Occurrence, distribution and fate of iodine during phosphate ore beneficiation process

Numerous beneficiation techniques, such as washing, grinding, flotation, digesting, and calcination, are used to concentrate the minerals found in phosphate rocks, which include apatite, carbonatites, and silicates. Significant iodine levels are often found in phosphate ore minerals, which have a distinctive geochemical occurrence. However, the exact occurrence and distribution of iodine in these minerals are not yet thoroughly understood. A study was carried out to investigate the iodine's distribution, occurrence modes (phases), and release rate in Moroccan phosphate as it undergoes the beneficiation process. The samples underwent a multi-analytical approach combining mineralogical and chemical characterization using ICP-MS, ICP-OES, XRD, elements titration, and Pearson correlation analysis for interelement relationships. Calcination, digestion, and Heavy liquid separation is used to study the fate of iodine. The analysis indicates that iodine is primarily found in fluorapatite, with local concentrations ranging from 35 to 130 ppm. The most enriched grains/zones are associated with fluorapatite, enriched in P2O5, F-. in addition, iodine is positively correlated with its main components, including P2O5, F-, SO3, Na2O, CaO, and REEs. The flotation and heavy liquid separation process used for calcite and silicate removal is acting as an iodine and P2O5 concentrator, given that 99 % of iodine occurs in the apatite phase. However, it has been demonstrated that iodine can be released during the digestion of phosphate rock. Where the initial iodine content is distributed among phosphoric acid, PG, and the gaseous phase, constituting 35 %, 25 %, and 40 %, respectively. Furthermore, the calcination of phosphate rock between 800–1000 °C shows that total iodine is released with gases in I2 form, leading to an increase in the concentration of iodine in the surrounding area. In this regard, an integrated pyrometallurgical process has been proposed for the valorization of iodine as silver iodide. This process involves trapping gaseous iodine in an alkaline solution, followed by precipitation, thereby contributing to the overarching objectives of the circular economy and environmental protection.