3.4.5 Drying

The fourth stage in the copper concentrating process consists of drying the ore slurry.

This is a simple process that consists of heating the slurry in a furnace to evaporate the remaining water. The end result is an ore concentrate cake.

Various types of furnace are used for this operation, including a rotary furnace.

		Rotary furnace
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Some machines, such as an automatic pressure filter, both filter and dry the ore.

		An automatic pressure filter. This machine filters and dries the ore.
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		Interior of the automatic pressure filter with dried copper concentrate cakes.
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		Dried copper concentrate.
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