Comparison between electrowinning and hydrometallurgy

Principles:

Electrodeposition: Metal ions in the solution are reduced and deposited at the cathode through electrolysis. Hydrometallurgy: Chemical methods are used to extract metals from ores or slag, including ore crushing and grinding, leaching, extraction and separation, purification, crystallization and drying. Application scopes:

Electrodeposition: Commonly used for the extraction of metals such as copper by hydrometallurgy. Hydrometallurgy: Suitable for extracting various metal ores such as copper, lead, zinc, and nickel, and can also treat slag, wastewater, and perform metal recovery. Advantages:

Electrodeposition: Occupies an important position in the hydrometallurgical copper extraction industry and can directly affect the quality of cathode copper products, process energy consumption, and production efficiency. Hydrometallurgy: Energy-saving and emission reduction, carried out at lower temperatures, reduces energy consumption and gas emissions; reduces pollution, tailings, and exhaust gases are effectively treated; high resource recovery efficiency, which can improve resource utilization; strong adaptability, applicable to processing various metal ores and slag.