determination of Sulphur in Chalcocite~ (Grey Copper Ore).--Proceed as in the last experiment but, since the action with nitre is more moderate, no special precautions need be taken on heating. A platinum dish may be used.

An example which was heated for 30 minutes required 20.5 c.c. of the barium chloride solution. This is equivalent to 20.6 per cent. of sulphur. The theoretical yield is 20.2 per cent.

~Determination of Sulphur in Pyrites.~--Take 1 gram of the finely-powdered sample, cover with 10 c.c. of nitric acid, and, when action has ceased, evaporate to a small bulk. Add 3 or 4 c.c. of hydrochloric acid, and again evaporate to a paste. Take up with 1 or 2 c.c. of dilute hydrochloric acid, dilute with water, transfer to a t.i.trating-dish, add 10 grams of sodic acetate and 5 c.c. of acetic acid, and dilute with water to 500 c.c. Boil and t.i.trate.

An example with 1 gram of a pure crystallized pyrites required 52.7 c.c.

of the barium chloride solution, which is equivalent to 53.0 per cent.

of sulphur. Theory requires 53.3 per cent. of sulphur.

~Determination of Sulphur in Mispickel.~--Take 1 gram of the powdered ore and evaporate with 10 c.c. of nitric acid, and take up with 3 or 4 c.c. of hydrochloric acid. If any globules of sulphur remain, again evaporate with nitric acid. Dilute, and transfer to the t.i.trating-dish.

Add 10 grams of sodic acetate, dilute with water, boil, and t.i.trate. The mispickel carries (according to theory) exactly sufficient iron to precipitate the a.r.s.enic as ferric a.r.s.enate in an acetic acid solution, so no more iron need be added. The ferric a.r.s.enate will separate out as a yellowish-white flocculent precipitate.

An example required, in duplicate experiment, 18.5 c.c. and 18.7 c.c. of barium chloride, equivalent to 18.7 per cent. of sulphur. The formula, FeS_{2}.FeAs_{2}, requires 19.6 percent., but the sulphur generally varies considerably from this amount.

~Determination of Sulphur in Burnt Ores.~--Take 5 grams of the dried and powdered ore, and rub up with 4 grams of nitre; transfer to the platinum-dish; clean out the mortar with another gram of nitre, and add this as a cover. Heat, and extract with water as before; add the sodium acetate and acetic acid; and t.i.trate. Burnt ores carry from 2.5 to 5 per cent. of sulphur. A series of four determinations gave:--

"Baric Chloride" Required. Percentage of Sulphur. Gravimetric Results.

12.6 c.c. 2.52 % 2.45 % 29.9 " 5.98 " 5.84 "

18.1 " 3.62 " 3.53 "

22.0 " 4.40 " 4.43 "

For ores carrying less than 1 per cent. of sulphur, take 10 grams for the a.s.say.

~Determination of Sulphuric Oxide (SO_{3}) in Sulphates.~--When the sulphur exists in the sample received by the a.s.sayer in an oxidised state as sulphate, it is usual to report it in terms of sulphuric oxide (SO_{3}). In this case, the metal must also be reported as oxide. For example, an a.n.a.lysis of copper sulphate would be thus reported:--

Oxide of copper (CuO) 31.8 % Sulphuric oxide (SO_{3}) 32.1 "

Water 36.1 "

----- 100.0

The percentage of sulphur multiplied by 2.5 gives the percentage of sulphuric oxide. Thus a sample of copper sulphate containing 12.85 per cent. of sulphur will contain 12.85 2.5 or 32.12 per cent. of sulphuric oxide.

In minerals and metallurgical products, it is common to find the sulphur in both conditions--_i.e._, as sulphate and sulphide. Generally in these the percentage of sulphur only is wanted; but this will depend entirely on commercial requirements, and not on the fancy of the a.s.sayer.

Soluble sulphates are determined separately by extracting with small quant.i.ties of cold water, so as to avoid the separation of basic sulphates, or, if the sulphides present are not at the same time attacked, by dilute hydrochloric acid. Lead sulphate may be extracted by boiling with ammonic acetate; whilst barium, strontium, and, perhaps, calcium sulphate, will be mainly found in the residue insoluble in acids.

Weigh up from 2 to 5 grams of the material according to the amount of sulphur judged to be present, and dissolve them in the t.i.trating-dish with 1 c.c. of hydrochloric acid and 50 c.c. of water. Add 10 grams of sodic acetate, and 10 c.c. of acetic acid; dilute, boil, and t.i.trate. In the case of ferric salts, half the quant.i.ty of acetic acid will be better, as then the ferric iron will be precipitated, and a colourless solution will be left, in which the end reaction is more readily distinguished.

Determined in this way, 5 gram samples of the following salts gave the results indicated below:--

"Barium Chloride"

Salt. Required. Sulphuric Oxide.

Copper sulphate 64.25 c.c. 32.12 % Magnesium sulphate 65.25 " 32.62 "

Zinc sulphate 56.25 " 28.12 "

Ferrous sulphate 58.25 " 29.12 "

Sodium sulphate 51.25 " 25.60 "

~Determination of Sulphuric Oxide in Barytes~ (Heavy spar).--Fuse 2 grams of the powdered mineral with 5 grams of "fusion mixture" for five minutes; and, when cold, extract with water. Filter, acidulate the filtrate with an excess of 10 c.c. of acetic acid, dilute, boil, and t.i.trate. For example, a transparent crystallised sample required 27.0 c.c. of barium chloride, which is equivalent to 13.6 per cent. of sulphur, or 34.0 per cent. of sulphuric oxide. Theory requires 34.3 per cent. of the latter. Since both carbonate of soda and potash are liable to contain sulphates, a blank determination should be made on 5 grams of the "fusion mixture," and the amount found be deducted from that got in the a.s.say.

PRACTICAL EXERCISES.

1. The price of sulphur in an ore being 4-1/2d. per unit in the northern markets, what would be the price of a ton of ore containing 49 per cent. of sulphur? What would be the effect on the price of an error of 0.25 per cent. in the a.s.say?

2. Pyrites carries 50 per cent. of sulphur, and on calcining yields 70 per cent. of its weight of burnt ore. Supposing the burnt ore carries 3.5 per cent. of sulphur, what proportion of the sulphur will have been removed in the calcining?

3. How would blende compare with pyrites as a source of sulphur for sulphuric acid making?

4. How would you determine the percentage of sulphuric oxide in a sample of gypsum? What is sulphuric oxide, and what relation does it bear to sulphur?

5. A mineral contains 20.7 per cent. of water, 32.4 per cent. of lime, and 18.6 per cent. of sulphur. What is its probable composition? What experiment would you try to determine the accuracy of your conclusion?

SELENIUM

occurs in nature combined with copper, mercury, and lead, in certain rare minerals. In small quant.i.ties it is found in many ores. It is detected in solution by the red precipitate produced on boiling the acid solution with sodium sulphite. This reaction is used for its determination.

~Solution.~--The solution is effected by boiling with nitric acid or aqua regia, or by fusing with nitre. To separate the selenium, the solution is evaporated with an excess of hydrochloric acid and a little sodium or pota.s.sium chloride. This destroys any nitric acid that may be present, and reduces selenic acid (H_{2}SeO_{4}) to selenious (H_{2}SeO_{3}). The solution is diluted with water, and treated with a solution of sulphite of soda. It is warmed, and at last boiled. The selenium separates as a red precipitate, which (on boiling) becomes denser and black. It is collected on a weighed filter, washed with hot water, dried at 100 C., and weighed as pure selenium.

Selenium can be precipitated with sulphuretted hydrogen as a sulphide, which is readily soluble in ammonium sulphide. This sulphide may be oxidised with hydrochloric acid and chlorate of potash; and the selenium separated in the manner described.

TELLURIUM.

Tellurium occurs in nature, native, and in combination with gold, silver, bis.m.u.th and lead. It is sometimes met with in a.s.saying gold ores. It may be detected by the purple colour it imparts to strong sulphuric acid when dissolved in the cold, and by the black precipitate of metallic tellurium which its solutions yield on treatment with a reducing agent. Telluric acid is reduced to tellurous (with evolution of chlorine) on boiling with hydrochloric acid.

~Solution~ is effected by boiling with aqua regia, or by fusing with nitre and sodium carbonate.

~Separation.~--Tellurium closely resembles selenium in its reactions. It is separated and determined in the same way. Like it, it forms a sulphide soluble in ammonium sulphide. It is distinguished from selenium by the insolubility, in a solution of cyanide of pota.s.sium, of the metal precipitated by sodium sulphite; whereas selenium dissolves, forming a soluble pota.s.sic seleno-cyanide.[102]

For the determination, solution is effected by fusing with nitre and sodium carbonate, dissolving out the tellurate of potash with water, and boiling with hydrochloric acid. Tellurous compounds are formed, with evolution of chlorine; and the solution, on treating with a reducing agent (such as sulphurous acid or stannous chloride), yields metallic tellurium; which is washed, dried at 100 C., and weighed.