矿业界常常将浸出与湿法冶金等同。可是,浸出只是湿法冶金所包括的诸作业之一。而且,湿法冶金过程可以没有浸出作业,例如,用燃烧过的白云石从海水中沉淀氧化镁,海洋就是镁的一种主要资源。其他主要的湿法冶金作业包括液—固分离,置换、结晶、沉淀、氧化或还原、离子交换、溶剂萃取,电积或电解精炼,其共同特点是具有矿物的水—溶质—固体体系。作为评价湿法冶金潜在应用和局限性的引证,本文回顾了导致目前普遍使用的古代和现代的一些关键性发展。由于湿法冶金的赞成者与反对者基本上都涉及到某些特定的应用,因此本文也论述了可说明湿法冶金的优缺点的某些作业,(以及对湿法冶金有影响的一些辅助作 Mining is often equivalent to leaching and hydrometallurgy. However, leaching is only one of the tasks covered by hydrometallurgy. Moreover, the hydrometallurgical process can be done without leaching, for example, the burning of dolomite precipitates magnesium oxide from seawater, which is a major source of magnesium. Other major hydrometallurgical operations include liquid-solid separation, displacement, crystallization, precipitation, oxidation or reduction, ion exchange, solvent extraction, electrowinning or electrolytic refining, all of which are characterized by a mineral water-solute-solid system. As a reference to evaluate the potential applications and limitations of hydrometallurgy, this article reviews some of the key developments in ancient and modern times that have led to widespread use today. Since both the pro-ducers and the opponents of hydrometallurgy basically cover some specific applications, this paper also discusses some of the tasks that can demonstrate the advantages and disadvantages of hydrometallurgy (and some assistives that have implications for hydrometallurgy) Make