LibertyCES Data › Hydrometallurgical Material Selection

Hydrometallurgical Duty-Class Material Selection

Raw data: JSON / CSV. Source: LibertyCES mining/hydrometallurgical duty-class research (2026-09-10/11), derived from named vendor literature and real engineering rules already fired on this duty class — see the "Vendor source" column for the exact citation on every row.

Detail per row

Each row above links to the real vendor finding behind it:

• Concentrated sulfuric acid bulk storage (93-98%) — Carbon Steel: Passivates at 93-98% H2SO4, forming a protective coating that makes concentrated acid LESS corrosive to carbon steel than dilute acid -- the standard, economical bulk-storage material at this concentration band, not a fallback. (Source: General Industries Inc., ProTank)
• Concentrated sulfuric acid bulk storage (98%) — Generic XLPE (rotomolded, no named vendor spec): ProTank: fails within 6 months of service at 98%. Never quote a generic catalog XLPE tank at this concentration. (Source: ProTank)
• Concentrated sulfuric acid, under 11,000 gal and under 15 ft tall — XLPE + OR-1000 antioxidant surface (Poly Processing named product): Poly Processing's own published "11/15 rule": any Poly Processing tank under 11,000 gallons and under 15 feet tall is fine for sulfuric acid storage. SAFE-Tank if no secondary containment exists, IMFO if it does. (Source: Poly Processing)
• Concentrated sulfuric acid bulk storage — HDLPE resin #880046 (Snyder named product, linear polyethylene, not crosslinked): A genuinely different polymer from XLPE -- Snyder's spec and ProTank's XLPE warning are not actually in conflict; they describe different materials. Built to ASTM D1998, SG to 1.9. (Source: Snyder Industries)
• Concentrated sulfuric acid bulk storage — Extrusion-wound HDPE/PP, walls to 6 inches (Houston PolyTank named product): No molded-in stresses (the actual XLPE failure mechanism), engineered to German DVS 2205 standard. Vendor names sulfuric acid explicitly as a service it handles. (Source: Houston PolyTank)
• Sulfuric acid bulk storage — FRP (fiberglass reinforced plastic): FRP tops out around 80% H2SO4; no public resin/concentration chart exists above that -- resin selection above 80% must be engineered per-project with the vendor, not assumed from a catalog. (Source: Perry Fiberglass, ProTank)
• Sulfuric acid piping and valves — PVDF: At 98.3%+ concentration, sulfuric acid carries a natural sulfur trioxide (SO3) contaminant that attacks and stress-fractures PVDF. (Source: Griffco Valve (TIB2010-001))
• Sulfuric acid piping and valves — Noryl: Same SO3 attack mechanism as PVDF above 98.3%. (Source: Griffco Valve (TIB2010-001))
• Concentrated sulfuric acid piping and valves — Halar / ECTFE: Independently confirmed by a second vendor: Asahi/America's own South Florida RO plant case study specified Ultra Proline (ECTFE/Halar) + DuoPro for sulfuric acid specifically while every other chemical on the job used standard Chem Proline PE. (Source: Griffco Valve; Asahi/America (asahi-america-advanced-pe-piping.md))
• Concentrated sulfuric acid piping and valves — PTFE, one-piece flanged construction only: Threaded PTFE fails by cold-flow leakage at the joint, not chemical attack -- a mechanical failure mode, not a chemistry one. (Source: Griffco Valve (TIB2010-001))
• Concentrated sulfuric acid piping, valves, and pumps — Alloy 20: Real documented case study: a Chilean copper mine and other real installs use Alloy 20 wetted parts for concentrated sulfuric acid transfer. Not a standard catalog SKU for most pump vendors -- factor real lead time into any quote. (Source: Griffco Valve; Carver Pump case study)
• Heap-leach control valve diaphragm (75/90/100 Series MIN configuration) — ALD70 elastomer: Hard limit even when the valve body/liner material handles the chemical fine at higher temperature -- the diaphragm elastomer is the limiting material, not the body. Always verify operating temperature against the diaphragm rating specifically. (Source: Netafim Mining Products catalog)
• Heap-leach control valve diaphragm — ALD70 elastomer: Rated flatly Not Good even at 10% nitric acid. (Source: Netafim Mining Products catalog)
• Heap-leach control valve diaphragm — ALD70 elastomer: Netafim's own catalog identifies the fix: order the valve with Hastelloy wetted components instead, explicitly because Hastelloy resists chlorine gas, hypochlorite, and chlorine dioxide solutions. (Source: Netafim Mining Products catalog)
• Leaching Control Skid manifold (gold/silver circuit) — Polypropylene + SST316: Real, named dual-chemistry rating -- the same skid family is rated for both major heap-leaching chemistries (copper SX/EW raffinate and gold/silver cyanide). (Source: Netafim Mining Products catalog (Leaching Control Skid))
• Leaching Control Skid manifold (copper circuit) — Polypropylene + SST316: Rated to 110 F for raffinate service specifically. (Source: Netafim Mining Products catalog (Leaching Control Skid))
• Leach-circuit slurry transfer, general — Centrifugal (any material): Centrifugal pumps fail via seal degradation in abrasive slurry service, regardless of wetted material. (Source: existing rule abrasive-slurry-no-centrifugal)
• Leach-circuit slurry transfer, general — Electric diaphragm pump (Graco QUANTM): Seal-less, self-priming, runs dry, removes the failure mode that kills centrifugal pumps in this duty. (Source: existing rule abrasive-slurry-no-centrifugal)
• Abrasive, solids-bearing leach solution transfer/dosing — Peristaltic / hose pump (Graco SoloTech or ProMinent DULCOFLEX), CSM/Hypalon hose: Hose-only wetted path -- no check valves, seals, or glands in the fluid path -- the correct architecture for abrasive, solids-bearing streams. Two independent roster vendors now confirm this architecture. (Source: Graco (existing case study); ProMinent (prominent-mining.md))
• Abrasive slurry isolation / shutoff — Knife gate valve (AVCO 6100 Series, 304SS/316SS/Hastelloy): Beveled, polished/lapped gate specifically engineered to cut through solids and seal tighter when closed. Meets MSS-SP-81 and TAPPI TIS 405-8. (Source: AVCO Valve (avco-valve-mining.md))
• Light dewatering / dirty water only (SG ~1.05) — Schurco P Series: Explicitly NOT a general heavy-slurry pump despite sharing the Schurco family name -- a real design/duty mismatch if misapplied. (Source: existing rule schurco-p-series-light-slurry-only)
• Combined corrosive + abrasive leach-circuit brine slurry — Glass Ceramic Matrix Composite (Fluidtrol): Seamless-cast fiberglass/ceramic/vinyl ester matrix engineered for the case where a fluid is simultaneously corrosive AND abrasive -- PVDF solves corrosion, not abrasion; hardened alloys solve abrasion, not broad chemical resistance. (Source: existing rule combined-corrosion-abrasion-glass-ceramic-strainer)

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Source: Liberty Chemical Equipment & Supply, Inc. (LibertyCES) — engineering data compiled and reviewed by James Riggins, Founder, LibertyCES, from real vendor and field-verified sources. For a free spec review, call James at (559) 395-5500 or email [email protected] / [email protected]. Website: libertyces.com.