Uranium carbonate leaching was performed on normal-grade Algerian ore, using a 2(4 - 1) fractional design. Effects of four working parameters: temperature, time, particle size, and carbonate dosage, taken each one at two levels, on the uranium recovery efficiency, were assessed and optimized. Results revealed that uranium can be quantitatively leached from Tahaggart's ore at a temperature of 140 degrees C, time of 4 h, a particle size of <300 mu m, and a carbonate dosage of 0.08 g/g(ore). Furthermore, by employing a regression analysis, an empirical model was developed to predict the recovery yield in the studied range of conditions. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.