A process for the recovery of arsenic trioxide from acid solutions,
particularly the aqueous acid effluent produced by a gas-washing process
in the pyrometallurgy of copper sulfide ores is provided. Generally, the
process comprises concentrating the acid solution in one or more
evaporators in series; crystallizing arsenic contained in the
concentrated solution as arsenic trioxide crystals; filtering the
crystallized solution to obtain a solid phase comprising impure arsenic
trioxide crystals; and purifying the solid phase to obtain a purified
crystal product comprising arsenic trioxide. The process produces a
commercially salable arsenic trioxide product without producing any solid
or liquid residues subject to special handling or treatment regulations.