Uranium mineralization from gudarukoppu, se-margin of the cuddapah basin, A.P., India and laboratory-scale mineral processing of its u-ore

U-mineralization in the Gudarukoppu area, close to the SE-margin of India’s Mesoproterozoic Cuddapah basin is of a low-temperature, remobilized, hydro (epi)-thermal vein-type that appears to be a consequence of regional deformation - metamorphism-K-Mg-Fe-P-B-metasomatism, all of which affected the area to different degrees within the structurally weak major shear zone. Its U-ore (quartz apatite cataclasite, assaying 0.29% U3O8 and < 0.01% ThO2) was subjected to a preliminary laboratory-scale mineral processing study. This resulted in 78% U-leachability with 180 kg/ton H2SO4 and 50 kg/ton each of MnO2 and FeSO4 at 45°C temperature. The leached pulp was further subjected to vacuum filtration to separate leach liquor that was then subjected to purification and solvent extraction, when U was precipitated as Magnesium Di-Uranate (yellow cake), analysing 70% U3O8. To reduce both high acid-consumption and operation-cost during processing of the ore for preparation of yellow cake, (a) removal of phosphate by flotation before acid-leaching, (b) introduction of FeSO4 to the leaching circuit to maintain the required oxidation-reduction potential (- 430mv) in the system and (c) extraction of light REEs (~0.25%) from apatite (gangue) are suggested for further study.