Nickel Laterite Smelting Processes and Some Examples of Recent Possible Modifications to the Conventional Route

Abstract

The treatment of laterites has been a research hotspot in extractive metallurgy over the past decades. Industrially, the pyrometallurgical treatment of laterites is mostly accomplished with a well-established method, namely, the rotary kiln–electric arc furnace (RKEF) process, which includes three main operations—calcination, prereduction, and smelting—followed by further refining for the removal of impurities from the raw ferro-nickel. As indicated in many studies of the RKEF process, the major downside of this method is its high energy consumption. Efforts have been made to lower this consumption. Furthermore, several new processes have been proposed. Among these, low-grade ferro-nickel production is regarded as the most widely and industrially used process after traditional RKEF operation. Although not widespread, other alternative processes of industrial scale have been generated since the start of the millennium. Recently, certain innovative processes have been tested either in the laboratory or at pilot-scale. In this paper, a literature review related to the smelting of laterites is made, and an emphasis on new processes and some examples of new developments in the RKEF process are presented.

Replacing Fossil Carbon in the Production of Ferroalloys with a Focus on Bio-Based Carbon: A Review

“…Pre-reduction and pre-heating of nickel ore are commonly used in the rotary kiln/electric furnace (RKEF) smelting process to lower the energy consumption in the electric furnace. Most commonly fossil carbon like anthracite, bituminous coal or lignite coal is used in the rotary kiln operation [93][94][95][96][97][98][99]. However, it is also possible to use bio-based carbon instead of fossil carbon in rotary kilns.…”

Temperature Prediction Using Multivariate Time Series Deep Learning in the Lining of an Electric Arc Furnace for Ferronickel Production

“…In the case of CMSA, the main product is ferronickel (FeNi), which is a material used in different industries such as electronics, manufacturing, and automotive, among others. This material is obtaining in a metallurgical procedure after mining laterites and high-Ni sulfide ores [ 20 ]. Figure 1 shows a diagram depicting the ferronickel extraction process.…”

Techno economic analysis of nickel laterite ore processing to become Nickel Pig Iron (NPI) using Hot Blast Cupola Furnace

“…Dari perhitungan di atas, diperoleh nilai IRR sebesar 23,28% dan PBP sebesar 4 tahun 10 bulan 24 hari (4,8 tahun) dimana teknologi pengolahan bijih nikel laterit menjadi NPI menggunakan hot blast cupola furnace tersebut menunjukkan nilai ekonomi yang lebih baik jika dibandingkan menggunakan teknologi blast furnace, dimana diperolah nilai IRR sebesar 18% dan PBP 6,19 tahun (Haryadi, 2017). Selain itu Chukwuleke (2009) juga menyatakan bahwa peleburan bijih nikel laterit menggunakan tungku blast furnace,merupakan sebuah teknologi dengan investasi yang sangat besar, dengan temperatur proses yang cukup tinggi (1500-1600 o C), selain itu tungku tersebut juga memberikan dampak pencemaran udara yang cukup tinggi (Keskinkilic, 2019). Oleh karena itu, penggunaan hot blast cupola furnace diharapkan mampu memecahkan solusi permasalahan terkait mahalnya investasi dan biaya produksi pengolahan bijih nikel laterit menjadi logam NPI.…”