Hydrometallurgy is a method for obtaining metals from their ores. It is a technique within the field of
extractive metallurgy involving the use of
aqueous chemistry for the recovery of metals from ores, concentrates, and recycled or residual materials. Metal chemical processing techniques that complement hydrometallurgy are
pyrometallurgy, vapour metallurgy and molten salt electrometallurgy. Hydrometallurgy is typically divided into three general areas:
- Leaching
- Solution concentration and purification
- Metal or metal compound recovery
