Researchers at Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman have produced copper oxide nanoparticles in the smelting furnaces of Sarcheshmeh Copper Complex in southeastern Iran.
Researchers at Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman have produced copper oxide nanoparticles in the smelting furnaces of Sarcheshmeh Copper Complex in southeastern Iran.
This was announced by Esmaeil Dareh-Zereshki, member of the Scientific Board of Energy and Environment Research Center of Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Fars News Agency reported.
"The smelting furnaces of Sarcheshmeh Copper Complex produce a few tons of dust that are full of copper-containing minerals every year. We have devised a project regarding the leaching, bioleaching and production of copper sulfate solution from this dust. Then, copper oxide nanoparticles are obtained from this solution," he said.
Regarding the advantages of this research, the researcher said, "We obtained 99.99 percent pure copper oxide nanoparticles, varying in size 40 to 80 nm, from copper sulfate solution with a low concentration of 0.2 to 0.5 m, without using any sophisticated equipment or expensive or toxic organic materials."
Dareh-Zereshki explained that in order to produce the pre-mix solution, 0.5 m sodium carbonate solution was gradually added to 0.5 m copper sulfate solution, which was being stirred by a stirrer and had a temperature of 55°C.
"We continued the process until the greenish sediment was formed. Then, we strained the obtained sediment and rinsed it with distilled water three times. After drying the sediment at 80°C, we exposed it to a temperature of 750°C for two hours. The final product was copper oxide nanoparticle and various analyses verified the fact," he said.
Copper oxide nanoparticles can be used to separate heavy metals from all industrial wastewater, especially in mineral industries, and they can also be used for the betterment of heat transfer properties of liquids such as water and oils.
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