To
recover potassium from feldspar, a biowaste, i.e., eggshell,
was used. The chief composition of eggshells is calcite. As it is
a rich source of Ca, hence it is used with HCl to produce calcium
chloride. Feldspar is an aluminosilicate mineral that bears potassium
in the interstitial sites. To unlock the potassium from the interstitial
sites, it was roasted with calcium chloride prepared by mixing eggshell
and hydrochloric acid. At the roasting temperature, CaCl2 melts and penetrates into the aluminosilicate matrix to replace
K with Ca. Potassium ion released from the silicate matrix combines
with chloride ions to form potassium chloride, which solubilized in
water during the leaching process of the roasted feldspar. For elucidation
of the mechanism of the roasting process, the shrinking core model
was applied to the roast–leach data, and diffusion through
the product layer was inferred as the rate-determining step. The order
of the roasting process was found to be 2.158 and activation energy
calculated to be 155.3 kJ/mol. Apart from potassium, sodium and excess
calcium also got co-leached. To recover potassium from the leach liquor
selectively, sodium perchlorate was added to precipitate potassium
as KClO4. Further, potassium perchlorate was thermally
decomposed to give fertilizer grade potassium chloride (purity: 99.81%).