Antimony (Sb) is a critical mineral that gets its name from the Greek words “anti” (against) and “monos” (alone). With a name that means “not alone” it’s no wonder that antimony can be hard to separate from other elements. But obtaining pure antimony is important since it is used in batteries, flame retardants, ammunition, semi-conductors and other high-tech applications.

Typical processes for purifying antimony from ore are complex, expensive and harmful to the environment.

In contrast, Molecular Recognition Technology™ (MRT™) recovers pure antimony from copper processing residues in a single-stage separation. No pre- or post-extraction steps are needed to purify the antimony since it can be selectively removed from solutions with SuperLig® 92.

When the leach solution flows through the SuperLig® 92 column, only antimony binds to it while all the other metal ions pass through. Small amounts of simple reagents are used: water to wash the SuperLig® 92 column and hydrochloric acid or sodium chloride to elute pure antimony in a concentrated solution. Some reagents can even be recycled, reducing chemical costs and waste.

Thus, MRT™ provides a more efficient and sustainable way to obtain 99.9% pure antimony.