There is such a team in Yunnan Chihong Resources Comprehensive Utilization Co., Ltd. (referred to as Chihong Comprehensive Utilization). After more than 500 days of unremitting efforts and tackling key problems, they have broken through the technical bottleneck of the industry and created a "scratch" germanium precipitation technology-Neto germanium precipitation technology in the field of zinc hydrometallurgy and recovery of small metals, which makes the non-organic germanium deposition technology from a dream to a reality.
The successful research and development of this technology has written a new chapter in the germanium recovery process, which not only creates huge economic benefits, but also contributes to the construction of China's copper industry into a world-class copper-lead-zinc enterprise with global competitiveness, and the team of research and development of this technology is the Chihong comprehensive utilization of Neto germanium slag R & D team awarded the "President's Special Award" of China Copper Industry in 2021.
Make a great dream with a dream
Innovation-driven and value creation are the foundation of enterprise development. In order to effectively recover valuable metal germanium, Chihong comprehensive utilization has been using the tannin acid germanium precipitation process mainly promoted in the industry. In 2019, with the rise in the price of tannic acid, the recovery cost of germanium remains high. At a seminar on technological reform of zinc system held in December 2019, Dai Xingzheng, secretary of the party committee and chairman of Chihong Comprehensive Utilization, proposed that under the circumstances that the price of tannic acid is getting stronger and stronger, it is necessary to start the research and development of non-organic germanium precipitation technology as soon as possible.
At this time, the use of inorganic salts for germanium metal recovery process in the industry does not have any learning and reference experience. When receiving a task, everyone is under pressure, but we all have a common idea: "you have to believe in it before you can see it!"
Don't ask about the future, just care about the ups and downs. In 2019, when the team was first formed, this young team, with an average age of about 30 years old and with a graduate degree or above, had the dream of turning "non-organic germanium precipitation technology" into reality, and with the effort of "setting high goals and challenging the impossible", began the journey of breaking through the border.
Brave "germanium" fearless to overcome difficulties
The first step in R & D is to determine the process plan, which is the "outline" and "collar" of the process. In the face of the situation that there is no experience to learn from, the team decided to carry out research and development by means of theoretical analysis and experiments. Lu Zhanqing, head of the technical department of the company, led the research and development of the project, defined the research direction of the project and coordinated with relevant departments and production units; Fan Maosheng, a hydrometallurgical engineer in the technical department, was responsible for theoretical analysis and experimental research, responsible for collecting theoretical knowledge related to germanium recovery process and organizing experiments; technicians Yu Qiuyan and Xu Anlei of the technical department were specifically responsible for the operation of the experiment and adjusted the parameters according to the experimental results.
Having no precedent is the greatest difficulty. Fan Maosheng, the leader in charge of theoretical analysis and experimental research, said: "during that time, I bought all the books on germanium recycling that could be found in the bookstore, except for the mention in the book that germanium could be precipitated with inorganic salts. There is no available information."
Start the experiment without learning from it. With the accumulated production practice and experimental experience, the R & D team uses the conventional pH control method to carry out the experiment. In the course of the experiment, they successively encountered the problems of "difficult filtration, low efficiency and low taste in slag". For this reason, they have studied the chelating sedimentation process of inorganic elements, improved the filtration effect, accurately located the "chelation" parameters, realized the co-precipitation of germanium metal, persisted in reverse thinking operation, and deduced the process control and operation series of the process from the target germanium precipitation rate; using the superposition principle, the "bull's-eye" problem of slag taste was analyzed and improved from the source, so that the germanium precipitation efficiency reached the target value of "≥ 98".
At this time, the R & D team has achieved success in the experimental stage, but they did not stop and turned to the production equipment configuration and process transformation work.
On May 15, 2021, the project reached production 15 days after the completion of construction and put into production, and the output of germanium slag reached the standard in 25 days. After more than 2000 experiments for more than 500 days and nights, the dust finally settled at the moment of the successful production of germanium residue.
During the days of research and development, four people in the R & D group spent no less than 10 hours a day working on key problems, 30% of which were focused on brainstorming discussions. Before every day's experiment, Lu Zhanqing unswervingly organized everyone to review and analyze the results of the previous day's experiment, and must find out today's direction and goal through the previous day's experiment, so as to ensure that every day's experiment is meaningful and every set of data is valuable.
The small whiteboard of the laboratory is covered with chemical equations and mathematical formulas, scrubbed, scrubbed and written. As night falls, the lights are often on in the laboratory. Team members are used to missing meals, and it is even more common to give up holiday breaks. Xu Anlei, the youngest member of the team, had gray hair on her head sometime. The only girl in the team, Yu Qiuyan, a young mother of two, often discussed with everyone in the group late into the night after putting her child to sleep. Lu Zhanqing and Fan Maosheng stayed in the lab for countless nights because of a "flash of light." just to verify the idea in mind, they took a rest on the sofa when they were tired. Their power source comes from the trust of leaders at all levels and the understanding and support of their families. Make them firmly believe that "a sharp sword needs to be polished", adhere to the style of "if you bite the green hill, you will never relax", carry forward the enterprise spirit of "making great efforts to govern, innovate and strive for strength," and forge ahead bravely on the road of independent innovation.
There is a long way to go and a horse and a whip.
In March 2021, in order to break through the market, Lu Zhanqing and Fan Maosheng, together with the marketing department, actively went to the market and found customers. In the face of customers' doubts, they bring the output of Neto germanium slag to the customer enterprise site to do experiments, so that customers witness the excellent characteristics of the products. Through this way, so that customers have the most intuitive feeling, have quoted prices for cooperation. Through unremitting efforts, they successfully opened the channel for the export of germanium dregs, so that their efforts have been rewarded.
In 2022, standing at a new starting point, the R & D team invested in the research and development of new projects. Although exciting achievements have been made in inorganic germanium precipitation technology, there is still a long way to go, which is the consensus of R & D personnel.
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "only through innovation can we strengthen ourselves and strive for the first place. We must unswervingly follow the path of independent innovation and firmly control the initiative of innovation and development in our own hands." This further strengthens Chihong's determination and confidence in comprehensive utilization to adhere to innovation-driven development and improve the ability of independent innovation of enterprises.
In 2022, on the new journey of connotative high-quality development of Chinalco and China Copper, the R & D team will unswervingly forge ahead on the scientific research road of independent innovation and continue to dig deep into the research and utilization of germanium metal to create greater value.
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