Ling, H., Blanpain, B. & Guo, M. of KU Leuven have published a new article entitled “Arsenic Removal and Antimony Recovery from Crude Antimony Trioxide through Selective Evaporation with Air Flow Followed by Thermal Decomposition” in the Journal of Sustainable Metallurgy, 24 September 2025.
In the production of antimony trioxide, arsenic contamination poses a significant environmental and metallurgical challenge. This study develops a two-step refining process combining airflow-assisted selective evaporation with thermal decomposition to remove arsenic and recover antimony efficiently.
By oxidizing Sb₂O₃ into Sb₂O₄ (cervantite), arsenic oxides are preferentially liberated and volatilized, reducing the arsenic content of crude antimony trioxide from 1.5 wt.% to 0.4 wt.% after treatment at 700 °C for 1 h under a 345 mL/min airflow. The purified material, composed of single-phase cervantite, decomposes to volatile Sb₄O₆ above 996 °C. Remarkably, adding carbon lowers this onset to 569 °C, enabling more energy-efficient antimony recovery.
The work provides new insight into the phase chemistry and volatilization behaviour of the Sb–As–O system, opening pathways to cleaner refining routes for secondary antimony and metalloid waste streams.
Reference
Ling, H., Blanpain, B. & Guo, M. (2025). Arsenic Removal and Antimony Recovery from Crude Antimony Trioxide through Selective Evaporation with Air Flow Followed by Thermal Decomposition. Journal of Sustainable Metallurgy, published 24 September 2025.
Acknowledgememts
The authors acknowledge support from KU Leuven and the Journal of Sustainable Metallurgy editorial team.
