Sodium Hydrosulphide (NaHS) Supplier South Africa

What Is Sodium Hydrosulphide?

Sodium hydrosulphide (NaHS) is the sodium salt of hydrogen sulfide (H₂S), available as yellow-green solid flakes or as an aqueous solution. It is a strong reducing agent and provides sulfide ion (HS⁻, S²⁻) in aqueous solution. NaHS has several important applications in mineral processing: it is the primary activator for sphalerite (zinc sulphide) flotation, sulphidises the surface of oxide copper minerals to make them floatable by xanthate collectors, and precipitates heavy metals from solution as insoluble metal sulfides in hydrometallurgical and mine water treatment processes.

Sulphidisation and Flotation Activation

The main flotation application of NaHS is sulphidisation of copper oxide and secondary copper minerals (malachite, azurite, chrysocolla, chalcocite, covellite from leach zones) to create a synthetic sulphide surface layer that responds to xanthate collectors. This is critical in operations processing transitional and oxide-zone copper ores that contain significant copper oxide minerals alongside primary sulphide copper minerals. NaHS is also used to re-sulphidise partially oxidised sulphide surfaces in circuits processing weathered or partially oxidised ore, restoring collector adsorption sites damaged by surface oxidation.

Levering en afhandeling

Terracore Chemicals supplies sodium hydrosulphide in solid flake form (25 kg bags) and as a solution (IBCs). NaHS releases H₂S gas in contact with acids or at low pH — storage and handling must keep NaHS separated from acids, and all handling must be in adequately ventilated areas with H₂S gas detection in place. Full SDS and handling procedures are supplied with orders.