Hydrometallurgical extraction of zinc from Jordanian electric arc furnace dust

Zinc was extracted in a Jordanian Steel Plant using an electric arc furnace dust. Sulfuric, nitric and hydrochloric acids were used at different concentrations to recover zinc from dust particles. The highest zinc extraction was obtained at low acid concentration of less than 1 mol/L in the order of H2SO4 followed by HNO3 and then HCl. The kinetics of zinc extraction using H2SO4 showed a maximum zinc recovery of 72% obtained by using 0.1 mol/L acid concentration, 900 rpm agitation speed and 50 °C.