Enhanced leaching of copper sulfide leach dumps: application at Cananea, Mexico.

摘要

Mexicana de Cananea, S.A. de C.V. is a majro copper producer mining a large deposit of the disseminated porphyry type considered one of the largest copper resources of the world with 2.7 billion tons of 0.60percent copper for the mill plus 4.1 billion tons of averaging 0.26percent copper for leaching. Mining of low grade sulfide leach ore, has been an important part of the overall production of the open pit mine which started in 1944. Before this time all the mining in Cananea was by underground methods.