MXPA99005628A - Polymeric combinations used as copper and precious metal heap leaching agglomeration aids - Google Patents

Abstract

An improved method for extracting a precious metal from mineral fines by heap leaching with dilute sulfuric acid which comprises agglomerating the mineral fines prior to formation into a heap with an agglomerating agent composition comprising sequential addition of a first polymer and then a second polymer to the fines. Preferred first polymers are poly(acrylamide) and 70/30 mole percent poly(acrylamide/sodium acrylate), and preferred second polymers are poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride), 90/10 mole percent poly(acrylamide/diallyldimethylammonium chloride) and 99/1 mole percent poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride/vinyltrimethoxysilane).

Description

POLSMERICAL COMBINATIONS USED AS AN AUXILIARY OF AGLOMERATION IN LEACHING IN PILES OF POOR AND MET &T.T.q PRECIOUS FIELD OF THE INVENTION An improved method for extracting a precious metal from mineral fines by heap leaching with dilute sulfuric acid which comprises agglomerating the mineral fines prior to formation in a stack with a binder composition comprising the sequential addition of a first water-soluble polymer and then a second water-soluble polymer to the fines. The first preferred polymers are poly (acrylamide) and 70/30 mole percent poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate), and the second preferred polymers are poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride), 90/10 mole percent poly (acrylamide / diallyldimethylammonium chloride) and 99/1 mol percent poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride / vinyltrimethoxysilane).

ANTECEDENTS OF THE TJNVENCION Desirable metals (such as gold, silver, copper, aluminum, uranium and the like) are generally found as mineral constituents in ores that are presented in a manner REF .: 29791 natural. The most common method of separating the minerals before the desirable metal concentration of the remaining undesirable constituents, often referred to as the "gangue", is by chemical leaching of the ore where the ground or crushed ore is subjected to treatment with solutions Chemicals containing reagents capable of selectively solubilizing the desired metal constituents while leaving the gangue material intact. The leaching solution is then treated in recovery and refining operations to obtain the metal ores in a purified form. The actual leaching mechanism may involve a simple solution that becomes possible by administration of a suitable solvent or, more commonly, involves the dissolution made possible by a chemical reaction. The efficiency and rate of leaching depends on many factors, including the rate at which the leach solution is administered, the amount of metal in the ore and the conductivity of the ore to the leachate. Some ores are very permeable to leachate solutions; therefore, relatively large ore particles can be leached. However, many ores are rather waterproof; as a result the ore must be reduced to a small size before leached in order to increase the surface area of the ore and decrease the requirement for the leachate solution to penetrate deeply into the ore particles. Various methods have been developed for leaching metal ores that include the methods known as leachate by waste discharge, heap leaching, vat leaching, agitation leaching and more recently thin layer leaching. Due to its gross inefficiency, leaching of "waste discharge" has been used mainly in relation to copper ore or poor quarry waste.

The waste discharge leaching method consists of stacking non-crushed ore in large and deep stacks (for example 15 to 61 m (50-200 feet) deep) and percolate an acid and ferric sulphate leaching liquor through the stacks so that the copper sulfide dissolves. The main advantage of waste discharge leaching is its low cost, which makes this method commercially feasible for use with poor ores despite its inefficiency in recovering the metallic ores from the ore. However, the inefficiency of the waste discharge method is inherently unsuitable for use with richer ores. "Heap leaching" is a term used to describe a leaching process in which ores are placed in what is commonly referred to as a "flat support".

Generally, the flat support consists of waterproof clay, and the crushed ore that is to be leached and stacked on the flat support to a depth of between about 3.7 and about 9 m (12-30 feet). The ore is then leached by spraying a leaching solution on top of the ore in order to create a downward percolation of the leach solution. When leached by percolation, the size of the ore particles is very important. If the particles are too large, the leaching solution will not penetrate the interior of the particles, and therefore the leaching is incomplete. In addition, the use of large particles typically results in a rapid rate of percolation, whereby the leachate solution is caused to pass through the stack too quickly. On the other hand, if the particles are too small, although the ore will be effectively penetrated by the leaching solution, the rate of percolation may become too slow so that it is impractical. The solution for dealing with particles that are too large for effective leaching is simply to reduce them in size. Conversely, the smaller sized particles in gold oxide ores can be "agglomerated" for example by the addition of Portland cement in order to increase the rate of percolation through stacking. The use of Portland cement is only for the treatment of gold oxide ores. A serious problem that has invaded the conventional heap leach process is the difficulty of obtaining a uniform leaching through the stack. Typically, the top layer of the ore in such a stack is over leached or leached excessively while the lower layer of the ore is inadequately leached. Another problem when using a heap leach process is the difficulty in leaching the sides of the stack, especially when the stack consists of ores with low permeabilities of fine ores that are easily eroded. When leaching these types of ores, there is a tendency for the leachate solution to fall down the sides of the stack instead of percolate through the stack. In a heap leach process, although initially the leaching solution effluent is relatively rich in metal ores, it often becomes very weak as the leaching continues over a period of weeks or months. This is particularly significant when considering that piles of the type described above are typically leached for periods between one month and one year. Recovery facilities should be constructed so that they are capable of handling the relatively rich solutions initially obtained, even if this means that the recovery facilities are used for a later period of time when the leaching solutions become less concentrated with metallic minerals. Copper is extracted from various materials such as malachite, azurite, chrysocolla and cuprite by heap leaching with diluted solutions of sulfuric acid. In this method of heap leaching, the copper ores or copper ores are crushed to obtain particles of approximately 2.5 cm (1 inch) in diameter, agglomerated by sprinkling with dilute aqueous solution of sulfuric acid, which agglomerates the particles with particles that are then stacked and stratified to a depth varying between approximately 3-6 m (10-20 feet). Dilute sulfuric acid solutions which are used to agglomerate the crushed ore normally contain between 4.5-27 kg (10-60 pounds) of concentrated sulfuric acid per ton of ore dissolved in water. After the stacking has been formed, dilute sulfuric acid containing from about 10 grams of sulfuric acid per liter of solution to about 100 grams of sulfuric acid per liter of solution is subsequently sprayed and allowed to percolate down through the the stacked pile of ore? - copper ore. During this percolation of the extract solution, the copper is dissolved from the ore bodies by extracting the copper ores from it and the extracted solution containing these copper ores is separated at the bottom of the stack to be further processed by such techniques. as extraction by solvents, electroextraction and the like. Additional descriptions of copper ore leach heap leaching and references to the available teaching of this heap leach technique can be obtained in the following two articles: "Technical Innovations Spur Esurgence of Copper Solution Mining", J. B. Hiskey, Mining Engineering, pages 1036-1039, November 1986 and "Evaluation of Copper Dump and Heap Leaching Situations", J. M. Keane and C.

K. Chase, Mining Engineering, pages 197-200, March 1987. The main problem observed in the heap leaching of these copper ore and copper ores is the segregation of fine ore in the accumulation of the stack and migration of these mineral fines during the percolation of extraction solutions with sulfuric acid which results in channeling of the leachate solution and / or stacking inhibition. These processes of inhibition and channeling can cause areas of the stack to dry and not expose the leachate solutions and therefore decrease the recovery performance of copper and overextraction or excessive extraction of some undesirable mineral components.

There are several examples of polymeric anionic agglomeration aids for the recovery of precious metals. Useful anionic polymers which are typically copolymers of acrylamide and acrylic acid have been described in U.S. Patent Nos. 4,898,611; 5,077,022; 5,100,631; 5,186,915 and 5,211,920. Anionic co-or ter-polymers made from 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid are described in U.S. Patent Nos. 4,342,653; 4,786,318 and 4,875,935. A combination of polyacrylamide and a copolymer of acrylamide with 2-acrylamide or 2-methylpropanesulfonic acid as a flocculating agent is described in U.S. Patent No. 4,587,108. Cationic binder agents including acrylamide graft copolymers and diallyldimethylammonium chloride have been described in U.S. Patent No. 5,512,636. Various other cationic polymers have been described as agglomerating agents in U.S. Patent Nos. 4,898,611 and 5,100,631. However, none of these references disclose a combination of cationic and anionic polymers to aid in the agglomeration process as described herein. Such a combination demonstrates a remarkable improvement in efficiency, which will be illustrated in the following examples.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION An improved method for extracting a precious metal from mineral fines by heap leaching with dilute sulfuric acid which comprises agglomerating mineral fines prior to formation in a stack with a binder composition comprising the sequential addition of a first polymer soluble in water and after a second polymer soluble in water to the fines. The first preferred polymers are poly (acrylamide) and 70/30 mole percent poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate), and the second preferred polymers are poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride), 90/10 mole percent poly (acrylamide / diallyldimethylammonium chloride) and 99/1 mole percent poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride / vinyltrimethoxysilane).

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The invention is used in a process for leaching by percolation of minerals from a ore having ore wherein the ore first agglomerates with an agglomerating agent, is formed into a stack and then subjected to leaching by percolation of a solution of leaching through the piling which extracts the minerals from the agglomerated ore for subsequent recovery, the improvement resides in that the agglomerating agent comprises the sequential addition of a water-soluble first polymer and then a second water-soluble polymer to the ore. For the practice of any aspect of this invention, the second polymer can be formed from the polymerization of (meth) acrylamide monomers with monomers that are selected from the group consisting of 2-acryloyloxyethyltrimethylammonium chloride, 3-methacrylamidochloride propyltrimethylammonium, 2-methacryloyloxyethyltrimethylammonium chloride, vinyl acetate, diallyldimethylammonium chloride, vinylpyrrolidinone, acrylonitrile, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of benzyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate sulfate, salt quaternary of cetyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of cetyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of benzyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate sulfate and combination of them. Further, for the practice of any aspect of this invention, the first polymer can be formed from the polymerization of (meth) acrylic acid monomers, with monomers selected from the group consisting of acrylonitrile, acrylic acid and salts thereof, methacrylamide and salts thereof, N-alkyl acrylamide of L-C10 / N, N-dialkylacrylamide of CLC, N-alkylmethacrylamide of CI-LO / N, N-dialkyl methacrylamide of C? -C10, N-arylacrylamide, N, N-diarylacrylamide, N-arylmethacrylamide, N, N-diarylmethacrylamide, N-arylalkyl acrylamide, N, N-diallylalkylacrylamide, N-arylalkylmethacrylamide, N, N-diarylalkylmethacrylamide, maleic anhydride, itaconic acid, vinylsulfonic acid, styrenesulfonic acid, sodium acrylamido methylpropanesulfonic acid, maleic acid and combinations thereof. In any aspect of this invention, the second polymer can be a homopolymer formed of monomers that are selected from the group consisting of: quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of benzylated dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of dimethylaminoethylacrylate sulfate of methyl, quaternary salt of cetyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of cetyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of benzylated dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, and quaternary salt of dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate sulphate . For any aspect of this invention, the first polymer can be a poly (acrylamide). For any aspect of this invention, the second polymer can be selected from the group consisting of a polymeric reaction product of ethylene chloride and ammonia including the methyl-associated chloride and the quaternary amine salts of dimethyl sulfate; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin and dimethylamine; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin, dimethylamine and ethylenediamine which includes methyl-associated chloride or quaternary amine salts of methyl sulfate; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin, dimethylamine and ammonia including the associated methyl chloride or the quaternary amine salts of methyl sulfate; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin, dimethylamine hexamethylenediamine including the associated methyl chloride or the quaternary amine salts of methyl sulfate; polymers of guanidine-formaldehyde condensation; condensation polymers of cyanoguanidine-formaldehyde; urea-formaldehyde condensation polymers and polyethyleneimines. Further, for the practice of any aspect of this invention, the binder can be a second polymer which is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride) and a first polymer which is poly (acrylamide, sodium acrylate); or a second polymer which is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride / vinyltrimethoxysilane) and a first polymer which is poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate); or a second polymer which is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride) and a first polymer which is poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate); or a first polymer which is poly (acrylamide) and a second polymer which is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride / acrylamide). For practicing any aspect of this invention, the amount of binding agent may be in the range of about 23 g to about 0.45 kg (0.05-1.0 pounds) per ton based on the weight of the ore; or preferably, the amount of binding agent can be in the range of from about 45 g to about 136 g (0.1-0.3 pounds) per ton based on the weight of the ore; Ore can be selected from the group consisting of gold, silver and copper ores. If the ore is a gold ore, the binding agent can be combined with at least 0.45 kg to 13.6 kg (1-30 pounds) per ton of cement based on the weight of the ore for alkaline cyanide leaching. . In addition, the range of proportions for flocculant relative to coagulant can be considered, but not limited to, from about 50:50 to about 95: 5. Another aspect of the invention is in a process for leaching by percolation of copper from a copper-bearing ore wherein the ore first agglomerates with an agglomerating agent, formed in a stack and then leached by percolation from a solution of leaching through the stack which extracts the copper from the agglomerated ore for subsequent recovery, the improvement in which the agglomerating agent comprises a sequential addition of a first water-soluble polymer and then a second water-soluble polymer to the ore. The order of addition is important. In most cases, the first polymer must be added first, followed by the second polymer. However, under certain circumstances, it may be beneficial to add the second water-soluble polymer designated before the addition of the first water-soluble polymer to the ore. The term (meth) acrylic acid, as used herein, means methacrylic acid or acrylic acid, and it means to also encompass salts thereof such as sodium acrylate. The polymers are applied from dilute solutions of sulfuric acid or from water. The concentration of polymers in dilute solution can vary between 0.001 to 5% by weight and preferably from 0.03 to 0.2%. The term dilute sulfuric acid solution, as used herein and in the claims, means including solutions of sulfuric acid having a concentration between 5-100 g / 1 of sulfuric acid. In most cases, the acid concentration will be approximately 20 g / 1. One method of agglomeration is to spray the solution containing the polymers on the ore in a rotating agglomeration drum or a granulation disk in a manner that uniform distribution is obtained over the ore. Drum placement on the addition of liquid will agglomerate the fines that bind to larger particles or the fines will bond together and grow to larger porous particles. Sulfuric acid can be sprayed on the ore either before or after agglomeration. A second method of agglomeration is to spray the solution containing the polymers on the ore at conveyor belt transfer points to obtain uniform distribution over the ore. The action of drum placement, these and the subsequent transfer points will cause the ore to agglomerate. Rakes can also be used on the transfer belts to cause additional agitation and agglomeration of the ore. Sulfuric acid can be sprayed on the ore either before or after agglomeration. The polymers can be used alone to agglomerate the ore fines or they can be used together with known inorganic binders such as lime, or Portland cement (for gold oxide ores). When the polymers are used alone, a typical dosage range is with a weight percent range of 23 g to 0.45 kg (0.05 to 1.0 lbs) per ton of ore. The dosage can not be established with any degree of position, since it depends on the polymer of the particular ore treated. The following examples are presented to describe the preferred embodiments and utilities of the invention and does not mean that it limits the invention, unless otherwise stated in the claims appended hereto.

Example 1 To determine the effectiveness of this treatment as an auxiliary in the leaching process, ore samples are obtained with a crushed size of < 13 mm (<34 inches) of ore containing gold obtained from a western mining facility and placed in biruet columns of 15 cm (6") internal diameter The polymer treatments tested were constituted as 1% polymer inverts in running water For each polymer tested, a 1% solution was added in a dosage of 113 g (0.25 pounds / ton) for each test column, 1-2.5% sulfuric acid leaching solution was also added to each test column. All tested polymers were available from Nalco Chemical Company of Naperville, Illinois. After standing for 24 hours, an initial stacking height of the treated ore was measured. The eluent was collected at a rate of 3.7 ml / min for 10 days and recirculated through the column. Subsequently the stacking height was re-measured after 24, 48 and 73 hours and at the end of the evaluation. Through the test, the pH was about 1.8 to 2.0. Table I includes the results of the test. The% subsidence was calculated from the percentage of change between the initial height and the final height at the end of the evaluation. A lower sink% value is preferable because of a lower understanding of the ore in the column which provides higher recoveries. The density of the ore treated on the column is measured by volume and weight after treatment compared to the column, and the weight before treatment (the weight of the ore, in pounds, divided by the cubic feet of space in the column By the ore sample, a smaller change in ore density is advantageous for the leaching process because there is less radial understanding of the ore which provides better flow of extractant through the ore sample. This invention was compared with conventional single polymer treatments.G, a low molecular weight cationic polymer, was not tested alone because it is well known that such low molecular weight cationic polymers do not exhibit activity in this type of system. results indicate that the combination of cationic and anionic polymers is more effective than a single polymeric binder treatment agent.

TABLE I Test Column = provide moar e po acr aacr ato e so o, -,, e.; po nero an nco qu o B = poly (acrylamide); liquid non-ionic polymer C = 70/30 molar ratio of poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate), 25-30,000,000 of P.M .; liquid anionic polymer; D = molar ratio of 60/40 of poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate), 25-30,000,000 of P.M .; liquid anionic polymer; E = 50/50 molar ratio of poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride / acrylamide) 1-1,500,000 of P.M .; cationic latex polymer F = 90/10 molar ratio of polyacrylamide / diallyldimethylammonium chloride) 10-15,000,000, of P.M .; cationic latex polymer G = 20% solution of poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride), liquid cationic polymer 30-150,000 of P.M.

Example 2 Polymeric treatments were evaluated to determine their utility as agglomeration aids in the following manner. Copper test ore was obtained from a western mining facility. To prepare the ore for testing, it was first sifted to < 13 mm (< Jé inches). The sieved ore is then mixed with a small cement mixer. A solution of the polymeric treatment to be treated and concentrated sulfuric acid is then sprayed onto the cascaded ore mixture within the cement mixer to form agglomerates. The composition to be tested is added to the spray water to obtain good mixing through the ore. Subsequent to the spray treatment, the agglomerates are added to a 15 cm (6") diameter leachate column, and then left to rest for 24 to 48 hours. An additional 10 g / 1 of sulfuric acid solution is pumped to the top of the column containing the treated ore and allowed to percolate down through the ore. The pregnant solution eluent is collected from an outlet tube at the bottom of the column and analyzed for mineral values. The treatment is more efficient as the percentage of copper that is extracted increases. The agglomerates of fine particles allow the sulfuric acid to flow through more of the ore body unrestricted due to migration of fine ore particles and reduced clay swelling that would block the interstices in the column. This blockage will reduce the surface area of the ore that is available for extraction. The agglomeration of the ore provides more metal copper or gold extracted in the same amount of time without increase in the time of process. This provides a greater efficiency in the extraction of the ore. The combinations of this invention were compared with conventional single polymer pretreatments. Here, again, polymer G was not tested alone because it is well known that low molecular weight cationic polymers that act alone have no effect on these systems. The results in Table II indicate that the combination of cationic and anionic polymers are more effective than a single polymeric binder treatment agent, since a greater percentage of the copper is leached from the column with the combination.

TABLE II Field trial of heap leaching test of a mid-western mining facility A = 70/30 molar ratio of polyacrylamide / sodium acrylate, 2 - 2, 0, of .M .; liquid anionic polymer B = poly (acrylamide); liquid non-ionic polymer C = 70/30 molar ratio of poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate), 25-30,000,000 of P.M .; liquid anionic polymer; D = 60/40 molar ratio of polyphacrylamide / sodium acrylate), 25-30,000,000 of P.M .; liquid anionic polymer; E = 50/50 molar ratio of poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride / acrylamide) 1-1,500,000 of P.M .; cationic latex polymer F = 90/10 molar ratio of polyacrylamide / diallyldimethylammonium chloride) 10-15,000,000, of P.M .; cationic latex polymer G = 20% solution of diallyldimethylammonium polychloride), liquid cationic polymer 30-150,000 of P.M.

Example 3 Laboratory evaluations of the efficiency of the copper cell leaching agglomeration auxiliary were tested in the following manner. 18 kg (40 pounds) of copper ore (obtained from a mining facility in the Midwest) was placed in a cement mixer. The polymeric treatment to be tested was added 900 ml of water, and this solution was then added to the mixing ore, then 545 g of concentrated sulfuric acid was added to the mixing ore, and then the ore was further mixed. The treated ore was placed in a PVC column of 15 cm (6") internal diameter and 1.5 m (5 ') high, covered at the bottom with a 2.5 cm (1 inch) spout and allowed to remain for 2 days After 2 days, 10 g / 1 of sulfuric acid extractant is added to the column at a rate of 4 ml / min.The leachate is collected from the bottom of the column and analyzed to determine how much copper has been collected. extracted at intervals of one to two days At the end of the test period, the contents of the column are recovered and analyzed by residue testing to determine the remaining copper soluble in acid and thus determine how much copper remained in the column, and which had not been subjected to leaching.The procedure used above is used to obtain the results of Table III.The term "rupture" indicates the number of minutes it requires from the moment the extractant flows through the bottom of the column. from the moment in which the ext rayente starts at the top of the ore in the column. A low break number indicates that there is good flow through the column. "None" indicates that there is no flow or that there is plugging of the column due to migration of fine particles or swelling of clay. A positive result (a good agglomeration aid) is indicated where there is extractive flow and reduced sinking. Polymers M and G were not tested alone, because it is well known that low molecular weight cationic polymers acting alone have no effect on these systems. The C / G combination showed a small sink, with respect to a single treatment of C.

TABLE III 3 = poly (acrylamide); liquid non-ionic polymer C = 70/30 molar ratio of poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate), 25-30,000,000 of P.M .; liquid anionic polymer; D = molar ratio of 60/40 of poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate), 25-30,000,000 of P.M .; liquid anionic polymer; F = 90/10 molar ratio of poly (acrylamide / diallyldimethylammonium chloride) 10-15,000,000, of P.M .; cationic latex polymer G = 20% solution of diallyldimethylammonium polychloride), 30-150,000 of P.M, liquid cationic polymer H = poly (acrylamide); dry nonionic polymer l = 25/75 molar ratio of poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate), 25-30,000,000 of P.M. liquid anionic polymer J = poly (acrylic acid), 15-20,000,000 of P.M; liquid anionic polymer; K = 30-70 molar ratio of diallyldimethylammonium polyfloride / acrylamide), 20-25,000,000 MW, liquid cationic polymer L = 20/80 molar ratio of diallyldimethylammonium polyfloride / acrylamine) 5-10,000,000 MW, dry cationic polymer M = proportion mole 99/1 poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride / vinyltrimethoxysilane), liquid cationic polymer, -1,000,000 PM Changes can be made in the composition, operation and arrangement of the method of the present invention described herein without departing from the concept and scope of the invention, as defined in the following claims. It is noted that in relation to this date, the best method known to the applicant to carry out the aforementioned invention, is that which is clear from the present description of the invention.

Claims (28)

CLAIMS Having described the invention as above, the content of the following claims is claimed as property:

1. An improved process for leaching by percolation of minerals from a mineral-containing ore, wherein the ore is first agglomerated with an agglomerating agent, formed in a stack, and then leached by percolation of a leachate solution through the Stacking which extracts the minerals from the agglomerated ore for subsequent recovery, the improvement is characterized in that the agglomerating agent comprises the sequential addition of a water-soluble first polymer and then a second water-soluble polymer to the ore.

2. The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the first polymer is formed from the polymerization of monomers of (meth) acrylic acid, with monomers selected from the group consisting of acrylonitrile, acrylic acid and salts of the same, methacrylamide and salts thereof, N-alkyl acrylamide of Cx-CaO, N, N-dialkylacrylamide of C-C10, N-alkyl-methacrylamide of C1-C10, N, N-dialkylmethacrylamide of C1-C10,, N- arylacrylamide, N, N-diarylacrylamide, N-arylmethacrylamide, N, N-diarylmethacrylamide, N-arylalkyl acrylamide, N, N-diallylalkylacrylamide, N-arylalkyl methacrylamide, N, N-diarylalkylmethacrylamide, maleic anhydride, itaconic acid, vinylsulfonic acid, styrenesulfonic acid, sodium acrylamidomethylpropanesulfonic acid, maleic acid and combinations thereof.

The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the second polymer is formed from the polymerization of (meth) acrylamide monomers with monomers that are selected from the group consisting of: 2-acryloyloxyethyltrimethylammonium, 3-methacrylamido chloride -propyltrimethylammonium, 2-methacryloyloxyethyltrimethylammonium chloride, vinyl acetate, diallyldimethylammonium chloride, vinylpyrrolidinone, acrylonitrile, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of benzyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate sulfate, quaternary salt of cetyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of cetyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of benzylated dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate sulfate and combination of them.

4. The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the second polymer is a homopolymer formed from the polymerization of monomers which are selected from the group consisting of: diallyldimethylammonium chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethyl acrylate chloride, quaternary salt of sodium chloride, benzyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate sulfate, quaternary salt of cetyl dimethylaminoethyl acrylate chloride, quaternary salt of cetyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of benzyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride , quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate sulfate.

5. The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the second polymer is selected from the group consisting of a polymeric reaction product of ethylene dichloride and ammonia including the associated methyl chloride and the quaternary amine salts of - dimethyl sulfate; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin and dimethylamine; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin, dimethylamine and ethylenediamine including associated methyl chloride or quaternary amine salts of methyl sulfate; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin, dimethylamine and ammonia including the associated methyl chloride or the quaternary amine salts of methyl sulfate; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin, dimethylamine hexamethylenediamine including the associated methyl chloride or the quaternary amine salts of methyl sulfate; polymers of guanidine-formaldehyde condensation; condensation polymers of cyanoguanidine-formaldehyde; urea-formaldehyde condensation polymers and polyethyleneimines.

6 The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the first polymer is poly (acrylamide).

The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the first polymer is poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate) and the second polymer is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride).

8. The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the first polymer is poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate) and the second polymer is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride / vinyltrimethoxysilane).

9. The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the first polymer is poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate) and the second polymer is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride).

10. The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the first polymer is poly (acrylamide) and the second polymer is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride / acrylamide).

11. The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the amount of binding agent is in the range from about 23 g to about 0.45 kg (0.05-1.0 pounds) per ton based on the weight of the ore. The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the amount of binding agent is in the range from about 45 g to about 136 g (0.1-0.3 pounds) per ton based on the weight of the ore. The process according to claim 1, characterized in that the ore is selected from the group consisting of gold, silver and copper ores 14. The process according to claim 13, characterized in that the ore is a gold ore and the binder is combined with at least 0.45 kg to 13.6 kg (1-30 pounds) per ton of cement based on the weight of the ore 15. The process according to claim 1, characterized because the second water-soluble polymer is added before the addition of the first water-soluble polymer to the ore 16. An improved process for leaching by percolation of copper from a copper-bearing ore, where the ore first agglomerates with an agglomerating agent, formed in a stack, and then leached by percolation of a leachate solution through the stack which extracts the copper from the agglomerated ore for subsequent recovery, the improvement is characteristic. This is because the agglomerated agent comprises the sequential addition of a water-soluble first polymer and then a second water-soluble polymer to the ore. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the first polymer is formed from the polymerization of acid monomers (meth) acrylic, with monomers selected from the group consisting of acrylonitrile, acrylic acid and salts thereof, methacrylamide and salts thereof, N-alkyl acrylamide CL-C-LQ, N, N-dialkylacrylamide CLG ^ , N-alkylmethacrylamide of L-LO N, N-dialkylmethacrylamide of C 1 -C 10,, N-arylacrylamide, N, N-diarylacrylamide, N-arylmethacrylamide, N, N-diarylmethacrylamide, N-arylalkyl acrylamide, N, N-diallylalkylacrylamide, N -Arylalkylmethacrylamide, N, N-diarylalkylmethacrylamide, maleic anhydride, itaconic acid, vinylsulfonic acid, styrenesulfonic acid, sodium acrylamidomethylpropanesulfonic acid, maleic acid and combinations thereof. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the second polymer is formed from the polymerization of (meth) acrylamide monomers with monomers that are selected from the group consisting of: 2-acryloyloxyethyltrimethylammonium, 3-methacrylamido chloride -propyltrimethylammonium, 2-methacryloyloxyethyltrimethylammonium chloride, vinyl acetate, diallyldimethylammonium chloride, vinylpyrrolidinone, acrylonitrile, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of benzyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate sulfate, quaternary salt of cetyl dimethylaminoethyl acrylate chloride, quaternary salt of cetyl dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of benzylated dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate sulfate and combination ations of the same. 19. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the second polymer is a homopolymer formed of monomers that are selected from the group consisting of: diallyldimethylammonium chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of dimethylaminoethylacrylate chloride of benzyl, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylacrylate sulfate, quaternary salt of cetyl dimethylaminoethyl acrylate chloride, quaternary salt of cetyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of benzyl dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate chloride, quaternary salt of methyl dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate sulfate. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the second polymer is selected from the group consisting of a polymeric reaction product of ethylene dichloride and ammonia including the associated methyl chloride and the quaternary amine sulphate salts of dimethyl; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin and dimethylamine; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin, dimethylamine and ethylenediamine including associated methyl chloride or quaternary amine salts of methyl sulfate; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin, dimethylamine and ammonia including the associated methyl chloride or the quaternary amine salts of methyl sulfate; a polymeric reaction product of epichlorohydrin, dimethylamine hexamethylenediamine including the associated methyl chloride or the quaternary amine salts of methyl sulfate; polymers of guanidine-formaldehyde condensation; condensation polymers of cyanoguanidine-formaldehyde; urea-formaldehyde condensation polymers and polyethyleneimines. 21. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the first polymer is poly (acrylamide). 22. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the first polymer is poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate) and the second polymer is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride). 23. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the first polymer is poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate) and the second polymer is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride / vinyltrimethoxysilane). 24. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the first polymer is poly (acrylamide / sodium acrylate) and the second polymer is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride). 25. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the first polymer is poly (acrylamide) and the second polymer is poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride / acrylamide). 26. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the amount of binding agent is in the range from about 23 g to about 0.45 kg (0.05-1.0 pounds) per ton based on the weight of the ore. 27. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the amount of binding agent is in the range from about 45 g to about 136 g (0.1-0.3 pounds) per ton based on the weight of the ore. 28. The process according to claim 16, characterized in that the second water-soluble polymer is added before the addition of the first water-soluble polymer to the ore.