Roasting is a process of oxidizing zinc sulfide concentrates at high temperatures into an impure zinc oxide, called "Zinc Calcine". The chemical reactions that take place are as follows:
Approximately 90% of zinc in concentrates are oxidized to zinc oxide. However, at the roasting temperatures around 10% of the zinc reacts with the iron impurities of the zinc sulfide concentrates to form zinc ferrite. A byproduct of roasting is sulfur dioxide, which is further processed into sulfuric acid, a commodity. The linked refinery flow sheet shows a schematic of Noranda's eastern Canadian zinc roasting operation
The process of roasting varies based on the type of roaster used. There are three types of roasters: multiple-hearth, suspension, and fluidized-bed.