Lead minerals such as anglesite, cerussite, and galena are used for sources of lead that is extracted and isolated for commercial use. Galena has the highest concentrations of lead, approximately 86%, and it is used most often as a lead source. The isolation of lead is rarely performed on a small scale laboratory basis as lead is toxic and available commercially.
The beginning of the isolation process of lead begins with crushing the ores that it occurs in and then using froth flotation to further concentrate the lead. Froth floatation uses surfactants and wetting agents to separate sulfide ores from minerals. Next, the ore mixture is roasted which results in a mixture of lead oxides, sulfates, and silicates. Lead oxide is collected and reduced through the roasting process in a coke-fired blast furnace. Further treatment in a reverberatory furnace removes any contaminates to result in a highly isolated lead compound. Smelting this compound removes silver contaminants, and the Parkes process removes any gold contaminants.
